Exclusive – ‘Walcott injury has cost Arsenal their title charge’, claims Houllier

Gerard Houllier has told talkSPORT that Arsenal's Premier League title charge has fallen apart because of a crippling injury list and, in particular, the loss of Theo Walcott

The livewire England forward was ruled out for the rest of the season and the World Cup after he seriously injured his knee in January's FA Cup third round win over Tottenham.

Throw into the mix injuries which have robbed the Gunners of the services of Jack Wilshere, Mesut Ozil and Aaron Ramsey, and Houllier believes it is no surprise they are struggling to stay in the title race, having picked up two points out of the last nine.

Asked about their struggles by Des Kelly on The Press Pass, Houllier, said: "They lost some key players [that's why]. Suppose Steven Gerrard, maybe [Luis] Suarez and another defender were out against Tottenham, it could have been a different game.

"At this moment the big loss for them was Theo Walcott. Theo was giving them some depth and some speed up front and once they lost him the results suffered.

"Particularly in big games he’s a threat and he can make goals and score goals. He had improved a lot so it’s a shame he’s not playing at the moment.

"They lost Theo, Wilshere and Ramsey, who had a terrific start to the season. It is too many key players plus the fact they look a bit more tired than the others [hasn't helped]."