Rio Ferdinand does not see any major surprises next season when it comes to the Premier League title race with Liverpool and Manchester City his favourites for the crown
Rio Ferdinand is adamant that Liverpool and Manchester City will be the only teams with a realistic chance of winning the Premier League next year, snubbing Arsenal.
Arne Slot enjoyed a dream maiden year at the helm by guiding Liverpool to Premier League glory ahead of the Gunners, who finished second for a third successive year. City, the defending champions, rallied to finish third after falling well behind the top two midway through the campaign.
Liverpool have already made major moves to strengthen their title-winning squad while City have largely refreshed a team that fell below expectations last term.
And Ferdinand reckons they will slug it out again for the domestic crown, citing Arsenal’s desperate need for a top quality striker.
“It’s only going to be between Liverpool and Man City next season,” Ferdinand said of the title race in his latest YouTube video for ‘Rio Ferdinand Presents‘.
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‘Arsenal might kick up a fuss for a couple of months – six months maybe – [but nothing more].
“Arsenal’s signings right now look likely to be Norgaard, who is 31 years old, Kepa, who was a reserve keeper at Chelsea, and Martin Zubimendi, but the entire fan base is crying out for a centre forward or a left winger.”
While Ferdinand is not overly enamoured with Arsenal’s transfer business to date, he is impressed with the work Liverpool have done so far this summer after watching them splash out on a British record deal for Florian Wirtz and substantial moves for Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez.
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He added: “I think what’s not being talked about enough is Liverpool’s ability to go and get a player that City were after, Bayern Munich were after and reportedly Real Madrid were also after. And Liverpool have come out on top in that.
“I can see it so clearly at the club right now, I can see their whole process and their vision – it’s so clear – and as a player, that’s what you want when you walk into the club and they’re pitching the project to you.
“I can imagine Wirtz coming out of that meeting with Slot and saying ‘don’t take any calls from any of those other clubs, I’m going here’.”
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Sky Sports discounted Premier League and EFL package
Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £192 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.
Sky will show at least 215 live Premier League games next season, an increase of up to 100 more.
