Spurs snubbed as Alan Shearer gives verdict on Arsenal beating Man City to title

Arsenal are the team that can end Manchester City’s dominance in the Premier League, according to Alan Shearer. The Newcastle and England legend believes the Gunners are better placed than Tottenham and Liverpool to mount a title challenge and pip Pep Guardiola’s side to top spot.

Arsenal beat City 1-0 at the Emirates on Sunday thanks to a late Gabriel Martinelli deflected goal. It was their first Premier League victory over their opponents since December 2015, ending a run of 15 winless matches.

It means Arsenal are now level on points at the top of the table with north London rivals Tottenham heading into the international break. Spurs are the only other team not to have lost a match in the top flight this season.

City are two points behind in third place, with Liverpool fourth after their 2-2 draw at Brighton. Arsenal came closest to toppling City last season but for a major drop off in the final 10 games of the campaign.

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But they had a big summer transfer window, including the club-record arrival of Declan Rice. Shearer says Sunday’s win proved that Arsenal look best placed to challenge City again.

He wrote for the BBC: “The way I look at it, if you finish above City, you will win the league – and Arsenal are the team who look most capable of doing that this season and ending their dominance. Sunday’s win over the defending champions was a huge result for the Gunners’ belief and confidence, but the best sign of where they are at is that they did it without playing particularly well.

“What Mikel Arteta’s side did do throughout, however, was defend extremely well. After having a couple of chances in the opening minutes, City did not get another sniff and I’ve not seen many teams keep them that quiet in recent years.”

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Tottenham have had an exceptional start under Ange Postecoglou following the departure of Harry Kane. Liverpool are also impressing after a major overhaul of their midfield in the summer.

Shearer believes Spurs are well set to finish in the top four but has doubts over their title credentials. He also reckons Liverpool’s defence could be what lets them down.

He added: “I’m not sure how long Spurs will spend at the summit but the fact they don’t have any European football this season will definitely help their chances of staying in the top four. At some stage, I think they will miss Harry Kane and the points he earned them with the goals he scored when they were not playing well, but they are certainly not having any problems winning without him at the moment.

“So far, Liverpool are right up there as well, but again I am not convinced they will sustain a title challenge. Jurgen Klopp’s side are always going to score goals because of the attacking players that they have, but I still have my doubts about them defensively.”

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