Can Man City challenge Arsenal for the title?

Summary

The Athletic FC Podcast – Episode Summary

Episode Title: Can Man City challenge Arsenal for the title?
Date: November 10, 2025
Host: Ayo Akimolere
Guests: Jack Pitt-Brooke, Adam Crafton

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Overview

This episode examines Manchester City's prospects of catching Arsenal in the Premier League title race following Pep Guardiola's milestone 1000th game in management, focusing on City's recent 3-0 victory over Liverpool. The panel also dives into tactical changes at City, the emergence of Jeremy Doku, Liverpool’s stumbles, and where the true title threat lies. The latter section shifts to Liverpool’s issues and wider Championship talk, including an unexpected discussion about Frank Lampard’s managerial renaissance at Coventry City.

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Main Discussion Points & Insights

1. City’s Shift and Their Win Over Liverpool

[02:17–08:26]

• One-sided Game:
  • Jack Pitt-Brooke: “City were just much better than Liverpool. They looked like scoring every time they went forward... it didn't have that kind of tension that you get when it's the two best teams in the country.” (02:53)
  • City, while now within four points of Arsenal, appear “a bit of the way off,” with Liverpool “probably further away.”
• Possession, Style Evolution:
  • Adam Crafton: “City have been doing that in a few games this season... far more happy to go without the ball... it's not like it was four or five years ago where every Man City game is 65 to 70% of the ball.” (03:56)
  • Jack Pitt-Brooke notes Pep’s pragmatism: “They’ve moved to a style which... is more conventional. It’s less distinctly Pep. It's less based around possession, it's more direct, it's more pragmatic. But he's decided that... this is probably the best way to win games now.” (04:50)
• Enjoyment Factor:
  • Adam Crafton: “I think they're more enjoyable now, but it's a matter of taste... I actually find it more exciting to have Haaland up front... It’s kind of like a mixed-use setup now – a team that can play, a team that can battle.” (05:47)
  • On Haaland: This direct approach “is probably the way you have to play” to get the best out of him.

2. Guardiola’s Stamina & The Arsenal Comparison

[08:08–08:26]

• Pep has won 395 out of 550 games with City; Adam Crafton highlights: “That's a win record of like 70% pretty much just at Man City, which is insane... that's like not far off, you know, the best sports teams of all time.” (08:26)
• Arsenal seen as “a more complete team” right now, but City’s “spine” and ability to close the gap still makes them dangerous if they maintain form and fitness.

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3. Jeremy Doku’s Emergence

[12:40–14:17]

• Breakout Star:
  • Ayo Akimolere: “The star of the show and man of the match was Jeremy Doku... We’ve seen raw talent, but I guess we're now seeing a finished product.” (12:52)
  • Jack Pitt-Brooke: “[Doku] has been the most improved player in the Premier League... he was so powerful, so positive, so confident... It just shows how different Pep is, right?” (13:06)
• Contrast With Grealish:
  • Jack: “When Grealish was in that position... all about slowing things down... But now he's got Doku in and Doku is so quick and positive and tries things... what Pep wants from a winger has probably changed.” (13:06)
• Tactical Freedom:
  • Adam Crafton: Less emphasis on keeping the ball means “maybe that does give more freedom” to players like Doku. (14:36)

Notable Stats:

• Doku won 11 duels, completed 7 dribbles, created 3 chances, and had 3 shots on target—“only Eden Hazard for Chelsea vs West Ham in April 2019 can boast such amazing numbers.” (16:55)

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4. City's Goal Spread and Dependence on Haaland

[16:55–17:27]

• Concern about over-reliance on Haaland; Doku’s emergence and Foden’s form could make them less predictable.
• Adam Crafton: “If Harlan's fit and scores two goals every game, you don't need that much more, to be honest.” (17:27)

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5. City’s Midfield and Fullback Options

[18:05–19:23]

• Nico Gonzalez's Role (Rodri’s absence):
  • Jack: “He's obviously not as good as Rodri. I thought he did pretty well yesterday... He had Bernardo Silva alongside him.” (18:21)
• Nico O’Reilly’s Rise:
  • Jack: “It's totally plausible that he could be the starting England left back at the World cup... I think he's very confident, big and physically imposing.” (19:23)

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6. Liverpool’s Stagnation and Wirtz’s Adaptation

[21:46–28:57]

