The beautiful game continues to have big things in store for Alan Smith in 2026. While his former club Arsenal are pushing for a long-awaited Premier League title, a highly anticipated FIFA World Cup is on the horizon, with Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo likely having one last dance on the biggest stage.
Smith, a former striker who cemented his place in Arsenal history before carving out a successful career as a commentator and analyst, addressed these topics in an exclusive interview with Bolavip.
In a fruitful eight-year stint in North London (1987–1995), Smith helped the Gunners secure two First Division trophies—scoring a crucial goal against Liverpool at Anfield in the 1988-89 season finale—among other honors. The club went on to win three more league titles after his retirement, but it hasn’t lifted the Premier League since 2004. This season, there’s a feeling that the drought can finally come to an end.
Alan Smith on Arsenal’s Premier League chances
Bolavip: What did you think about the North London derby on Sunday, a much-needed win for Arsenal after dropping points in consecutive games, right?
Alan Smith: Yes, exactly. Yes, I commentated on the Wolves game on Wednesday and that was… You thought at that point that Arsenal were going to blow it. I mean, listen, who knows if they’re going to win the title, but they had to bounce back and they had to beat Spurs. A draw wouldn’t have been enough. And the manner that they did it was good. So now you hope they can go again. It seems as if they’ve just got to keep winning games because City are looking good as well. But yeah, the North London derby was a big moment, I think, in the season.
Arsenal legend Alan Smith poses during an Arsenal open training session in Singapore.
BV: How do you see Arsenal in the Premier League title race after this win, with Manchester City so close… Do you think Arsenal are finally ready to get across the finish line?
Alan Smith: Yeah, I think they are ready. Definitely. They’ve got the quality there. It’s whether they’ve got the mentality that, you know, the ability to hold their nerve. I think back to when we won the title and we had some rough patches going back to 1989. Our last two home games, we lost to Derby and drew with Wimbledon and we thought we’d blown it. But then we ended up beating Liverpool on the last day.
So there will be moments where you think, ‘Oh, no, no, it’s all over.’ But still a lot of points to play for. And Arsenal, I think, have got the advantage over City in that they can rotate players more easily and still keep that strength. So, you know, it’s there for them. Hopefully they can see it through.
Smith weighs in on Mikel Arteta’s job in North London
BV: Arsenal do have a deep squad, with Mikel Arteta building it over the years. How do you rate his job so far? He won an FA Cup against all odds in his first season, but after so many years, maybe fans are expecting more trophies.
Alan Smith: Yeah, he’s brought the club and the team a long way. It’s easy to forget how they were when he took over. I know they won the FA Cup, but I don’t think they were ever going to challenge for the league with that group of players. So he got some out that he didn’t like. And I think he’s really fostered a good team spirit. I don’t think there are any kind of ‘big-time Charlies,’ as we say in England, any people that think they’re above the rest. Everybody’s willing to work really hard. So he’s done really well. And I think tactically, he’s very clever. Learned a lot of Pep Guardiola, for sure. So, yeah, he’s brought the club a long way.
But it gets to the point where you think, ‘OK, he’s had money to spend. He’s had a lot of money to spend as well.’ It gets to the point where you’ve got to see some silverware. You know, and this, if they don’t win anything this year, big questions will be asked. But, yeah, hopefully they can get something.
Smith believes Arsenal can challenge for the Champions League as well
BV: Apart from the Premier League, Arsenal reached the Champions League round of 16 unbeaten, winning all eight league phase games. Do you think they have what it takes to succeed in Europe against the likes of Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich?
Alan Smith: Yeah, I mean, it’s always difficult because as you get towards the end of the competition, I think teams like Real Madrid lift their game, don’t they? They can be fairly average in the run-up to it. I’ve commentated on PSG quite a lot and they don’t look like anything like the team that won it last year. But, you know, they’ve got that experience in them.
Alan Smith applauded by Arsenal fans at his testimonial match against Sampdoria at Highbury in 1995.
