Emmanuel Petit interview: Gunners ghosting out of the title race

In an exclusive interview with Instant Casino, Arsenal legend Manu Petit says he is frightened by Gunners ghosting out of the title race. The Former World Cup winner also demands answers around Sporting Director Edu’s swift exit from North London.

Premier League observations

Question: An interesting weekend of results in the Premier League. What surprised you, what shocked you and what did you think was superb? 

Emmanuel Petit: “Well, I was very impressed with Bournemouth winning against Manchester City. When you look at the game, they didn’t steal the victory. After winning against Arsenal two weeks ago, they didn’t steal the victory as well against Arsenal. I’m very impressed with what they’ve done so far against the two top teams in the Premier League. 

I was very impressed as well with the start of the season from Nottingham Forest. With all the players they bought, just like last season, you thought to yourself, it’s going to be the same thing as last season, but they bought some really good players and they play as a unit, as a team now, and they play good football. So those two teams for me have been a very good surprise this weekend.

I was very pleased with the second half of Spurs against Aston Villa yesterday, I watched the game. It’s like taking Eurostar, you know, leaving from Paris, going to London. When you leave Paris and you arrive in London at St. Pancras, you have the feeling that, did I sleep during the journey? Because somebody took me and transferred me to another train station in another country.

It was the same with what happened with Spurs against Aston Villa. If you, for example, you had to leave the game at half-time and then you switch on the media after the game, you think to yourself, what the *** is going on?

Because they scored four goals, they thrashed Aston Villa, who are a team that is very hard to score against. And on top of it, Son was substituted 35 minutes before the end of the game. That was a good surprise.

I’ll put Chelsea in as a positive too. The way they’re dealing with everything since the start of the season. I think it’s a good, good surprise so far. Some of the players are becoming some of the best in their position in the Premier League, but as well in Europe.

At the same time, I was very upset this weekend. For me, Arsenal were terrible against Newcastle. It’s becoming worrying for Arsenal. The last few games have not been very good at all. They lost their soul, they lost the way they used to play. They’ve lost their DNA.“ 

Q: At this moment in time, who would you tip to finish in the top four and why?

Emmanuel Petit: “I said last week that Chelsea will be in the top four at the end of the season. They are actually in the top four. I would say that Liverpool, City, Chelsea and Arsenal will be in the top four.

It’s a long way to go in the title race. The improvement of Chelsea has been amazing from the start of the season, and they’ve been growing as a team, as a unit, but as well, step by step, confidence has been coming back for many players now, so the spine of the team is becoming very good. 

So yes, if they can win against Arsenal, that would be a huge blow for Arsenal first. But that would be a very good message to send to the dressing room and to the fans for Chelsea. That would tell the world that they are able to do something this season because it’s only November and there’s still seven months to go, but you would have to say, that everyone at Stamford Bridge would be confident that something good can happen in west London this season.

Chelsea are only seven points off the top of the Premier League. It’s a big gap, but in another way, everybody can win against everybody in the Premier League and if you keep winning, you never know what can happen.”

Q: If you had to name one, who do you think has been the best player in the Premier League this season? 

Emmanuel Petit: “There’s a few names coming up in my mind when I think about who the best player in the Premier League has been this season.

I was very impressed with Caicedo against Manchester United. He was amazing against Liverpool, and in these two games, he was master on the pitch. I will probably say as well, Cole Palmer.

Arsenal, from the start of the season, the only one that has been playing on the same level is Saka. The rest, they can do much better than that. 

Another guy that has impressed me a lot as well is Chris Wood with Nottingham Forest. He’s enjoying his game. He has a team that plays for him. He received so many crosses, and they play for him all the time. 

One more player that has impressed me as well, but it’s not a surprise for me: Bryan Mbuemo at Brentford. I’m a big fan of his because I think he’s great technically but also in terms of movement.

He reminds me of the best version of Alex Lacazette and I really like what he’s done so far this season.”

Q: Who is the player that you’ve expected more from this season? 

Emmanuel Petit: “Declan Rice is the player that I’ve expected more from this season. I think he’s been struggling from the start of the season. The red card he received in August was probably a sign. I hope he comes back stronger, but he’s been below par so far.” 

