Birmingham City star Troy Deeney has leapt to the defence of Arsenal amid recent claims that they have 'bottled' the Premier League title.
The north London outfit have drawn each of their last three league fixtures, dropping points against Liverpool and West Ham United despite taking a 2-0 lead in both matches before a 3-3 stalemate against 20th-placed Southampton on Friday evening. Their recent run of form has seen their lead over second-placed Manchester City diminish, now just five points clear of their title rivals, who have the advantage of two games in hand still to play.
City host Mikel Arteta's side to the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday night for a potential title decider, with a number of pundits and fans alike arguing that Arsenal have started to 'bottle' it during the title run-in. However, former Watford striker Deeney has now dismissed these claims.
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When asked on BBC Match of the Day 2 if it was fair to say the Gunners have bottled the title, he replied by saying: "Nah, it's not fair at all. I think if you start the season, you'd have said 'Arsenal are where they are now', everyone would have laughed at you.
"They've done unbelievably well, I think the manager and the team have created an identity over the last 18 months that shows that they're building and I think, you know, from a personal point of view, I think (Martin) Odegaard has took (sic) them to another level.
"I know (Bukayo) Saka gets the plaudits, I know (Gabriel) Jesus and (Oleksandr) Zinchenko (do too), but for me Odegaard is the one that is leading by example."
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