Arsenal dropped points against Liverpool on Sunday, thereby giving Manchester City a chance to catch up with them but according to pundit Jamie Carragher, the Gunners are still the favourites to win the EPL.
After Sunday’s draw, Arsenal are six points ahead of Man City but the Cityzens have played one game less plus they will still face Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium. This means if City win both these matches, they will go to the top of the table thanks to their superior goal difference.
Given City’s experience at winning titles, one would think they will be able to topple Arsenal from the top spot but according to Carragher, City’s FA Cup and European endeavours will impact their title push.
“We keep talking about the title; City can do the treble,” Carragher said on Sky Sports, as quoted by MEN. “There’s a great chance they’ll win the FA Cup final, and they’re favourites for the Champions League.
“I think on the run-in, if they keep going, there will be one or two games that Pep Guardiola has got to think about winning the treble, and he’ll have to take a chance in a couple of league games with the team he picks.
“It might not be his best team, but he has to think he has to go with it because he’s got a game midweek, and the bigger picture is always more important than just a one-off league game.”
Manchester City will face Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals of the Champions League and then they take on Sheffield United in the FA Cup and like Carragher said, Guardiola, will have to rotate his starting line ups due to the congestion of fixtures. However, we don’t think City will be badly affected because of this.
The Etihad outfit contest on all fronts every season so they are used to playing under pressure and this time it’s no different. Man City will not flinch just because they are playing a team like Bayern Munich more so since their backup players are more than capable of beating the minnows of the EPL.
Arsenal, on the other hand, are likely to hit the panic button after drawing against Liverpool and because they still need to face Man City, Newcastle United and Chelsea, a stumble or multiple stumbles is very much possible.
It’s very clear that the EPL is now a two-horse race and even though Jamie Carragher believes that Man City will have to set their priorities because they are attacking all fronts but we think, City will be able to topple the Gunners from the top spot on the EPL table, even if they cannot win the Champions League or the FA Cup.