Football headlines

Q: We’ve spoken about it before, you didn’t think it would happen, but Rodri won the Ballon d’Or. How pleased are you that the award went to the Manchester City man? 

Emmanuel Petit: “I was pleased that Rodri won the Ballon d’Or and I didn’t see that coming, because to be honest with you it’s very rare that a midfielder, defender or goalkeeper wins the Ballon d’Or. I never watch the Ballon d’Or because for me this is exactly what I don’t like in football. This is the definition of what we should not be on the pitch: individuals.

When I look at what Rodri has done for his country and his club for the last two seasons. I remember when he scored the winning goal in the Champions League final. He has been amazing for years at Manchester City. He’s running the midfield. He’s one of the best in his position, and he won a big title with this country as well. 

I know that Vinicius was probably the favourite to win the Ballon d’Or. Maybe because there were so many Real Madrid players on the shortlist, it went against him this season. 

The most difficult thing to do in football is to score goals. We are living in a world that is based on statistics, and when I look at Rodri, he’s got statistics that Vinicius doesn’t have. So, I’m happy. I know that a lot of people are unhappy about Rodri winning it but I don’t care.”

Q: Vinicius and the Ballon d’Or 

Emmanuel Petit: “Maybe Vinicius will win the Ballon d’Or next season. He’s young, he still has the chance to win, but for me, you know, I’m very happy for Rodri because, Iniesta should have won a Ballon d’Or. Xavi should have won a Ballon d’Or, and those guys didn’t get it.

I’m afraid to say to those people that were unhappy about Rodri winning it, for once, a player who has been amazing for years has won it, but he’s not playing as a striker or winger. Thank you very much to those who have voted for Rodri.”

Q: Manchester United decided to pull the trigger on Erik Ten Hag’s time at the club last week. What do you think was ultimately the Dutchman’s downfall at Manchester United? Should he have expected more from a group of players that badly underperformed or does he need to take most of the responsibility given the money that was spent at the club? 

Emmanuel Petit: “The results of Manchester United simply weren’t good enough under Erik Ten Hag. Players didn’t improve under him. That is a deadly combination if you’re a manager of a top club and you want to stay in the job.  

I also don’t think that Ten Hag’s communication was good enough. He was not good in the press conferences in terms of explaining what he wants to do on the pitch, and he was always trying to find excuses, while trying to put in the front of people’s minds what he won, what he did for Manchester United. 

Smile, joy, passion, communication. They weren’t there for Ten Hag. 

You have to also question his record in the transfer market. He was responsible for signing so many players that underperformed and failed. I think he signed far too many players that he knew from Holland too. So much money has been spent on the players that he’s been asking for.”

Q: On Ruben Amorim’s appointment

Emmanuel Petit: “The new guy that’s going in there, Amorim, he’s been great in Portugal. But this is a big, big job. It’s a big step up. I know Lisbon are a huge club in Portugal, but Manchester United are a monster.

Amorim has been doing an amazing job with Sporting in Portugal. I remember when he came to the club as a manager, the club was struggling financially as well as on the pitch. They were not there on the pitch; they were not there off the pitch. They were struggling in so many ways, and in many ways, there are a lot of parallels that you could draw between Lisbon and United, only United are bigger. 

From the start, he did a great job. He got inside the club, the spine of the club, and he quickly established the way he wants his team to play, a typical 3-4-3. And all of a sudden, after a couple of years, starting after COVID-19, he won the title in Portugal. And he won it again. They won the cup twice. 

Now, when you look at the club, they’re in very good shape financially and very good shape on the pitch

Most importantly, he has put Sporting inside the rivalry between Porto and Benfica.
Those two clubs have been winning titles for ages and dominating Portuguese football.  For the last four years, Sporting has been challenging for the title, and at the moment, they are first. 

The best scorer in Portugal is Viktor Gyokeres with 16 goals, and they play very good football. They are taking a lot of risks on the pitch. He’s done great, great things in Portugal.

In terms of communication, he’s the complete opposite of Ten Hag. He’s always explaining what he wants to do with his team in a press conference. He’s never hiding. 

There’s going to be something very new, tactically as well. Is he going to play with three at the back with Manchester United? I want to see that because he’s been playing with this system for years. He’s been winning with it. 

