Former Chelsea and Arsenal midfielder Emmanuel Petit was speaking to Gambling Zone following the latest round of Premier League fixtures. The World Cup winner discussed the title race, Chelsea’s improved form and many potential transfer dealings that are dominating the rumour mill.
Speaking to Gambling Zone, Petit said:
Did you think the Liverpool crowd were disrespectful to sing that to Pep, and what did you make of his response?
Were Liverpool fans disrespectful to Pep? No, it’s part of the game and we all know it was mocking.
When you are on the top of the hill, everyone says you are the best and Pep and City have been the best team in Europe and he’s been the best manager in the world.
He’s proud and it was [Jose] Mourinho-esque, but it’s part of the game and it means you are the best.
Has Pep Guardiola lost his head in recent weeks?
Well, to be honest, no one could have predicted City to go seven games without a win. Nobody. I’m very surprised.
But don’t put them down completely right now, because they will come back. They won’t win the Premier League, but I can see them bouncing back. Right now, they have too many problems inside his team and his dressing room.
They concede too many goals and something isn’t right in the dressing room. They have no balance in midfield, with Rodri not there and now Kevin De Bruyne out of favour.
You can win games with strikers or goalkeepers, but really you win games with midfielders. Even Haaland is suffering now because they’re missing midfield players. I doubt he will score nearly as many as the previous seasons given their problems.
Do you think Arsenal are the only club who can catch Liverpool now? Are Chelsea title contenders?
Are Arsenal the only team who can catch Liverpool? It’s a good question. Well, to be honest, no.
I was with another former player the other day and they said Chelsea have no chance, but I disagree. I look at the schedule and they have a very favourable run and have also played against almost every big team so far this season.
There is no easy game in the Premier League and there’s a long way to go, but right now I’d have to say Chelsea are dark horses as they have been excellent under Maresca.
The way they have transformed this season is magnificent - I will not put them away for the title. My Arsenal side were 13 points behind in 1998 at Christmas time and we won it - so do not rule anyone out!
Everyone is forgetting that Chelsea have the strongest squad in the Premier League and with other clubs playing in the Champions League and every three days, they have a really strong opportunity to make up ground. It’s only December so do not count them out yet.
Looking back now, do you think Chelsea were right to fire Poch given they have elevated themselves to a better level under Maresca?
It was a massive surprise that Chelsea sacked Poch, but what a decision it has proved to be. They have elevated themselves to a new level under Maresca.
Maresca has done something that the former managers couldn’t do; be ruthless. He has shown no pity to his players and has exiled the deadwood like Raheem Sterling. He’s made it clear he is the manager and shown the door to so many players - even those who signed a year before he arrived.
He’s ruthless and it’s working - and it’s amazed me a lot how it’s worked so quickly for him in terms of management, building a spine and getting his team to play the way he wants to play.
Christopher Nkunku continues to be sidelined, do you think he should look for a new club in January and where should he go?
Christopher Nkunku should stay at Chelsea, 100%. Even though he’s not part of the XI, he is still playing every three days in Europe and comes on in most Premier League games.
He is getting more and more minutes and if I had to give him advice, it would be to not give up.
There are so many games coming up and even though they have Estevao coming in, he’s coming in the summer and he needs to prove to the board that he is good enough to stay until the summer. Nkunku will prove how good he is over the next few weeks.
It’s believed PSG are looking to swap Kolo Muani for Nkunku, is that a good idea for Chelsea?
A Kolo Muani swap deal with Nkunku at Chelsea? Ah, come on. Muani isn’t bad but Luis Enrique doesn’t rate him and doesn’t want to play with a typical striker.
He’s lost his confidence right now and isn’t starting and Chelsea have too many players who have no confidence right now - just look at Mudryk.
Chelsea have so many attackers and they do not need to add any more players right now. You have to add value in January and Kolo Muani doesn’t do that - he doesn’t have confidence anymore and has so much criticism, even with the national team.
