Manchester United legend Paul Scholes believes Manchester City are the team to beat in the Premier League title race despite Arsenal sitting four points clear at the top of the table.
Pep Guardiolas side started the season with a 4-0 win over Wolves but back-to-back defeats to Tottenham Hotspur and Brighton and Hove Albion respectively brought back memories of the 2024-25 campaign one of Guardiolas worst managerial campaigns.
Since then, the eight-time Premier League champions have recovered and currently sit handsomely in second place in the English top-flight after condemning Liverpool to a 3-0 defeat at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday.
Paul Scholes who played 716 times for Manchester United from 1994 to 2013 believes that his former clubs local rivals are the team to beat in the Premier League title race.
The former England international claimed experience and recent form gives City a decisive edge over Mikel Artetas side, who fumbled an eight-point lead in the 2022-23 campaign to effectively hand City their first piece of silverware en route to a historic treble.
Ive not been impressed by (Manchester) City that much but yesterday (on Sunday against Liverpool), I thought for the first time theyre going to be (challengers), Scholes said on The Good, The Bad & The Football podcast.
I think they (Manchester City) slightly still favourites ahead of Arsenal because of what theyve done.
I know Arsenal are four points clear, but with the experience theyve got and Arsenal havent. You have to put them (Manchester City) slightly ahead of them.
Guardiolas side have won six of the last eight Premier League titles during a time whereby they won four in a row a feat never achieved before in English football between the 2020-21 and 2023-24 seasons.
The Catalan will hope to lift the Premier League again this season, with reports suggesting it could be his final season in England after nine successful years at the club winning 18 trophies during that time.
City have collected 11 wins in 14 games in all competitions since September and look set to push Arsenal all the way for the league title, having reduced the Gunners lead at the top of the table to four points at the weekend.
Mikel Arteta and co will be sweating over Manchester Citys resurgence as this is a movie they are all too familiar with, though the former City assistant will be insisting that his players retain full focus on themselves and not get distracted by the Blues, who are slowly but surely returning to their best after an indifferent start to the 2025-26 campaign.