And I think Arsenal rank up with all those teams you mentioned and possibly better. You know, they’ve beaten Bayern Munich at home handsomely, beat Real Madrid last season handsomely as well at home. So, yeah, I mean, as well being over two legs, I think that maybe gives Arsenal an advantage. So I think they should be confident in the Champions League.
Smith anticipates the 2026 World Cup
BV: What do you think of the expanded field, from 32 to 48 teams for the 2026 World Cup?
Alan Smith: It’s a bit different. There’s a lot of teams in it that you wouldn’t normally see in a World Cup finals. It’s going to be huge with it being over Canada, the US and Mexico. But yeah, I mean, it is what it is, I really enjoyed the competition in Qatar when it was the total opposite. Everything was very close. And now everything is very far apart. But it’ll be a fantastic competition, I think.
And when it gets to the latter stages, that’s when almost that’s when it begins, isn’t it? And you’d expect to see all those top teams in it. Argentina will be very keen to retain the trophy. Obviously, Brazil, Spain, Germany, England. We’ll see. I mean, there’s a lot of hope in England that we can lift it. But we’ll have to see.
BV: You mentioned a lot of candidates there, but if you have to pick one, who’d be your favorite?
Alan Smith: Yeah, I mean, I think the weather will play a part and maybe not to England’s advantage. In New York, in the Club World Cup last year, I think it was 95 degrees or something. And we still like to play at a high intensity. That’s when we’re at our best. So it might be the team like Spain or Argentina would be better suited to it. Spain are looking good. France still look strong. But yeah, yeah, a lot of factors can get in the way. But I think it’s the normal ones that you think of will be there again.
Alan Smith signs autographs for fans in Singapore.
BV: So do you think the weather will play a big role?
Alan Smith: Yeah, yeah. I think, as I say, we’ve never, although we’ll go early and get warm weather training and all the rest of it… You know, it’s not in our systems to perform to the top level under those conditions when it’s that hot, whereas other countries are more used to it. So, yeah, it might well. Some of the stadiums are air-conditioned, aren’t they? I think Dallas is and maybe some others, but I think it will play a part.
Messi and Ronaldo potentially making their last World Cup appearance
BV: 2026 might be the last World Cup for Messi and Ronaldo. Do you think their performance will change how they’re seen when it comes to the best of all time debate?
Alan Smith: I’ve covered a lot of Argentina games at the World Cup and you know, there were some where Argentina were a little flat, nothing was happening and then Messi just changed it entirely, it just looked like he was made to end up a winner and be the star. And can Ronaldo still do it? I mean, Ronaldo has been scoring fun in Saudi Arabia, obviously the standards are much different, but I think they’ll both see this as their last tournament, so they’ll be very keen to go out with a bang.
Doesn’t always work that way, but, yeah, I think they will be rated as the best two players of all time. Partly because of how long they’ve lasted, quite amazing. You can look at a lot of players like (Diego) Maradona, I mean Pele lasted a long time obviously, but a lot of top players haven’t gone for as long as Messi and Ronaldo and for that reason, you know, I think they are the top two.
Lionel Messi (left) and Cristiano Ronaldo.
BV: Do you have a preference?
AS: I’d probably just go for Messi. Well, he’s a world champion obviously, but maybe he thinks about the team a little more than Ronaldo does at times. Hasn’t quite got that ego, obviously has got an ego, but yeah, he’s just such an amazing player to watch. But they are both fantastic.
BV: What do you think of Messi and Ronaldo playing in MLS and Saudi Arabia, respectively?
Alan Smith: Obviously, it’s a little bit easier for them and they might feel that it prolongs their careers in order to play for their countries, that might be a factor. But, you know, I’m sure they’re keeping their standards high in readiness for when they are playing for their countries. It’s obviously a bigger step up than it would have been Messi playing for Barcelona and Ronaldo for Real Madrid, but they’re both capable, I think, of still shining for their countries.
