Arsenal great Martin Keown engaged in banter with Joe Cole after the ex-Chelsea midfielder skipped Mikel Arteta’s interview after a recent 5-0 win for the Gunners.
Earlier this Tuesday (April 23), the north London club consolidated their position at the top of the Premier League table with a statement victory against the Blues. Kai Havertz and Ben White both bagged a brace each, while Leandro Trossard netted the first half opener.
Arsenal, who are currently on 77 points from 34 league matches, relished a stellar outing against Chelsea. They recorded 27 shots and hit the target 10 times despite boasting 44% possession at the Emirates.
After the end of the clash, Cole decided to skip Arteta’s post-match interview while on punditry duty for TNT Sports. When asked where he was during the Spaniard’s chat, the 42-year-old replied (h/t Metro):
“I was in the back of the cab ready to go home but they told me I had to come back to work. No interest in [listening to Arteta].”
Keown, who represented Arsenal 440 times, aimed a little dig at Cole:
“A bit like Chelsea’s team, he went missing!”
Cole, who helped the Blues lift three Premier League titles, retorted:
“Wow! All I will say is, I heard fireworks from the Arsenal fans. I think that’s a bit early with five games to go. Celebrations were a bit too much.”
The Gunners, who finished second by five points past campaign, are currently just three points ahead of Liverpool. They are four points ahead of reigning champions Manchester City, who have two games in hand.
Mikel Arteta full of praise of Arsenal players following latest 5-0 victory against Chelsea
At a post-match press conference, Gunners manager Mikel Arteta claimed that he was delighted with his stars’ performances against Chelsea. He told reporters (h/t Eurosport):
“Very happy with the win, with the amount of chances and goals we scored and the clean sheet – it shows again the consistency of the team. We weren’t disciplined enough especially with a few things we did with the ball, defending the box. We had to be more disciplined in the second half, we created more chances as well.”
Arsenal, who last won the league title in 2004, will next face Tottenham Hotspur in their Premier League away contest on Sunday (April 28).
Chelsea, who will next visit Aston Villa on April 27, are currently ninth in the 2023-24 Premier League standings with 47 points from 32 games.
