Arsenal legend Tony Adams believes the Gunners must keep six of their key men fit if they are to go all the way and win the Premier League this season.
Mikel Arteta's side sit eight points clear of second-placed Manchester City at the top of the table, although Pep Guardiola's men do have a game in hand on their rivals. It is poised to be an entertaining final two months of the campaign as both teams battle it out for the title.
Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag suggested earlier this month that Arsenal had been lucky with injuries and almost had a full squad available every week. However, with Gabriel Jesus only recently returning from a long lay-off and Thomas Partey struggling with fitness issues, the Dutchman's claim has been widely refuted.
Adams believes it is imperative the Gunners do not lose Jesus and Partey, as well as Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli, Martin Odegaard and Oleksandr Zinchenko, for any more time this season. The Gunners great suggested that keeping those players fit could help hand Arsenal their first title since 2004.
"Playing in the Champions League next season will be a whole new ball game for this Arsenal team," Adams told The Sun. "And it’s going to be really difficult for the current squad to compete at that level while also challenging for the title. We all saw what happened when Mikel rested a couple of his big boys in the Europa League the other week.
"The back-up players looked bang average and were played off the park by Sporting Lisbon. At the moment they need Bukayo, Gabriel Martinelli, Martin Odegaard, Thomas Partey, Gabriel Jesus and Oleks Zinchenko playing every week because they have a team that almost picks itself."
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Arsenal face Leeds in their first game since the international break and will be looking to continue their bid for the Premier League title. They have picked up a mightily impressive 69 points from 28 matches.
Adams picked out Saka as a player that has particularly caught his eye during the Gunners' impressive top-flight push. The 21-year-old became the first to notch double-figures for goals and assists earlier this month, with 12 and 10 this season respectively.
"Bukayo is absolutely on fire and the reason Arsenal are top of the table," Adams claimed. " Erling Haaland might be scoring hundreds of goals for Manchester City and Marcus Rashford is also having a phenomenal season for [Manchester] United. But Bukayo is, hands down, the Footballer of the Year because he was England's best player at the World Cup and he’s been the best player for the team eight points clear at the top of the Premier League."