If you look at the squad at Manchester United and you look at the tactics he wants to play, that can be something good for Manchester United.” 

Q: Amorim has good pedigree, but he’s still a young manager at 39. Is he walking into a baptism of fire and can he handle it do you think? 

Emmanuel Petit: “Mourinho was the same, remember, when he left Portugal. The same questions were asked about him. Can he do it in the Premier League? He won many trophies. He was one of the best managers for at least a decade. 

I won’t say that Amorim will change Manchester United’s fortunes straight away. With what’s happening at Manchester United, it will take time, but I have the feeling that he can change a few things this season and start to build towards success. 

For me, the quality of players at Manchester United in some positions is not good enough. Starting from the midfield, I think they need to add quality players and wingers as well.

I’m sorry, but I’m not totally convinced about Garnacho, about Amad, Rashford. He’s got a lot of work to do.

He can change a few things, starting with the tactics, which will bring more confidence back to the team. 

I think he can also give the Manchester United fans something that they have been waiting ages for: attacking football. He can get them to play the way they used to with attacking players that come at the opponent like waves. That’s exactly how he plays with Sporting.

If you look at Sporting playing, they are very enjoyable to watch. He needs to bring back the joy at Manchester United. He needs to bring back the joy on the pitch, and if he can do that, he can change things.”

Q: Alexander-Arnold and Real Madrid is a story that isn’t going away. Would the opportunity to play for Real Madrid be too difficult for him to turn down given his success at Liverpool? 

Emmanuel Petit: “You know what, I’m not sure about Alexander-Arnold and Real Madrid. He has the opportunity to stay at a huge club like Liverpool and he can become one of the best players in the Liverpool history of a legendary and special club like Liverpool. That has to be something that is very interesting to him, especially as a local boy and a fan of the club. 

If he goes to Madrid, he’s going to play every single season hoping to win the Champions League, but I think it’s the same for Liverpool. Liverpool, every time they are involved in the Champions League, they want to win, but they don’t have the same recent history as Madrid in the competition. Madrid is the reference in the Champions League, but Liverpool is a huge club.

Klopp put the club on a stage, and they should be on that stage forever. They are a club that should always be competing for the biggest prizes in football. 

The work of Slot, that’s been amazing since he’s come in. You should ask me this question next May, because we’ll know more about the future of Van Dijk and Mo Salah and Liverpool may have won something by then too.”

Q: Victor Osimhen keeps banging the goals in on loan at Galatasaray. Do you think a top Premier League club may be thinking about making an ambitious move for him when the January transfer window opens and what club would he suit? 

Emmanuel Petit: “I think that’s why he left for Galatasaray. I think he knew that he needed to go out and play, score goals, and hope that a top team in the Premier League will come and get him from Turkey. 

I’m sorry, but when you’re his age, with his talent, you can’t tell me that his ambition was to go and play in Turkey. Nobody with his ability would usually swap Napoli for
Galatasaray. Galatasaray is a transition club. 

So, he’s definitely expecting to leave there, but is he going to the Premier League? I’m not sure about that because some players, when they leave big, big clubs and they go to Turkey, in some way, it’s probably a transition before going to Saudi Arabia or something like that, and then it becomes about money and not about ambition. 

For me, the big question surrounding his name is very simple. Is he interested in putting his name in football history? Or is he only interested in earning? And if he’s interested in putting his name in football history, then he has to come to the Premier League.” 

Arsenal

Q: Arsenal lost at Newcastle. Things don’t look right at the moment – what is going wrong at your old club this season?

Emmanuel Petit: “At Arsenal, everything looks sloppy and with no inspiration, no creativity. They were not able to change the rhythm of the game against Newcastle and that is really worrying for me. They were unable to enter the last third of the pitch against Newcastle. They were struggling to create chances, opportunities. That’s not good enough.

A lot of players are so far away from their level. You can argue that they are missing important players, but this is not an excuse.

When you fight for the title and your name is Arsenal, you shouldn’t be afraid or worried of losing one or two top players from the first 11. You should have options and I’ve been saying that for the last two years: Arsenal’s squad needs to be better.  

The improvement of Arsenal has been amazing, but the lack of bench options for Arteta to change the game with substitutions or rotate players simply isn’t there. 

