Can Arsenal or Liverpool catch up with Man City in the Premier League title race? | Soccer Saturday

we need to focus now on the title race because it was a fascinating weekend a week ago city as we expect dominant against Luton Town but there were big big slip ups for Liverpool at home to Crystal Palace and then Arsenal at home to Aston Villa so in terms of how the odds have changed since a week ago and those three significant results this is how things have been seeing now Manchester City the odds on favorites to make it for Premier League titles in a row Arsenal 10 to3 Liverpool now at 11-2 and in terms of we like to mention this every now and again the supercomputer is looking at the title race at man city with a 69.7 five% Chance of making it yet another premier league title Merc you were in the Super Sunday Studio six days ago you were typically and wonderfully forthright in terms of where Arsenal's defeat against astonvilla left them in their title Johns as you said 100% over uh nearly a week on Are you standing by that well op owning about 12% behind me is it I mean ain't bad I mean not that it's not that tongue in you're human you're not a computer yeah uh no I don't I I we're talking six games to go six games it's in man City's hands it's in man cities hands with six games to go they are proven they do it every year every year when it counts you know and when you look at during the last four or five seasons when they've lost Games The Season's been finished they they've won it before that they've won 12 on the Trot 13 on the Trot gone 14 you know they're 40 games at home they're 17 undefeated they just the only thing that you got a case with Arsenal and the OPA gives it to the like 177% or 12 whatever it was is they play their next two games before before Man City and that's massive because if they go and beat wolves Andel Chelsea then all of a sudden Man City have to win their two games in hand to go above them so that's the only Advantage but I I just can't I can't see Man City not winning their next six games I just um you know people go oh but look what happened at at Real Madrid the other night they destroyed Real Madrid it was embarrassing it was cringeworthy they absolutely rinsed them and they couldn't score the goal the problem is what I could put in perspective is Arsenal go and get beat by Villa Under Pressure get beat Liverpool Under Pressure get beat by Palace only two weeks before that V uh Man City would playing them two teams under severe pressure they put four past Villa and they put four past Palace put it in perspective yeah you know they've gone four4 five in three games they just blowing everybody away you know I don't know what the everybody thinks on here but I they're just proven it's just it's they're not going into you know Waters that they've never been in before they they've been here too many times and if I could you could see Jurgen klopp's interview couldn't you he just knew didn't he he knew he knew you know he just went he knows he knows but the thing is Clinton you've got on the one side of fence what what Merc is saying there in terms of predictability Man City are wonderfully predictable at this time of year they get into gear yeah we saw what happen against Real Madrid midweek utterly dominant but but not able to get past angelotti's side losing out on penalties in the end but then the flip side of that we've just been talking about the FA Cup football at times can be wonderfully unpredictable look at the 9798 season I mean a bookie paid out on United 11 points clear of Blackburn 12 points clear of Arsenal Arsenal went on a 10 game winning run and ended up winning the league now I know we're in a different era now yeah but stranger things can happen why is everyone so confident that City don't slip up from here cuz they've been there many times and done it that's that's why and at the moment listen even more so now I think that they've been knocked out of the champions league as well because this is what they put all their eggs in to this winning the Premier League and also winning the FA Cup they'll be disappointed I don't not every time I agree with M but he made some really valid points there and good points I I age I think it's man City's to lose at the moment they're the type of team who can go on a fantastic run he's right Arsenal have to play wolves and Chelsea all Arsenal can do is do their job beat Wolves beat Chelsea then throw the pressure back to Man City problem is these Man City players and that manager they can handle the pressure they've been there I've said it all along even when Arsenal and Liverpool were ahead of them man city will win the Premier League because they just they just time after time they keep going they keep going even real against Real Madrid they were the better team it's just on another day if they finish put the ball in the back of the and their finishing was better they would have won it and they would have gone on and won the Champions League if they beat Real Madrid but I think it's man City's to lose but Liverpool and Arsenal have to keep going I still do think though s it could go to the last day of the season but I just feel Man City are just too clinical at the moment at West Ham at home on the final day of