Ray Parlour has branded ‘bitter’ for his criticism of ’s celebrations in the wake of the side’s 3-1 victory over Liverpool, while praising for his ‘outstanding’ performance.
Arsenal cut Liverpool’s lead at the top of the table to just two points thanks to goals from Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard in Sunday’s heavyweight encounter in north London.
After a rocky winter period, it was Arsenal’s third successive win and the result sparked joyous scenes among the Emirates faithful as Jurgen Klopp’s Reds were consigned to only their second defeat in the English top flight this term.
The delight and relief within Mikel Arteta’s squad was clear to see after the final whistle, with a beaming Martin Odegaard pictured celebrating with the club’s official photographer Stuart MacFarlane on the pitch.
But , while Liverpool legend on Sky Sports’ commentary.
Before too long, and Parlour has joined his former team-mate in defending the Gunners’ reaction to what could be a pivotal three points in the context of the title race.
‘I love Jamie, but he’s being a little bit bitter because Liverpool lost. Of course you have to enjoy those moments, you get into the hype with the fans,’ the former Arsenal and England midfielder told .
‘The supporters would have been buzzing knowing they beat Liverpool, who are going very well at the moment and are top of the league.
‘Carragher is a Liverpool legend and will naturally be gutted about the result, but I actually think there was a lot more at stake for Arsenal.
‘If Arsenal lost that game on Sunday, they’re out of the title race, so that’s why there was so much emotion at full time.’
Parlour added: ‘The fans really played their part yesterday as well – they got right behind the team and emotions sometimes just go away from you, but you’ve got to celebrate these moments.
‘I therefore think it was more relief, really. People are saying, “They think they’ve won the league already” – no, they’ve not won the league.
‘You’ve got Manchester City, and they are still the ones to beat for me, but you’ve got to enjoy the moment. I celebrated into the early hours of the morning!’
Parlour reserved special praise for Jorginho, who shone alongside Declan Rice and Arsenal captain Odegaard in the middle of the park.
‘One of the players that was outstanding on Sunday was Jorginho,’ Parlour went on.
‘I put out a video earlier in the week where I said that I would start him on Sunday because I thought this game suited him.
‘Alongside Declan Rice, they seem to have a really nice balance. There were a lot of people that disagreed and didn’t want to see him in the starting XI, but he ended up getting the Player of the Match award!
‘Arsenal have a very young squad, so you do need a few experienced heads around the youngsters to try and help, so Jorginho’s probably in that sort of role.
‘I can definitely see him being a coach when he stops playing – he’s one of those sorts of guys that could go on and have a role within the club after he hangs up his boots.’
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