{"id":5818,"date":"2026-04-06T18:14:17","date_gmt":"2026-04-06T18:14:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news678.top\/?p=5818"},"modified":"2026-04-06T18:14:17","modified_gmt":"2026-04-06T18:14:17","slug":"goodnight-rio-ferdinand-names-team-that-could-end-arsenals-title-charge-football","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news678.top\/?p=5818","title":{"rendered":"‘Goodnight!’ – Rio Ferdinand names team that could end Arsenal’s title charge | Football"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n\t\t\"\"\t<\/div>
Ex-Man Utd and England defender Rio Ferdinand (Picture: YouTube)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Rio Ferdinand says it could be \u2018goodnight\u2019 for Arsenal in the Premier League title race if they fail to beat Bournemouth on Saturday.<\/p>\n

The Gunners were threatening to pull off a historic quadruple just two weeks ago but back-to-back defeats has forced Mikel Arteta to adjust his ambitions.<\/p>\n

Arsenal missed out on their first major trophy since 2020 as they lost 2-0 to Manchester City in last month\u2019s Carabao Cup final.<\/p>\n

Arteta would have expected his side to return to winning ways against Southampton but the Championship side stunned the Premier League leaders to book their place in the semi-finals of the FA Cup.<\/p>\n

Arsenal are still in a position to win their first Premier League title since 2004 and lift the Champions League for the first time in the club\u2019s history.<\/p>\n

The Gunners boast a nine-point lead over second-placed Man City ahead of their next Premier League game, a home match against Bournemouth on Saturday afternoon.<\/p>\n

Before that title favourites Arsenal begin a two-legged Champions League quarter-final against Portuguese giants Sporting on Tursday night.<\/p>\n

\n

\n\t\t\t\tGet your football fix\t\t\t<\/h2>\n
\n

Metro<\/strong>‘s weekly newsletter In The Mixer delivers punchy analysis and breakdowns of the biggest football stories directly to your inbox.<\/p>\n

Sign up here, it’s an open goal.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n
\n\t\t\"Southampton\t<\/div>
Arsenal are still well clear in the Premier League title race (Picture: Getty)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Ferdinand \u2018still\u2019 expects Arsenal to be crowned Premier League champions for the first time in 22 years but says he would fear for their title aspirations were they to drop points against Bournemouth this weekend.<\/p>\n

\u2018This\u00a0isn\u2019t\u00a0a slight at Arsenal and their players but at this moment\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0about who deals with the pressure best and experience counts for a lot,\u2019 Ferdinand said on his YouTube channel.<\/p>\n

\u2018Man\u00a0City\u00a0have\u00a0that so if they get within touching distance of\u00a0Arsenal\u00a0you guys\u00a0are going to be in trouble because\u00a0there\u2019s\u00a0been a momentum shift.<\/p>\n

\n
\n\t\t\"Southampton\t<\/div>
Southampton knocked Arsenal out of the title race (Picture: Getty)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u2018They know this\u00a0walk,\u00a0they\u2019ve\u00a0walked this path too many times. Arsenal\u00a0have\u00a0walked it and finished runners-up so they\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0know the winning element of this,\u00a0they\u2019re\u00a0still trying to get there.<\/p>\n

\u2018This is where Mikel Arteta will earn his money.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0not easy,\u00a0I\u2019m\u00a0not saying it is, this is a difficult period of the season for Arsenal.<\/p>\n

\u2018They\u2019ve\u00a0got Bournemouth at the weekend and\u00a0that\u2019s\u00a0a tough\u00a0game, if\u00a0you\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0win that game\u2026 wow. And then\u00a0you\u2019ve\u00a0got an in-form Man City the week after? It could be goodnight.\u2019<\/p>\n

\n

Ex-England defender Ferdinand, who won six Premier League titles at Manchester United, added: \u2018Arsenal\u00a0have\u00a0a decent run-in, are nine points clear and have one of the less fancied teams in the\u00a0quarter-finals\u00a0of the Champions League.<\/p>\n

\u2018If someone had told you Arsenal would\u00a0be in that position at this stage of the season with seven games to go, you would have bitten their arm off.<\/p>\n

\u2018And yet I\u2019m hearing big parts of the fan base, especially online, saying they\u2019re not happy with Mikel Arteta and even some saying he needs to go. What is going on here?! Where are Arsenal fans at?\u2019<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

\t\t\t\t\t

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tbrowser that
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tsupports HTML5
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tvideo<\/p><\/video>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

While Ferdinand has backed Arsenal to end their long title drought, he believes Manchester City, prolific winners under Pep Guardiola, \u2018smell blood\u2019 after their Carabao Cup triumph.<\/p>\n

Man City thumped Liverpool 4-0 in the FA Cup on Saturday and return to Premier League action against Chelsea at the weekend.<\/p>\n

\u2018I think Man City can smell blood,\u2019 Ferdinand said. \u2018I thought the cup final was massive for City because if they won the momentum shift could be\u00a0a big factor\u00a0in the run-in.<\/p>\n

\u2018Then Arsenal get beat in the FA Cup and confidence is lowered again. If they win their game in\u00a0hand\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0down to six points and then they get to play Arsenal at home\u2026<\/p>\n

\u2018I\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0know man, it makes it\u00a0very difficult\u00a0for Arsenal.\u00a0They\u2019re\u00a0a dangerous animal now, City, and have the experience on Arsenal.<\/p>\n

\u2018They know what to do and have a manager who in the cup final I thought schooled Mikel Arteta\u00a0and both sets of fans would have noticed that.<\/p>\n

\u2018I still think Arsenal will win\u00a0it,\u00a0I think they\u00a0still win it. But I thought they would win it by five or six points, now I think\u00a0they\u2019ll\u00a0just scrape over the line, but it\u00a0doesn\u2019t\u00a0matter how you get over the line\u00a0as long as\u00a0you do it.\u2019<\/p>\n

For more stories like this,\u00a0check our sport page<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on
\nFacebook,\u00a0<\/strong>Twitter<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Instagram<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Arrow<\/title>\n<\/svg>MORE: Rio Ferdinand names \u00a3100m star as \u2018first-choice\u2019 transfer target for Man Utd\u2019s midfield<\/span><\/p>\n

Arrow<\/title>\n<\/svg>MORE: \u2018It\u2019s laughable\u2019 \u2013 Ian Wright blasts \u2018pathetic\u2019 criticism of Arsenal<\/span><\/p>\n

Arrow<\/title>\n<\/svg>MORE: William Gallas tells Mikel Arteta to replace two Arsenal stars to help Viktor Gyokeres<\/span><\/p>\n
\n\t\t\tComment now<\/title>\n<\/svg><\/span>
\n\t\t\tComments<\/span><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\tAdd Metro as a Preferred Source on Google<\/title>\n<\/svg><\/span>
\n\t\t\t\tAdd as preferred source<\/span>
\n\t\t\t<\/section>\n
\n
\n

Football Newsletter \u2013 In The Mixer<\/h4>\n

Punchy analysis, transfer talk and more from Metro’s football experts, sent straight to your inbox every week.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n