the season for Manchester City let's reflect on Arsenal and what happened to them six days ago Tim as you heard from Mercy was pretty conclusive about what that defeat against astonvilla means in terms of the Gunner's title CH uh hopes I mean the choker tag has been used quite a lot in the last few days is that a little cheap very yeah I think so um I I I think they've done a great job they're up against a juggernaut in Man City we've seen how many times they've won it prolific winners magnificent players the best team in the world we're talking about here in Man City mer is absolutely right Real Madrid it was it was embarrassing uh but they got the job done Real Madrid know how to win in that competition by hook up by crook they got the job done Villa defeat I thought Villa controlled the game in the second half I really did I think done a job on them um you know Arsenal started the game very well they didn't get the early goal didn't settle him down they got anxious and Uno emer's now done a double on on uh moo Etta his old team you know he knew how to do it they pushed forward they was still probably 12 minutes left here you know with the injury time um and they leave him Ole Watkins fantastic finish but they leave him on his own there with Smith row poor decision get anxious chase the game no need to do it stay calm you see Man City when they get over the line time and time again and they go behind doesn't phase them just keep playing keep playing the same way it's a trusted process they know they can get the job done they panicked they panicked there I'll give them a chance I'll still give them a chance but I think less of a chance now they're out of the F out of the um Bayern Munich beat him I think it's a real problem when you take defeat in a disappointment of defeat especially in the Premier League and then the Champions League that no don't listen to that nonsense I it's only one thing to concentrate on now no you start getting fatigued now lose football mat matches you get a little bit depressed in your mind tell it starts telling your body you're tired um and then certainly when you're winning when you're looking at the other team like Man City and you're looking at and win and win comfortably and you know there's nothing else you can end up empty-handed everyone's been singing from the rooftops about Arsenal all season they could end up with zero the same as Tottenham and we praise them a lot rightfully certainly since the turn of the Year sue for for how different they looked at this time last You Look Back to December those back-to-back Premier League defeats they exit the FA Cup at the hands of Liverpool they get into 2024 and in terms of the Premier League just go on this fantastic run with games running out and the pressure increasing as we said right at the top are they capable of coming back from last weekend and going on a similar run because they're going to need to do that g what everyone is saying about City at this time of the Season yeah I think they are you know going back to where you said our Arsenal choking or that's the fear maybe the the fans are thinking that I think they're better equipped this year I think the the players have got that experience the manager got that experience from from last year I think when you look at the two games the The Villa Game and obviously the the Bayern game they were small margins Aston Villa were brilliant tactically got things spot on but in that first half they had opportunities to to go and win the game could that have been a different game second half and again buying just a real experienced Champions League side so you would expect they've got real sort of leaders and characters in that side which again we've praised since the start of the year so I think they can bounce back I think that this is a a real test of the character but I'm I'm sure that they can come through that how big a test his balls away today later in the Saturday Night Football it's huge because you have to bounce back otherwise people will be speaking about them again and I think they've they've been magnificent they've just come up against a Manchester City team that have been there and done it I mean last week I just thought it was a little bit naive uh for Arsenal that they tried to chase the game they will put everything on this with still seven games to go including that game you look at the game and go all right we get over here with a nil nil worst case scenario I thought when they went behind and they started chasing the game they lost they lost the way a little bit but that what that's what happens sometimes with pressure um I don't believe they've they've crumbled or anything like that pressure's got to it was just a game where Aston Ville Aston Villa can beat you they they beat them at Villa Park and they beat them last week it's it's one of those today against wolves I don't see it being easy on the back of the midweek defeat losing to to Bayern the disappointment they'll be in the dressing room thinking wow we've lost it it's still tight it's not over yet I think Man City going to win I've always said all season that but you can't now all of a sudden lose your thought lose your your process has got you into a position where they are now and