"As good as anything I’ve seen in Europe", "Modern day Bryan Robson" - Martin Keown hails Arsenal duo for performances this season

Martin Keown has heaped praise on Arsenal stars Declan Rice and Martin Zubimendi. He compared the former to Manchester United legend Bryan Robson.

Rice and Zubimendi have been the main players for Mikel Arteta on his side's excellent start to the 2025-26 campaign. They sit atop the Premier League table and have a 100% record in the UEFA Champions League after four games. They have also reached the EFL Cup quarter-finals.

The Gunners drew 2-2 against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light in the Premier League on Saturday, November 8. However, Keown heaped praise on Rice and Zubimendi, telling BBC Sport:

"In front of them [defense], [Martin] Zubimendi is as good as anything I’ve seen in Europe. And then Declan Rice, he’s like the modern day [ex-Manchester United and England captain] Bryan Robson. He’s up and down the pitch. The distance he’s covering is ridiculous, not to mention the quality on the delivery."

"The only thing missing from their CV is trophies. We can see with our own eyes how good the defence is. If they could be champions, they reach that elite level alongside these past title-winning teams," he added.

Zubimendi joined Arsenal for a reported fee of £60 million from Real Sociedad this summer and has contributed two goals and one assist in 14 games for them. Declan Rice, meanwhile, arrived for a whopping £105 million from West Ham United in 2023. He has recorded 18 goals and 25 assists in 120 games for the Gunners.

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Martin Keown lauds Arsenal's defense despite draw against Sunderland

Before their 2-2 draw against Sunderland, the Gunners maintained a clean sheet in eight consecutive games across competitions. They have kept seven clean sheets in 11 Premier League games.

Martin Keown compared this side to the Arsenal side that he was part of, which won three Premier League titles, saying:

"The way Arsenal are behaving at the moment reminds me very much of the Arsene Wenger teams I won three Premier League titles with. In those teams, it was done from a strong base and Mikel Arteta’s side has got a similar look about it, very similar characteristics, if not better in some ways."

"But you don’t want to be the best statistically, defensively, like we were in 1999 and still not be champions. You’ve got to be better in all areas. The back four takes a lot of strength from all the plaudits and the talk about how this team is so good defensively because as a defender, you don’t really grab the headlines," he added.

Arsenal are still at the top of the Premier League standings, six points above second-placed Chelsea. They will next face arch-rivals Tottenham Hotspur at the Emirates after the international break on November 22.