Arsenal legend reveals who the Gunners’ biggest title rivals will be this season in brutal snub to both Manchester clubs

PAUL MERSON has named the club he believes will be the biggest threat to Arsenal’s title defence this season – and it is not Manchester City. The Gunners ended their 22-year wait for a Premier League crown in May, topping the table by seven points. Paul Merson has named the team he thinks will challenge Arsenal for the title this season Credit: Getty Merson is not convinced that Man City, Man Utd or Chelsea will challenge the Gunners Credit: Getty They are now braced to defend their title, with each of their main rivals having added to their squads. City have signed Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest in a huge deal worth £116million, along with Jeremy Monga in a £10m swoop from Leicester City. Sign up for the Arsenal newsletter Thank you! Chelsea hijacked Arsenal’s move for Morgan Rogers and paid Aston Villa £117m for the attacking midfielder. The Blues have also added the likes of Maxence Lacroix, Danny Welbeck and Marco Palestra to their ranks. And third-placed Manchester United have recruited Andrey Santos, Youri Tielemans, Karl Darlow and Tynan Thompson over the last few months. However, former Arsenal and England midfielder Merson does not believe that any of those clubs will challenge the Gunners this term. Instead, he thinks that Liverpool will become their biggest rivals. In his latest Sky Sports column, Merson wrote: “I don’t think Man City will win the Premier League this year anyway. Most read in Sport CASINO SPECIAL – BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS Merson believes Liverpool will rival Arsenal for the Premier League crown Credit: Alamy “They didn’t win it last year with the best manager in the world. They were only ever in the title race because Arsenal had a bad three weeks. “I think Liverpool are Arsenal’s nearest challengers this season.” So far this summer, Liverpool have welcomed new head coach Andoni Iraola from Bournemouth. They have also signed Spanish winger Victor Munoz from Osasuna and French centre-back Jeremy Jacquet from Rennes. The Reds are now plotting an audacious swoop for Paris Saint-Germain winger Bradley Barcola – who is valued at £145m by the French side. Barcola has also been linked with a move to Arsenal, but the Gunners recently shifted their attention to Vinicius Jr as they look to strengthen their attack. In his column, Merson highlighted concerns about City’s midfield, despite the addition of Anderson. He believes that Anderson will not fit into the same starting line-up as Rodri. Merson claimed: “Rodri is one of the top two holding midfielders in the world, alongside Moises Caicedo. But I don’t see how him and Elliot Anderson play together. “Rodri is the best in the business at ticking it over, Anderson is going to be the best in the business at ticking it over. But to play both of them in there? I don’t think they need that. “How many teams are going to have a go at Man City? People go to the Etihad and shut up shop and counter-attack. “Do you need two holding midfielders against Hull? No, of course not. Then all of a sudden, someone’s not playing. “Don’t get me wrong, in the big games, when they’re playing back away in the Champions League in a quarter-final or the last 16, then you need two holding midfield players. They were a bit too open in the Champions League and were well off it last year. “But the holy grail is the 38 games in the Premier League. And there aren’t enough games in the Premier League for them both to play in the same team. “Unless they bought Anderson and he gets a season of learning under the best in the world in Rodri. But £116m is a lot to spend on someone to be an understudy. Rodri will want to play, and he won’t want to sit there and be someone’s understudy. “But you’re still selling one of the best players in the world.” Merson is not convinced that new City signing Elliot Anderson will be able to play in midfield alongside Rodri Credit: Getty Comment now