If they do this swap deal, it would just be doing a PSG favour and Chelsea won’t be getting a good deal.
Do you think Nicolas Jackson can be as good as Erling Haaland if he continues this form?
I always knew Nicolas Jackson would turn into a top player, we just had to be patient with him - which is rare with players in football.
Right now, the Premier League is full of surprises. Pep has gone seven without a win and now Chelsea are proving everyone wrong. So much has changed in the last ten months.
Can Jackson be as good as Haaland? Why not? He’s got such amazing players, I have no reason to doubt he can replicate the numbers of Haaland. He has such talent around him. Neto, Palmer, so many players who can give him the ball to score.
His movement and his understanding with his teammates are great and he’s only going to get better, too.
It’s clear Chelsea need a new captain, do you think Marc Cucurella could be a good option for the role given how good he has been this season and is one of the more senior players?
It’s a brutal truth but Enzo Maresca needs to take the armband of Reece James. It’s nothing again Reece, but you need your captain to play and James needs to sort out his physical players.
James reminds me Abou Diaby and you just don’t know what’s going on. I don’t think they are unprofessional and I’m not sure if it’s mental, but it’s very mysterious.
Marc Cucurella is definitely one player I’d consider giving the armband too, he has been extremely solid this season, but I also think Moises Caicedo would be a great option.
I’ve been saying for two or the years that Arsenal should sign Caicedo and Mac Allister as they fit perfectly, but they’ve gone elsewhere, but I think Caicedo would be an excellent captain choice for Chelsea. What a player he is.
Do you think Manchester United should take a punt on Mudryk given he seems to suit Man United’s system and he also is surplus to requirements at Chelsea?
Sooner or later, Mudryk needs to make a decision. He arrived at the club two years ago and what has he done? He has not improved and he’s missing a valuable period of his career and his confidence is down.
He’s 23 and he’s wasting too much time already and with the new sports direction at Chelsea, I don’t think he has a future there.
However. I think Man United could be an excellent opportunity for him as he suits in Ruben Amorim’s formation. His 3-4-3 could see him play him inside right behind the striker at Old Trafford.
Can you see Mason Mount rediscovering his best form under Ruben Amorim at Man United?
I hope Mason Mount can get back on track under Amorim and I look at Hoijlund and Zirkzee, who both scored two goals in recent games, and it makes me hope the same can happen for Mount.
Zirkzee was receiving so much criticism and now he’s scored two goals and it shows that Amorim can work his magic, why can’t the same happen to Mount?
I know that Amorim really likes Mount, saying he’s so professional and has great qualities, so it’s an important time for Mount.
Prediction for Chelsea vs Saints game?
Southampton have actually played very well against the top teams at home, but I can see Chelsea continuing their good run as they have the luxury of changing their line-up completely every three games.
They will be fresh and right now the environment is so positive, I think they will win 3-0.
Is Martin Odegaard the single most important player to his team in world football at the moment given how he raises the level of Arsenal so high?
There are so many huge individuals for their teams. Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard, Cole Palmer, Lamine Yamal.
You look at what has happened with Barcelona, too, they were seven points ahead and now it’s only one point since Yamal got injured.
If Mo Salah wasn’t performing at a very high level, could you call Bukayo Saka the best right winger in Europe?
Mo Salah or Bukayo Saka? It’s like asking to choose between a Lamborghini or an Aston Martin - can I take both?
I am a huge fan of both and fans pay money to watch these kinds of players. They’re a top example for modern players as they don’t talk too much and are an example on the pitch.
It’s a joy to watch Salah, Saka and Palmer, and I just want them to keep doing what they’re doing on the pitch.
Should Arsenal rescue Arda Guler from Real Madrid like they did with Martin Odegaard a few years back? He’s only getting game time now because of all the injuries they have.
It’s always good to get players from the biggest clubs in the world and I think Arsenal should take a punt on Arda Guler.