You can see that a lot of players have been suffering for the last 2-3 seasons, physically and mentally. They are not fresh anymore in their mind and bodies. They are losing something very important, the DNA of their game, and they are struggling.

Sometimes I have the feeling they are playing like ghosts on the pitch. They are trying to evolve the same way they used to, but they can’t find the movement, the path, the rhythm and the speed of the game. I’m worried about that because when I look at the schedule, Arsenal are playing games against top games, starting with the Champions League against Inter Milan and then next weekend against Chelsea.

Chelsea is going to be a very, very good test for Arsenal because Chelsea are probably one of the most exciting teams in the Premier League at the moment.”  

Petit outlines Arsenal concerns

Emmanuel Petit: “I’m worried about a few things at Arsenal, and when I look at the future, I hope that Arsenal can come back from this and this is just a blip. 

Arsenal needs some players to raise their level on the pitch, but they’re missing something very important for me. They’re missing important players in midfield. You can see that in terms of rotation. Declan Rice should be given a rest. I’m watching him and you can see that he’s struggling physically and mentally.

I’m worried about that because it’s not the same for Manchester City. The loss of Rodri has been hard to deal with, but they have options on the bench and are not worried about his absence. When key players are out at City, they cope. They’ve demonstrated that for the last two years. They can cope with missing important players in the first 11, no problem at all.

When I look at Chelsea, look at the amount of players they have. 

When I look at Manchester United, maybe something is going to change with Amorim.

When I look at Liverpool, they were strolling against Brighton in the first half and then something switched, they kept the same way they’ve been playing all season, and they won the game. 

Honestly, I don’t know what to think actually. They need a victory very, very soon.”

Q: Mikel Arteta slammed his teams consistency. How does that change and is this match the reality check this team needs to get back on track given Man City also lost? 

Emmanuel Petit: “I know that Arteta has been very upset about that lack of consistency from his team. For me, mentally and physically, Arsenal don’t look the same because poor form and a lack of confidence has an impact on what the players should do on the pitch in terms of possession of the ball and controlling the rhythm as well. It is very important, the way they want to play, they have to play just like Manchester City in the opponents half.

Most of the time they play in the opponents half, they are struggling to build the game from behind. For me this is the most worrying aspect. How can they get back the DNA in terms of movement, the fluidity, the passing, controlling the rhythm? It’s probably mental, but for me it’s also physical.

The best example for that is Declan Rice. During the game against Newcastle, we saw his face many times on TV. He looks so tired. You can see that on his face. I’m very worried about that when you look at the games coming soon and the way they’re dealing with it, physically and mentally.”

Q: Is this the lowest that you’ve seen Arsenal in a while? When they conceded, even though there was 75 minutes left, they didn’t look like scoring. 

Emmanuel Petit: “Tiredness of the players in the first 11 and the rotation as well. I think this is one of the reasons Arsenal have been getting poor results recently. I would say as well, they lost their ability to retain the ball in these games, dominate possession, and that was one of the foundations of their game for the last two or three seasons, but it’s gone at the moment.

Technically, they’re struggling a lot. If you don’t control the game, if you don’t control the rhythm, you cannot express your qualities on the pitch.

Odegaard is not there, you can see the link between the midfield and the strikers, and the attacking players is not good at all. I have the feeling that in the midfield they are losing the battle mentally and physically.

There are many, many reasons why Arsenal is not at their level at the moment. The block of the team, the defensive foundation, and I think the unity of the team is missing at the moment. When they were beautiful to watch, they used to play in the opponent’s half all the time and try to keep them under pressure by pressing and winning second balls.

They are so far away from that for the last few games. In terms of composure, possession of the ball, controlling the game, the rhythm. Technically as well, I think there are many, many reasons why Arsenal are not good at all.”

Q: Is what we’re seeing at Arsenal a consequence of Martin Odegaard not being there, everything looks so laboured without him? 

Emmanuel Petit: “Why? You can’t put a poor performances on Odegaard’s absence. Big teams cope without big players.

The players are tired. You can see that. You know, for me the best example is Declan Rice. He’s been marvellous since he signed for Arsenal and from the start of season, he’s not the same player anymore.

