Arsenal has started their Premier League title defense with two wins on the trot, overcoming Coventry City and Aston Villa. They have a crucial test against high-flying Chelsea this Sunday but in the words of ex-Gunner Bacary Sagna, it’s hard to consider any club challenging the reigning champions.
In an exclusive interview with Action Network, Sagna also elaborated on what Arsenal's raft of experienced signings, from Bruno Guimaraes to Ezri Konsa, adds to a squad that is already flying.
Favorites, but not there yet
Arsenal walked into the season as reigning champions and overwhelming favorites, then backed it up with a 3-0 win over Coventry City just five days after thrashing Manchester City by the same score in the Community Shield. They followed that up with an assured 1-0 win over Aston Villa at Villa Park. Despite that, Sagna doesn’t think it’ll be easy for the Gunners to defend their league title.
"People are crazy. The league just started. For sure you had many, many positive signs in the way they approached the game, in the way they played, in the way they created chances. But the team just played the first games of the season and obviously it's going to be a buildup. The team has to use that type of performance against Coventry to build up on the season, and you can see that the team is already understanding each other."
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Sagna is not surprised the new arrivals have settled in so quickly. He credits Arsenal's recruitment process for that.
"You can see that the players that joined the club are already having an impact on the team, but I'm not surprised because every time Arsenal is recruiting a player, they're making sure not only football-wise, but outside football, that the player is right in his head. The players understand football and have football IQ. I'm not surprised at all because I know how the club works."
"And it's about finding the stability, the balance in the squad, and it sounds good, but look, people need to chill. You know how difficult the Premier League is and it's difficult to achieve winning it back to back. Not many teams have managed to do that."
No one else in the Premier League title picture
Asked to name Arsenal's biggest threat for the title, Sagna does not hesitate, and he is not much kinder to the rest of the Premier League's traditional heavyweights.
"In the league, I don't see anyone other than Arsenal."
"I was disappointed by Man Utd's start. I don't care about Tottenham but still, the way they've been playing disappointed me massively. I know they have a good coach, they have good players."
For Sagna, the title race really comes down to Arsenal's own consistency more than any outside challenger. Polymarket certainly backs this up, with the Gunners’ chance of winning the title currently at 51%, followed by Man City as their closest challengers with a winning probability of 25%. If you wish to trade event contracts on these outcomes, check out our Polymarket promo code.
"But yeah, Arsenal, I think by finding consistency will be able to win the league again. It is about having that consistency and not dropping points. If Arsenal manage to focus on specific games and win, which is within reach, I think they'll be able to win back-to-back league titles."
That includes Manchester City, even under new manager Enzo Maresca, who has already watched his side lose to Arsenal in the Community Shield.
"Because I don't see any other team reaching their level. When I saw Man City against them in the Community Shield, and then again in the league, I think Arsenal are the only ones who've been able to find their pace. And from all the games I've seen so far, they look like the only side to have found their pace."
"The players are conditioned and under pressure from Mikel as well."
PSG the pick for Europe
Sagna's Champions League pick takes him outside the Premier League entirely, to a Paris Saint-Germain side chasing history.
"Paris in the Champions League because they've recruited smartly and they always have that fire inside the team to achieve more. Paris players are under pressure. If you noticed, Dembele stayed home this weekend. Because the coach is bringing competition and he wants them to be 100% fully committed to the club. He's managed to raise the level of the team and he's very demanding, which is the key to success."
"So Paris, I think will try to achieve maybe a hat-trick of Champions League titles. They've recruited smartly and I think they will be a major threat."
Guimaraes and Konsa's experience
Arsenal spent big on experience this summer, landing Bruno Guimaraes from Newcastle and Ezri Konsa from Aston Villa. Sagna thinks that approach, leaning on players in their late twenties rather than younger prospects, was exactly right.
"Well, Arsenal have invested wisely in experienced players, players that are at the top of the game. They might not be 20, 21 or 22, but they are starting for their national team. They were starting for their former team, and they were some of the best players for their former team too."
Neither player's age concerns him in the slightest, given the level they were already playing at before arriving."So I think all the boxes are ticked for them to be able to have an impact for Arsenal, but I will not withdraw them from being competitive because of their age. For me it's nothing to do with age because Bruno Guimaraes has been doing brilliantly for Newcastle since he joined, and did well for the Brazilian national team. And it's the same case for Konsa. He's been doing fantastically for Aston Villa. He's been doing well for the national team. They're in the starting 11 of the national team and club, so for me it's not an issue."
Sagna links the strategy directly back to Arsenal's Champions League final defeat, and the composure he felt was missing in that game.
"Arsenal will go through key moments during this season and you need wise players, you need smart players, you need players with experience that are able to deal with the pressure. This is probably what was missing during the Champions League final.
“So maybe Arsenal identified that issue at the time and they don't want to repeat the same mistake because they believe they can go far, they believe they can compete, but this time they will need to have experienced players that are able to cope with the pressure."
Tzolis making an early case
Christos Tzolis arrived from Club Brugge as a direct replacement for Leandro Trossard, and he has already caught Sagna's eye through preseason and the opening weeks.
"I think his maturity when he has the ball. He seems to be always making the right choices, respecting football. He doesn't rush, delivers a good ball. He's a mix of playing it short and using the space."
"He's very wise in the way he has managed to understand the game. His game IQ is very high and his crosses, they managed to connect with Arsenal players. He managed to cut inside and play the ball to the right person, at the right spot, at the right time."
Sagna singles out one habit in particular, and ties it back to the same Champions League final he keeps returning to.
"He doesn't lose the ball, which for me is key. You have to have players who are able to keep the ball, when you're high up the pitch. That was also, when I think about the Champions League final, the problem that Arsenal faced, when the ball reached high, they were not able to keep the ball and create enough."
"So he seems to be a player who understands this and he's creative enough at the same time."
A fully fit Ødegaard is a game-changer
Martin Ødegaard scored in the win over Coventry after an impressive World Cup with Norway, and Sagna sees a captain playing with real authority again.
"Yes. He's dictating the game for sure. I saw the same Ødegaard as the one that played for Norway at the World Cup. Very active on the ball, demanding the ball, taking responsibilities, delivering good balls into space, being a leader."
"And this is also why he was also playing at a young age with Real Madrid and this is why they got him. He's a top player. He's a fantastic player."
He also pushes back on the idea that Ødegaard should be scoring more, arguing the numbers that matter most do not always show up on the scoresheet.
"People will sometimes say that he needs to score more but he's creating opportunities for players around him. He doesn't score as much as maybe some other midfielders in the league but he manages to get the best out of the players around him because he understands their runs, how they want the ball, how to set them up. We always notice the end product but he does a lot before the goal is scored."
"He's a fantastic player and another one who's started the season in form."
