Roy Keane had a humorous response when Theo Walcott claimed that Arsenal is a bigger club than Manchester United.
In the previous season, Arsenal made a surprising run for the Premier League title, leading for a significant portion of the campaign. However, they were eventually surpassed by Manchester City, led by Pep Guardiola.
In anticipation of Sunday’s highly anticipated match between Arsenal and Manchester United, Walcott, who is part of Sky Sports’ punditry team, was asked to determine which club he believes is larger.
The former Arsenal man said: “Arsenal finished above United, so if you’re going right now, for me, I’d have to say them. I feel like they’re a bit more organised. Especially behind the scenes as well.”
United legend Keane failed to keep a straight face as he smiled whilst Walcott was making his point.
After tapping Walcott on the back, Keane said: “So naive and young, huh? So naive and young.
“Of course it’s United. Of course it’s United. Don’t be silly.”
THEO: Arsenal are a bigger club than Man Utd ☝️
ROY: You’re so young and naive 😂 pic.twitter.com/2uZUkf8KPN— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) September 3, 2023
This summer, Arsenal have further strengthened after signing the likes of Kai Havertz, Jurrien Timber, Declan Rice and David Raya.
Keane was then asked whether he is convinced by Arsenal’s title credentials, he said: “No. Not really.
“Obviously they’ve strengthened the squad, they were brilliant last season, particularly at the start of the season.”
Keane continued: “But we were here towards the end of the last season where they ran out of steam physically and mentally and I still think they’re short.”
The former United captain then questioned Mikel Arteta’s formations. He said: “I didn’t know there were that many formations you could play in football but there you go.
“Sometimes you need to simplify football because they have a lot of good players, they had a lot of good momentum last year but they did come up short.”