Manchester United winger Riyad Mahrez had revealed that all the top six clubs on the Premier League table including Liverpool can compete for the Premier League title this season.
Arsenal are top of the Premier League with 31 points after 13 matches with a game in hand which is against second-placed Manchester City, who are on 29 points.
Tottenham Hotspurs retained their third position after coming back from two goals down to beat Bournemouth 3-2. Antonio Conte’s side have 26 points.
Newcastle United continued their impressive start to the season with an emphatic 4-0 win over Aston Villa. Newcastle Unitedleapfrogged Manchester United and Chelsea to fourth place with 24 points.
Manchester United moved from sixth-placed to Fifth after a hard-fought victory over West Ham United at Old Trafford.
Chelsea have dropped to sixth after an embarrassing 4-1 defeat to Brighton to end Graham Potter’s unbeaten run.
The surprise inclusion will be Liverpool, who are ninth on the League table and 15 points shy of first place Arsenal.
However, Riyad Mahrez believes despite Liverpool’s poor start to the season, Jurgen Klopp’s side could still challenge the Premier and sees the current top six clubs on the Premier League table (Arsenal, Manchester City, Tottenham, Newcastle United, Manchester United and Chelsea) as serious title contenders.
What did Riyad Mahrez say?
The Algerian international said in an interview with Manchester City’s official website: “This season I think Arsenal are very good.
“All of the top six really.
“Even Liverpool, they are away from us at the moment, but I still think they can be there at the end of the season. All the top six [and Liverpool] can challenge us for the Premier League and all of the other trophies.”
The 31-year-old also hailed the influence of Erling Haaland since his arrival at Manchester United and claimed Manchester United has not changed their style to suit him.
The Norwegian international has scored 22 goals in 16 appearances for Manchester City including 17 goals in 11 Premier League.
Mahrez said: “I don’t think we have changed a lot,” he stated.
“Obviously, Erling is a different kind of striker to what we have had in the past. Sometimes we can play a bit more direct with him because he is big and strong.
“Otherwise, we are playing the same that we always did. The only thing that surprised me is the number of goals he scored. I wasn’t expecting this! He has scored a lot of goals already. He is a big presence in the box and a very good player for us.”
Meanwhile, Jurgen Klopp has admitted Liverpool risk of losing in the top four if they don’t improve.
Jurgen Klopp said after their defeat to Leeds United: “You can’t qualify for the Champions League if you play as inconsistently as we do at the moment.
“We have to fix that.
“So many things are unlike us at this moment. I am sorry it is like this, but that is the situation. I am not sure how deep you can dig, but we will. It is like it is and we will work on solutions.
“We have to have a look at this game first, try to understand it a bit more, and go from there.”
