Michael Owen thinks that Manchester City’s reign over the Premier League will come to an end this season and is concerned that the defending champions might not even secure a top-three finish.
After narrowly edging out Arsenal last season and achieving a record fourth consecutive title, City will once again be the team to beat.
- Arne Slot tells Liverpool star to leave club
- Michael Owen names Premier League winner, top four & relegated trio for new season
However, by their own standards, the champions have spent relatively little this summer, while their main competitors have all made significant investments to close the gap.
Arsenal have strengthened their squad by adding Italy international defender Riccardo Calafiori and securing goalkeeper David Raya on a permanent transfer.
Liverpool are looking to finalize a deal for Real Sociedad’s Martin Zubimendi and have shown strong performances in pre-season under their new manager, Arne Slot.
The Community Shield match between City and local rivals Manchester United on Saturday should provide a clearer picture of the reigning champions’ current standing as the new season approaches. Despite this, Owen anticipates a potential shift in the league’s hierarchy.
Speaking to Casino Hawks, he stated: “Arsenal and Manchester City will be in virtually everyone’s top four predictions, and I think Liverpool will probably be included as well, despite some doubts about how well Arne Slot will adapt.”
“I considered Newcastle, but Aston Villa are solid and seem to be on the rise.”
“As for the rankings, if City are not going to win it, they might actually fall a bit behind.”
“It’s almost like if City aren’t really in the race after 10 games, their focus could shift elsewhere—I think there could be a big surprise this season.”
“I’m going with Arsenal first, Liverpool second, Aston Villa third, and Manchester City fourth.”
Meanwhile, Mikel Arteta’s team looked in strong form last night as they defeated the reigning German champions, Bayer Leverkusen, with a 4-1 victory at the Emirates.
“We can take a lot of positives from the game as well as the result,” Arteta said. “The way we performed had many positive aspects, both collectively and individually.”
“I believe we will learn a lot from it, especially in the second half when we made seven changes. It was a really good test against a well-coached team, and overall it was a strong performance.”
