London, April 4 (IANS): Football great Robert Pires on Saturday said his former club Arsenal deserve to be the Premier League champions this season but feels there will be regrets towards the end of the campaign.

It has been 11 years since Arsene Wenger led Arsenal to his third Premier League title. But the Frenchman has overseen a fine run with the club having won nine of their past 10 league matches, leaving them seven points adrift of leaders Chelsea, who have played a game more.

"In my opinion, this year Arsenal deserve to be champions and they won't be far away. But once more, there will be some little regrets at the end of the season," Pires said.

Pires, who made 284 appearances between 2000 and 2006 for Arsenal, said the London-based club have been worthy of ending their wait for a league title, but a failure to consistently compete against the best teams has been their downfall.

"It's tough and frustrating for the fans. Every time, Arsenal is close," the 41-year-old was quoted as saying by Goal.com.

"It's because of the important games that you can't lose, against Chelsea, Manchester City and Manchester United. But this is the difference. Because against the smaller teams, sometimes there is a misstep or an accident.”

Pires, who won the Premier League and FA Cup twice during his stay at Arsenal, believes the 2-1 victory at Manchester United in the FA Cup quarter-final was a huge statement of intent.

"The win against Manchester United will be good for them because except Arsenal fans, not many people expected them to reach the next round," Pires said.