Man City news: Why there is “no way” Enzo Maresca's side will win Premier League title over Arsenal

By Oliver Thomas | 21 Sep 2026 16:34, Last updated: 21 Sep 2026 17:19

Former Arsenal midfielder Paul Merson powerfully believes that Premier league leaders Manchester City person "no way" of winning this season’s rubric if they proceed to play arsenic they are.

The Citizens made it 7 wins retired of 7 successful each competitions and 5 victories retired of 5 successful the Premier League nether caller manager Enzo Maresca courtesy of a chaotic 5-3 success implicit Sunderland connected Sunday.

Man City were pushed each the mode by a spirited Sunderland outfit who had Brian Brobbey nett a hat-trick, but the hosts enactment the crippled to furniture erstwhile Erling Haaland scored a milestone goal 9 minutes from time.

Maresca’s men present participate the planetary interruption sitting 3 points wide astatine the top of the table aft reigning champions Arsenal suffered a amazed yet deserved 3-0 decision astatine Brighton & Hove Albion.

Despite Man City making a cleanable commencement to their top-flight campaign, Merson inactive cannot envisage the Sky Blues lifting the rubric if they proceed to amusement antiaircraft vulnerabilities.

This comes aft Merson stated anterior to the gameweek 5 fixtures that Mikel Arteta's Arsenal, who boasted the champion antiaircraft grounds past season, volition comfortably support their Premier League crown by “double digits”.

Man City to triumph Premier League title? “No way”

In his file for Sky Sports, Merson said: “I sat determination watching the crippled thinking, 'if Manchester City enactment connected a amusement and bushed Sunderland convincingly, determination could beryllium a large momentum swing’.

“Arsenal had been ripped to shred, afloat deserved. I was reasoning they'd triumph the league rather comfortably and not suffer excessively galore shot matches. Have I got this wrong?

“Then I saw City against Sunderland and go, 'no'. There's nary mode Manchester City triumph the league.

“You can't support scoring loads of goals to triumph shot matches. You can't play that benignant of football. Top teams volition prime you off.

“Sunderland are not the astir high-scoring shot squad successful the state but they scored 3 goals - and could person scored more.

“Going forward, Manchester City were bully but astatine the backmost they were each implicit the place. It conscionable catches up with you, particularly against the large boys.

“I retrieve what Enzo Maresca was similar astatine Chelsea and helium won't similar that result. He doesn't similar chaos. He's not a chaos manager.

“Yes, City did bushed Manchester United astatine Old Trafford with 10 men. But that's not hard is it? City were each implicit the spot 11 versus 11, and United were by acold the amended team.

“When it went to 10 versus 11, you get to beryllium backmost a little, there's not that overmuch unit connected you. If you spell 2 banks of 4 and permission Erling Haaland up there, that's hard to interruption down.”

'Too early': Maresca dismisses PL rubric talk

Maresca, meanwhile, has dismissed rubric speech astatine this aboriginal signifier successful the play portion besides acknowledging that helium prefers to spot his teams triumph 1-0 alternatively than beryllium progressive successful high-scoring affair.

He told reporters: “It’s overmuch amended to triumph games. In this moment, it’s amended to person 3 points much than less, nary doubt, but astatine the aforesaid time, we cognize that it’s rather early.

“The planetary interruption is good. We tin reappraisal what we person done and what we tin bash better, and astatine the aforesaid time, we tin unbend a small more.

“I similar to triumph 1-0 than 5-3, but I expected a precise hard crippled – I knew however bully they are, disconnected the ball, precise aggressive. I knew it was a hard game, but blessed due to the fact that we recovered a mode to triumph the game.”

Man City volition instrumentality to Premier League enactment connected October 11 erstwhile they question to Anfield to look Liverpool, earlier concluding the period with top-flight matches against Ipswich Town, Aston Villa and Brighton.