"I thought..." - Walcott gives verdict on whether Arsenal are better than Man City after Southampton draw

Theo Walcott revealed who was better between Arsenal and Manchester City after Southampton claimed a draw at the Emirates Stadium.

The Gunners’ title hopes were dealt a major blow on Friday evening after Mikel Arteta’s men were only able to claim a 3-3 draw against relegation-threatened Southampton.

Of course, it could have been even worse for Arsenal. Carlos Alcaraz profited from an Aaron Ramsdale error in the opening minute before former Arsenal star Walcott claimed a second for Southampton after 15 minutes.

While Gabriel Martinelli pulled one back for Arsenal, Duje Caleta-Car reclaimed the Saint’s two-goal cushion in the second half to put the club minutes away from a first league victory at the Emirates.

But Arsenal rallied dramatically, as captain Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka netted in the game’s dying embers to put the league leaders level.

Yet, in failing to claim a late winner, Arsenal have now drawn their last three games. Arteta’s men now take a five-point lead to the Etihad on Wednesday for a heavyweight clash with City, who with two games in hand now hold the advantage in the title race.

Walcott claims Arsenal are better than City

Walcott, who played for Arsenal between 2006 and 2018, admitted to harbouring mixed emotions at denying Arsenal a vital three points.

The 34-year-old added that though City dispatched Southampton 4-1 earlier this month, Arsenal are the better side.

Speaking to NBC Sports via Mail Online Walcott said: “Arsenal are just incredible. We played Man City the other week and I thought Arsenal were way better than them.

“That’s how I see Arsenal at the moment. We can take a lot of positives from this game because they [Arsenal] are the best team in this league at this moment in time.”

On his goal, which he chose not to celebrate, Walcott added: “My son’s going to be really disappointed that I didn’t celebrate but I just couldn’t.

“It was a very indifferent day for me today, I felt like I couldn’t win. Hopefully, now Arsenal can go on and win the league and beat Man City on Wednesday.

“Everyone feels a bit deflated I think, that’s the sense I got from the fans and both teams. We were in a great position of course and we kind of threw it away.

“Before the game, we would have taken a point against the team at the top of the league but with five minutes to go we felt we were in control.”

Topics: Football, Arsenal, Mikel Arteta, Manchester City, Theo Walcott, Premier League, Southampton

Chris Byfield

Sport journalist with experience writing on football, rugby, boxing and the Olympics. I'm also a Crystal Palace fan. Please don't hold this against me.