It was a long season last season, and he played so many games at a high level during the European Championship as well. As I said, rotation is key. 

With the new format of the Champions League, it’s like there are big games coming up all the time.”

Q: On Edu’s decision to leave

Emmanuel Petit: “I’ve been reading the news, the bad news coming out of Arsenal this week. Edu is leaving the club. This is really bad news at this moment for Arsenal. 

In terms of communication, the messages you send to the dressing room, to the fans, the team has been struggling for the last few weeks and now you can see they are struggling at the boardroom level as well.

With Edu leaving the club, who’s going to take care of the transfer market?

I just want to know why he left the club. 

For Arteta, Edu’s decision could have an impact on his future as well. He signed a new contract recently, but he was very close to Edu and they were doing a great job together. 

Arteta and Edu have been analysing the game in a very good way over the last few years.

So, there a lot of questions to answer. When you have this confidence and connection between people, and you’re doing a great job, you’re excited about that and you want to go further up. You want to complete the mission. That’s why at this moment, especially after a bad result at Newcastle, bad results in the last few weeks, the environment at Arsenal is not good at all. Edu’s departure is a huge blow for Arteta.

For me this is very important, why did he leave? I want to know why. It’s very important because that could have a big impact on Arteta staying at the club and Arsenal’s long-term success. 

It’s not good news for Arsenal and it’s not good news for Arteta.” 

Q: Do questions need to be asked about such a lack of creativity without Odegaard, when you consider Vieira was allowed to join Porto on loan, Smith-Rowe was sold. Is that a recruitment failure from Arteta or does he need to hand an opportunity to 17 Ethan Nwaneri? 

Emmanuel Petit: “I’ve been saying this for a couple of years, Arsenal need better player in the squad. Arteta is a very demanding manager, but he needs better players. Arsenal can’t be so over-reliant on Martin Odegaard, on Bukayo Saka. They are both exceptional players, but when they’re not available or when they need a rest, you need your squad to step up. 

He needs more depth at number 10. He needs more depth at number 9. They are missing something in that area. They need better options for those positions.

I think you can see that they are struggling in terms of developing what they want to do in the final third of the pitch. 

They let Smith-Rowe go to Fulham. Fabio Vieira has gone on loan to Porto, and no one has come into the club to fill the position.”

Q: For me, Gabriel Martinelli just doesn’t look confident at the moment. He’s been below par for a while now – what do you think is happening with him and how would you rate this performances over the last 18 months? 

Emmanuel Petit: “I can understand why you’re saying that Gabriel Martinelli has lost confidence, but why? Is it because he saw Sterling coming into the club and challenging him in his position? He’s not playing Sterling. Is it because of Trossard? Trossard can play in several different positions as well, so he’s not the first choice for the left wing.

Martinelli’s been good the last two seasons. Maybe he’s tired. For me, being tired shouldn’t impact your confidence. Of the eleven that started against Newcastle, probably nine or ten of them have not been playing at the same level they used to. So that has an impact.

You could see that the lack of creativity as well, the lack of link, the fluidity between the strikers in terms of movement. It has an impact as well on this game. Trossard has not been good at all. The only one who can still have an impact on this team is Saka.

But you cannot rely on Saka every single game. More players need to take that responsibility. Coming back to Martinelli, you said that he lost his confidence, but I just wonder why. Is this something outside the pitch? I have no idea.”

Q: If you’re Raheem Sterling, what do you think is going through your mind at this moment in time? He can’t get into the team and is overlooked by Mikel Arteta when his team needs a goal? 

Emmanuel Petit: “Raheem Sterling was a panic buy. For me, Arteta knows that he’s missing players, numbers in his squad, quality players in terms of rotation. He knows that, so at the end of the transfer market during the summer, he knew that he had no choice just to get Sterling because he didn’t want to put the big money on the table for other players.

I know that he was dreaming about Nico Williams, but he will never come to the Premier League. He will stay in Spain; he will go to Barcelona. Definitely. 

Sterling has been living a nightmare for years now. I think Sterling is probably one of the best examples of what life in the Premier League can do to a player that has tastes success after success after success.

When you receive so much money for years and you win a lot of trophies, you’re not starving anymore. You lose your passion; you lose your priorities sometimes and you’re enjoying your life. I wonder if Sterling was starting his career that he would probably play differently.

