Mikel Arteta disagrees with Enzo Maresca title claim and makes Chelsea admission | Football

Mikel Arteta insists Chelsea ‘deserve’ to be competing with Arsenal for the Premier League title this season.

League leaders Arsenal boast a six-point advantage over second-placed Chelsea ahead of Sunday’s London derby at Stamford Bridge.

While Arsenal finished as runners-up for the third season in a row last year, Chelsea could only muster a fourth-placed finish.

But Enzo Maresca’s side won the Club World Cup over the summer and enjoyed another productive transfer window to bolster an already strong and deep squad in west London.

Chelsea endured a blip earlier in the season but five wins from their last six games has seen the Blues climb to second in the Premier League and seventh in the Champions League.

Speaking ahead of a huge derby against Arsenal, Maresca said it was ‘too early’ to declare his Chelsea team title contenders.

But Arteta believes Chelsea ‘deserve’ to be in the Premier League title race and says Arsenal’s London rivals are one of his favourite teams to watch.

Asked whether he viewed Chelsea as title challengers, Arteta said: ‘I think we are all there, and they are there because they fully deserve what they have done in the last few years.

‘I think the squad that they assembled, the numbers that they have, the quality that they have, the number of coaches they have it makes sense that what is happening there is very, very positive and they deserve to be there.’

Arteta somewhat surprisingly hailed Chelsea as the ‘best attacking team in the league by a mile’ after the two teams met back in March.

Pressed on whether that was still the case, Arteta replied: ‘They were [the best last season], the sample now this season is early so it’s difficult to say.

‘But it is one of the teams that I enjoy the most watching and they have a lot of fluidity, they have a lot of threat, they have a lot of individual talent.

‘They are very clear what they want to do and that’s why they are very tough.’

Chelsea finished 15 points behind Premier League champions Liverpool last season so Maresca’s reluctance to talk up their title credentials is understandable.

‘For me, it’s very early,’ the Italian told reporters on Friday. ‘It’s too early in any case if we win or don’t win [against Arsenal].

‘It’s November, there’s five or six months to go. It’s important where we are [in the table] in February and March and we’ll see if we can achieve something important.’

Despite playing down Chelsea’s title ambitions, Maresca insisted there was a ‘nice feeling’ in the squad ahead of the visit of Premier League favourites Arsenal.

Chelsea warmed up for Arsenal by thumping La Liga champions Barcelona 3-0 in the Champions League.

‘It’s another big game,’ Maresca said. ‘We finished the one against Barca with a good feeling.

‘If it’s bigger than the last one, I don’t know. For me they’re all important. It’s a nice feeling but it’s three points. Then we have Leeds which is three points in the same way.

‘The mindset and mood are very good. We are doing good in the Premier League and Champions League. It’s a good feeling that we can see we’re improving and growing.

‘We need that environment, the fans the way they were. It’s always nice to share that kind of moment at the end of the game with everyone.’

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