competitive and you've got to get back to to to level terms your mindset to go there let's show everyone out there everyone's wrot us off now let's try and go and beat beat wolves but I think it's a tough game toight I think they haven't choked you know last season you look at it's an easy people love Nar of course they it's lazy you know but people got people can look at last season it was West Ham and Southampton this year it's Aston Villa fourth in the league and Bayern Munich a Jugger all of a Champions League team away it's a different kind you know you hope now they go on and hopefully finish it off and win the rest of their games and make make Man City go perfect and then you hold your hands up and it hasn't been too bad you know you look at a villa game and the two games over Christmas I think it was against West Ham and Fulham by that it hasn't been too much wrong with Arsenal you they they are improving and as Tim said they're just coming up against the best team in the world very quickly before we talk about Liverpool his there in the National League 1215 kickoff South End have hopes of making the playoffs one playoff spot remaining and they made a good start against rdale auscott morrris with the goal on8 minutes and Dori wandas relegated a week ago at leading Harley pool United by goal to nil Charlie Carter with the early goal in that game back we go to the Premier League title race uh we need to talk about Liverpool is it too simplistic Clinton I mean Crystal Palace last week at anfield absolutely brilliant terrific performance for them is it too simplistic to look at Liverpool look at what happened midweek against Atlanta to say this is a team running out of gas I don't know if they're running out of gas what they're doing is they're missing big chances two goals in his last five he had a wonderful opportunity against Atlanta scored for the penalty spot and then came off his shin and dinked it past the Left Post in in terms of getting Salah back to his best he clearly hasn't been since returning from injury what does klopp do over the remainder of the season does he give him a rest keep playing in the hope that at some point he clicks what does he do no arrest if he gives him arrest who's he arrest him for you know I think he's you cannot get that man a risk his numbers speak for itself over the years you know he's proven he's just having a spell and he's having a spell at the wrong time he's had chances I agree I don't think Palace were great I think they were great fighting I thought they I thought they dug in and then with E and Elis say they were different different animal yeah um but I think if you looked on the balance of play and the chances I mean they could have won six or seven Liverpool and the chances what they created they have to be colder in front the goal take a deep breath you know Nunez is an erratic finisher he always has been in my eyes and then one Falls to jotto you want it to finish fall two and unfortunately someone gets in the way they put their bodies on on the line Palace they really dug in for the for the team stuck together but it wasn't great um and Liverpool should have won that game it's not like Arsenal where they never created enough chances they c a right final chat on on on the the title race as we look at the final fixtures so everyone seems absolutely convinced there's going to be no slip UPS from the champion City between now and the end of the season if there was was going to be a slip up of those final fixtures for Pep guardiola's side where might it be I still think there's going to be a Twist um it's going to be difficult we know that Manchester City are very capable of going all the way through and not slipping up but you look at Tottenham away um I think the home games you pretty much say well Manchester City's so strong at home as are you know the the other side and olip have had a little dip recently again you look at Nottingham Forest will be fighting where they are in the in the league um so you'd probably say those but I think it last week was obviously Manchester City's week wasn't it with with Arsenal and Liverpool losing it's just the case of now just going about their business how are they going to respond to to going out the Champions League tired legs tired minds I think they'll be fine I think they'd be refocused on now doing the double I think Pep Guardiola said it's going to be so difficult to do the double treble almost impossible I think he said and it's just shown that that it is even a team like that it is so difficult to to continue and maintain that so yeah it I still think there's there's going to be another twist to this title race but I it's difficult to say where it's probably one that we wouldn't even predict [Music]

Channel: Sky Sports News

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Keywords: FA Cup, Premier League, EFL, Sky Sports News, Arsenal, Aston Villa, Bournemouth, Brentford, Brighton, Chelsea, Crystal Palace, Everton, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Newcastle, Nottingham Forest, Southampton, Tottenham, West Ham, Wolves, Wembley, Real madrid, Champions League, Title Race, Soccer Saturday, Paul Merson

Id: 8kI2tzFK2u8

Length: 13min 10sec (790 seconds)

Published: Sat Apr 20 2024