Guardiola makes Chelsea Prem title prediction as Merson admits he’d ‘be shocked’ if Man City lose
Manchester City head coach Pep Guardiola reckons Chelsea will “sooner or later” be in a position to challenge for the Premier League title.
Chelsea – who are top of the 2023 Premier League net spend table – are going through a transitionary phase under new owner Todd Boehly but they have shown signs of progress this season following Mauricio Pochettino’s arrival.
The Blues are tenth in the Premier League but they produced promising performances against Liverpool and Arsenal before they beat Tottenham 4-1 on Monday night.
The London outfit are still a long way off Man City, who are two points clear at the top of the Premier League ahead of this weekend’s fixtures.
Man City come up against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge this weekend and this will be the toughest test the Blues have faced this season.
Former Arsenal player Paul Merson thinks “Chelsea will cause City problems and vice versa” but he “would be shocked” if the Blues beat the Premier League table-toppers.
“I was bullish last week when I said Chelsea were going to beat Tottenham. I said it because Chelsea like teams coming at them. I think there’ll be some outstanding battles all over the pitch,” Merson told Sportskeeda.
“Chelsea will cause City problems and vice versa. But I still don’t see the Blues winning this one. I’d indeed be shocked if they won this one.
“That’s only because Manchester City have so many game-changers on their side. They are spoilt for choice as always. I just don’t see how any team will finish above Manchester City this season. I’m hoping that Chelsea get a draw here.”
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Guardiola meanwhile addressed Chelsea’s current situation during his pre-match press conference on Friday.
The City head coach reckons Chelsea “will be there fighting for titles sooner or later”.
“It’s true that in the Premier League they were not close to winning it in these last seasons but they’re still one of the strongest teams, there’s no doubts about that,” Guardiola told reporters.
“I see that in the last games they are alive, they have good spirit, they are aggressive, they have a good pattern. The quality is there.
“It’s one of the toughest games that we have during the season. Sooner or later Chelsea will be there fighting for the titles, and I guess sooner than later.”
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