He looks like a talented kid and he could play for any side in Europe, but I also like Brahim Diaz, who used to play for AC Milan and Man City. He’s quality.
Maybe there’s a small chance to get these kinds of players.
If you’re Viktor Gyokeres, would you rather follow your manager to Man Utd or look at Arsenal’s project and try to win a league title with the Gunners?
Why would Gyokeres look at both situations at Arsenal and Man United and choose to join United? I know his former manager is there, but there’s nothing much going for United as they already have Hoijlund, Zirkzee and Rashford in that position.
Arsenal is a much more attractive proposition for him, especially as Havertz does not seem like an out and out number nine and Gabriel Jesus isn’t really performing.
Gyokeres should really consider Arsenal as I think he could be their final missing piece of the jigsaw for Mikel Arteta.
I love the way he plays far away from goal and his hold up play, it’s something he could really add to Arsenal.
Mikel Arteta has promised Raheem Sterling more minutes – could that dent their chances of catching Liverpool in the title race?
Something just doesn’t seem to be right with Raheem Sterling this season. If you take away his speed, what else does he offer?
I have the feeling that Sterling is not hungry anymore - I said this a couple of weeks ago.
I think he thinks that he’s achieved all he needs to achieve in football and this isn’t how it works in top level professional football. I think this is why he’s not performing because he doesn’t want to keep going and he doesn’t have the same ambition as when he was a youngster.
Chelsea will put him on the transfer market in the summer and he will have to cut his wages if he wants to leave, if not he will stay and no-one will ever see him on the team sheet again.
Do you have a prediction for Arsenal vs Man United?
At home it’s different and Arsenal are amazing at home - I can‘t remember when they last lost at home.
Man United are obviously playing better but Odegaard is back and Saka is flying, so I think Arsenal will win.
Man United will score but I think Arsenal will be too strong for them and win 3-1.
A video did the rounds of Jude Bellingham plainly ignoring Kylian Mbappe before the Liverpool game, what did you think of this?
I think Kylian Mbappe is so lonely at Real Madrid. I saw Jude Bellingham ignoring him and it doesn’t even look like he has any help or any friends at the club.
He’s been hammered by the press and doesn’t seem like he has friends in Paris or Spain and he’s also gone to a public enemy number one in France because of what happened in the last international break.
He’s so far away from his level this season, too. I know he’s scored ten goals but it’s just stats and he doesn’t look like himself.
I just say what I feel when I look at him and he looks miserable on and off the pitch. He was the king in France and could do whatever he wanted at PSG and with France and now it’s not the same anymore.
He’s lonely and with top players, the biggest game is against yourself and you have to be able to solve your problems on the pitch.
Could ‘juju and witchcraft’ be working against Kylian Mbappe?
Against Liverpool, he was miserable and missed the penalty and I thought every step he took on the way to the spot-kick, he was crawling on the grass.
Some people were mocking me about Kylian Mbappe, but to be honest, it is Karma for him as he hasn’t helped himself at all.
I know we don’t believe in juju, but I know there was speculation three years ago that Pogba reportedly used witchcraft against Kylian Mbappe. I don’t know if it’s true but it seems the karma of it is working as he’s going through a nightmare and his life is turning into hell.
Real Madrid are overloaded on the left — if you added Trent Alexander-Arnold’s creativity at right-back to find Mbappe’s runs, would it all start to make sense as the missing piece?
Real Madrid are missing Kroos and Modric and at least Trent would be able to give them those clinical passes that break the lines.
It’s exactly what he can do and his vision, technical skills, would be a really good addition for that team.
Ancelotti is missing the balance of the team. They are overloaded on the left-hand side and Trent on the right could help that.
But does Trent want to leave Liverpool? I think Liverpool could be the place to be and he could be the next captain of the club.
They could win the Premier League and Champions League this season and sometimes the grass isn’t always greener, I saw that when I moved from Arsenal to Barcelona.