It was like that during my time as well. It’s common for human beings.” 

Q: I saw you mention that Paul Pogba should be on Arsenal’s radar when he comes back from his doping ban. How could you see him fitting into the Gunners team? 

Emmanuel Petit: “I did mention that Paul Pogba would be a good option for Arsenal, but it’s a gamble. It’s a coin toss. The last game he played was last September, 14 months ago. He cannot prepare himself with his teammates because he’s not allowed to do so. He has to train by himself every single day with a physio. 

It’s not the same. You’re missing the game, you’re missing the movement, you’re missing the tactics. It will take months to get the best out of Paul Pogba.

It’s a gamble and on top of it he’s 32 years-old but you can argue that mentally he will come back strongly. He wants to prove that he’s not finished yet. What happened to him for the last 2-3 seasons was a nightmare outside the pitch.

Everybody understood why he was not present on the pitch. I know that he’s living with a kind of revenge. He wants to pay back something; he wants to clean his name as well.

It’s really important that he picks the right club next, and that club will be getting a player with so much desire. It’s a huge decision for Paul. It’s probably the most important decision he will ever make in his career.

But at 32 years old, what’s the club’s risk in taking him? He won’t get a lot of money because of what happened in the last two or three seasons. He will probably get a decent contract, but with a clause saying that if he can reach a certain amount of games, he can get a raise.

I’m not sure big clubs like Arsenal actually have the guts to sign a player like Pogba. Remember what happened with some top players that join Arsenal, most of them have been a failure.

I’m not sure as well that signing Paul Pogba fits with the philosophy of Arsenal actually, especially after Edu walked out. It’s a gamble, but I’m not sure that Arsenal will take it.  I’m pretty sure that some French clubs will be very interested in him.”

Q: If you could go out and sign one player for Arsenal in the January transfer window, who would it be and why? 

Emmanuel Petit: “If I could sign one player for Arsenal, I would probably go for Viktor Gyokeres from Sporting Lisbon as a striker. He’s the players I would take, because Nico Williams won’t come to the Premier League. 

I would probably take Leao from AC Milan, the left winger. I would take an attacking midfielder.

If you want to win games, you need to score goals, and who is in the best position to score goals? It’s a striker. You can see that every single season, the Premier League champions normally have the best strikers. 

Of course, Arsenal can score goals but when I look at the attacking players, Kai Havertz has been amazing from the start of the season, but he’s struggling for the last few games because of what happened in his team.

When you look at Martinelli, he is also struggling. Only Saka and Havertz have scored and created goals regularly for Arsenal so far this season. Martinelli has two goals and two assists. 

I’m not talking about Gabriel Jesus because he’s not playing and in his best season, he scored 14 Premier League goals.  

Manchester City are the only team that has won the title in the Premier League with five or six midfield players scoring between 10 and 15 goals. Arsenal don’t have the players in midfield to do that.

Arsenal needs a striker that can finish off the moves. Havertz is not a typical striker but he has been scoring goals from the start of the season. Can you imagine if Arsenal played with a real striker that’s fighting to score goals in every single game? Arsenal would be a totally different team.” 

Champions League

Q: Aston Villa are top of the big-league standings. Have you been surprised by how well they’ve equipped themselves in the Champions League this season?

Emmanuel Petit: “Aston Villa are first in the table. For their first season in the competition since it became the Champions League, it’s amazing to see what they’re doing. 

Aston Villa are playing with personality and composure. They’re doing exactly what they’ve done in the last 12 months in the Premier League. It’s a very difficult team to beat. That’s why I came back to the Spurs performance in the second half. That was amazing.

I’m very surprised about Villa’s performances in Europe because I was worried about them losing important players, like Douglas Luiz leaving for Juventus, but they bought Onana from Everton to replace him. 

Villa have got a strong squad. You know what I like the most with Unai Emery? The work he’s done with his staff, the unity, you can feel it. Every time you watch the game, you can feel they are all together. They fight for the same things. They help each other.

His team shows togetherness all the time on the pitch. They look strong physically as well and they are capable of hurting teams because they have the quality upfront and in midfield.

