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Ilkay Gundogan Reveals Who He Thinks Manchester City's Title Rivals Are

Ilkay Gundogan Reveals Who He Thinks Manchester City's Title Rivals Are

Pep Guardiola's side finished 19 points above everyone last season but all their advantage has gone, can they win the Premier League again?

Ryan Sidle

Ryan Sidle

Will anyone actually get the chance to challenge Manchester City for the Premier League this season or will it be like last season's total domination? City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan has named two teams he thinks can challenge.

On one hand Manchester City sauntered away with last season's Premier League title with as much ease as anyone has previously but the other hand is that the new season means everyone resets to zero and City are as likely to win the title as anyone.

Pep Guardiola's side are expected to dominate the league once again but no one thinks that they're going to break the ridiculous records they did last term, mainly because they now seem unbreakable after their undprecitended run last term.

Last time out Manchester United were City's closest rivals, although with a 19 point gap back to them 'closest' really does seem like pushing it to be honest, and there are questions if Jose Mourinho's side can get much closer.

That's clearly an opinion held by City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan. On one of those Instagram Q&A sessions, that everyone loves so much, the German was asked who, if not City, would win this season's Premier League and United weren't in his thinking:

Gundogan picked Liverpool and Chelsea ahead of United. Image: Instagram/Daily Mail
Gundogan picked Liverpool and Chelsea ahead of United. Image: Instagram/Daily Mail

It's no surprise to see Liverpool being named as one of City's closest rivals this season. Jurgen Klopp has clearly improved the Reds, they play similarly fast paced football to City, and they've definitely improved since last season.

Chelsea are a more surprising choice. The Blues finished outside the top four last season under Antonio Conte but have replaced the Italian with another in the form of Maurizio Sarri.

They're more of an unknown as they will play a very different style to that played under their former manager but a change of boss has often worked wonders for Roman Abramovich's side.

Sarri is the latest in a long line of Chelsea managers. Image: PA Images
Sarri is the latest in a long line of Chelsea managers. Image: PA Images

United signed Fred and Diogo Dalot this summer to add to their team and it's definitely a side full of talent but the worry is that Mourinho doesn't get the best out of them and with it being his third season in charge there's the worry of his usual collapse.

Can anyone really expect to challenge City this season or will it be yet another walk in the park?

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Topics: Manchester City, Liverpool, Football News, Chelsea, Manchester United, Ilkay Gundogan, Premier League, England