Rio Ferdinand believes only Liverpool and Manchester City have a genuine shot at winning the Premier League next season, notably leaving Arsenal out of the title conversation.
Under new manager Arne Slot, Liverpool enjoyed a dream debut campaign, capturing the Premier League crown ahead of Arsenal, who finished runners-up for the third year in a row. Reigning champions Manchester City ended the season in third after struggling to keep pace with the top two.
Liverpool have already made major additions to their squad in preparation for defending the title, while City have reshaped a squad that underperformed last season.
Speaking on his YouTube channel ‘Rio Ferdinand Presents’, the former Manchester United defender stated:
> “The title race will be between Liverpool and Man City next season. Arsenal might cause a stir for a few months—maybe six—but that’s about it.”
Ferdinand expressed doubts about Arsenal’s transfer activity so far, pointing to the lack of a top-class striker and the underwhelming nature of their reported targets, such as Brentford’s Christian Nørgaard (31), former Chelsea backup goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga, and Real Sociedad midfielder Martín Zubimendi.
In contrast, Ferdinand praised Liverpool’s aggressive summer business, particularly their record-breaking move for Florian Wirtz, along with the signings of Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez.
He added:
> “Not enough is being said about how Liverpool beat out the likes of City, Bayern, and even Real Madrid for Wirtz.
You can see the vision and direction at Liverpool so clearly. As a player, that’s exactly what you want to see when a club pitches you a project.
I can picture Wirtz walking out of that meeting with Slot and saying, ‘Don’t even bother answering calls from the others—I’m joining Liverpool.’”
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