I’m very surprised because I didn’t expect them to repeat what they’ve done under Emery in the Premier League in Europe. They have difficult games every three days, and they’ve been dealing with that in a very good way.”

Chelsea

Q: Enzo Fernandez has found himself on the bench recently and he appears to be the second choice of Enzo Maresca. Do you think he will continue to be a squad player for Chelsea this season?  

Emmanuel Petit: “Enzo Fernandes joined Chelsea for a huge fee, and he joined a club that was in a bad place. The environment was very bad. It was a mess in the dressing room. It was a mess on the bench as well. 

The start of the season didn’t go well for him. He was caught in a racism storm and offended his French teammates and so many other people at the club. That put Chelsea in a very difficult position. 

I read an article a few days ago that he’s splitting with his wife. He’s got a family with two kids, I think. When bad things are happening all the time off the pitch, it starts to impact what happens on the pitch. 

He’s a human being. He has to manage his personal problems first before becoming the real midfielder he used to be a couple of years ago. He needs to solve that first.

Lavia and Caicedo have been amazing for Chelsea. It will take weeks, probably months, for him to compete and to compete for the first eleven, but he’s so far away at the moment.

To be honest with you, Enzo Maresca is doing him a service by putting him on the bench because of what’s happening in his private life. He’s not there – in his mind – at Chelsea right now. It won’t help him by putting him in the team. It’s a good decision to keep him out of the starting line-up.” 

Q: Chelsea have been quietly excellent under Enzo Maresca. Given his lack of experience and the size of the job at Chelsea, have you been surprised how well he’s started life in West London? 

Emmanuel Petit: “I’m surprised by the speed of Chelsea’s improvement under Enzo Maresca. He has been very disciplined towards his players. They all know that he is the boss. He separated the dressing room into two teams, making difficult decisions on top players. 

What Maresca has done has had an impact on a lot of players because when you are a player competing for your position in the first 11 and there are so many players in training to compete with, it’s hard. That’s why he separated the dressing room in two sides. 

The rapidity of it, the impact he has had on the players has been amazing. Some Chelsea players are playing with confidence on the pitch because of Maresca’s leadership. Chelsea players know where they stand. They have assurances on that from the manager. 

Only a few players had good seasons for Chelsea last year. Most of them were struggling. This season, it’s different at Chelsea. Enzo Maresca has brought stability.” 

Q: After what you’ve seen of Chelsea so far, what’s the objective for Maresca this season? 

Emmanuel Petit: “The manager has to improve the link between the strikers and the wingers because in midfield, Chelsea have been amazing. Lavia and Caceido. They are playing brilliantly together. 

But the front three, you don’t see the link between them, you don’t see fluidity between them. They must improve their connections. They must improve their understanding in terms of movement.

This is something very important for Maresca and Chelsea if they want to improve the team even more. Because that will have an impact as well on the defence, because the more pressure you put up front, you take away that pressure from the defence.”

Chelsea vs Arsenal 

Q: This is always a big game in the season. Do Arsenal need to win this game to stay in the title race? 

Emmanuel Petit: “There are a lot of bad things happening all at once at Arsenal at the moment. On and off the pitch.  

With Edu leaving the club, they need victories. Simple as that. The only thing that can erase bad things and bring back the unity in the dressing room and the confidence, is winning games. 

When you’re winning, you forget that you’re tired mentally and physically. You forget the mistakes that you can make on the pitch. Winning helps you prepare for the next game. 

Victories are the most important thing in football. With Chelsea in the top four and above Arsenal, if Arsenal want to show that they are serious contenders, it’s definitely a must-win game for them.”

Q: If you could take one player from Chelsea and put them in the Arsenal team, who would it be? 

Emmanuel Petit: “If I could pick one Chelsea player to put into the Arsenal team, actually, that would be Moises Caicedo, definitely.

I would probably take Cole Palmer as well, but I will go for Caicedo.”

Q: If you could take one player from Arsenal and put them in the Chelsea team, who would it be?

Emmanuel Petit: “If I can take one Arsenal player to the Chelsea team, that will be Martin Odegaard because we’ve seen that against Manchester United again that Chelsea sometimes miss a player that can make the right choices with the ball. 

That’s something that they must improve if they want to compete and stay in the top four, and probably be a contender for the title race.”