Glen Johnson has made a surprise prediction when asked about who will challenge Manchester City next season.
The 22/23 season truly belonged to Pep Guardiola’s City as they managed to secure the treble after winning the Premier League, the FA Cup and the Champions League.
They became the first team since Manchester United in 1999 to achieve this historic feat.
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As the 23/24 season edges ever closer, former Liverpool and England defender Johnson has made a surprising choice when asked about City’s biggest rivals for the title.
He told Betfred: “I obviously believe that Liverpool are going to improve next season, but I believe there’s a big gap between Manchester City and everybody else.
“I don’t believe they’ll challenge for the Premier League title next season, but I do believe that Chelsea will be the surprise package if I’m being honest.”
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Johnson continued: “Chelsea have a fantastic squad but they weren’t firing at all last season, but now they have a good manager and a good squad, I believe they’ll have a point to prove and they’ll be challenging more than anybody expected.
“I don’t believe they’ll be good enough to take Manchester City all the way, but I believe Chelsea will be their closest rivals.”
Fans were quick to react to Johnson’s predictions.
One said: “The two teams he used to play for ..Funny that.”
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Another commented: “Chelsea who finished 12th and Liverpool with an ageing squad, lol.”
A third fan added: “Seriously has he watched football this season or what?”
On paper, Chelsea for sure have one of the finest squads in the Premier League after the amount of money they have spent.
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In addition, new manager Mauricio Pochettino will not have the distraction of European football and can spend more time on the training pitch to get his ideas across.
Johnson then spoke about whether Pochettino’s time at Tottenham Hotspur will be a problem.
He added: “He’s the Chelsea manager now and as long as he gets this team performing, then the fans are going to forget about his history with Tottenham. If it doesn’t go well, then the Tottenham connection could make some of the fans get on his back quite quickly.
“At the end of the day, they’re all football fans and they’re going to understand that Mauricio needs time. I believe Chelsea fans will be happy with Mauricio if there’s improvement this upcoming season.”
Featured Image Credit: Sky Sports/AlamyTopics: Chelsea, Football, Manchester City, Premier League, Fan Reactions, Liverpool