• Liverpool's Form:
  • Adam: “They’re kind of flimsy at the moment... Their problem is more at the moment defense and the goalkeepers.” (21:58)
  • Several new signings (Isak, Wirtz, Ekitike) haven’t adapted or delivered. Salah “is really having a poor season, quiet season.”
  • On defense: “Since Alisson's fallen out of the team they've got a lot poorer in terms of results and outcomes.”
• Florian Wirtz:
  • Jack: “Not doing what they paid the money for... a very difficult environment to go into for a player like this.” (24:03)
  • Liverpool are “in a real transitional moment,” with new players unsettled, reminiscent of City’s struggle with an aging squad in the previous season.
• Coaching & Title Defense:
  • Adam: “It isn't an easy thing to go for... that ability to go again and maintain a level and keep hunger, that's a really hard thing to do. It's why, you know, only City have been able to defend the title...” (26:11)

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7. Title Race: Experience, Mentality, and Psychological Edge

[28:57–31:35]

• What City Must Do:
  • Adam Crafton: “If City are going to win the League, I think they're going to have to hit probably 93, 94 points, because I think Arsenal will get pretty close to that... If City carry on losing three games out of 11... they won't win the League.” (29:14)
  • Arsenal look unlikely to “capitulate,” so City must be nearly perfect.
• Psychological Pressure:
  • Jack: “This City team is probably less experienced than that City team [that chased down Arsenal]... City are miles more dependent on Haaland than Arsenal are on any one player—And I think that has to be a positive for Arsenal.” (30:42)

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Standout Quotes

On the Guardiola Evolution

• “He's like 18 years into his elite managerial career now or something, and he's realized that, actually, I'm going to do it differently. I'm not as wedded as people thought I was to this particular style that I made my name with.” – Jack Pitt-Brooke (07:10)

On Doku’s Freedom

• “When he first came through in Belgium, people were talking about him like as a new Thierry Henry... There’s always been excitement about Doku.” – Adam Crafton (14:36)

On Liverpool’s Decline

• “I would have Arsenal and City way ahead of Liverpool at the moment.” – Adam Crafton (23:54)

On Arsenal’s Edge

• “I think Arsenal are fundamentally better than City. I think they've got more depth, more to them. I think City are very brittle because... they're miles more dependent on Haaland than Arsenal are on any one player.” – Jack Pitt-Brooke (30:42)

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Notable Segment Timestamps

• Opening discussion on City-Liverpool: 02:17–05:38
• Jeremy Doku’s breakout: 12:40–16:54
• City’s midfield / fullback depth: 18:05–19:23
• Liverpool’s struggles, Wirtz adaptation: 21:46–28:57
• Title run-in, psychological edge: 28:57–31:35

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Final Segment – Lampard at Coventry

[31:57–34:54]

• Adam Crafton highlights Frank Lampard's success at Coventry: “They’re now 15 games, the Championship season, one defeat... they are just way outperforming the division at the moment. And it is amazing how bad the relegated teams have been as well.” (31:57, 34:08)
• Panel agrees Coventry’s rise with Lampard is impressive, achieved without parachute payments, an oligarch owner, or a “gimmicky documentary.”

---

Conclusion

• Manchester City are evolving under Pep Guardiola, shifting tactics to be more pragmatic and less possession-focused, but are more reliant on Haaland than ever.
• Arsenal are currently the most complete and consistent team, but their challenge will be seeing off City's experience and psychological strength.
• Liverpool are in transition, suffering from inconsistent form, a leaky defense, and difficulty integrating pricey new attackers.
• Jeremy Doku’s rise adds unpredictability and flair to City's attack, further bolstering their title credentials.
• Pep’s longevity and ability to adapt is celebrated, while Arsenal remain favorites barring a near-flawless run from City.
• The episode ends with praise for Frank Lampard’s unexpected managerial success at Coventry, suggesting a more open Championship race than usual.

---

Transcript

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The Athletic FC.

[Ayo Akimolere]

Welcome to the Athletic FC podcast with me, Ayo Akimolere. Pep Guardiola's 1000th game in management ended in trademark fashion. Liverpool seen off for now and city within four points of Arsenal. So can they now sustain a serious challenge for the title? Okay, in with us today we have Jack Pitt Brook in the studio. We've also got Adam Crafton as well. Right Jack. Pep Guardiola's 1000th game in charge 3.0win over Liverpool before the game slot said this was up there with El Clasico in terms of drama at least did it deliver?

[Jack Pitt-Brooke]

No, I don't think it did because I think it was too one sided. I thought that the City were just too superior for too much the game. I think that over the years, particularly since it was well Guardiola vs Klopp which obviously started when Guardiola arrives in 2016 to England like these games have been really, really high quality, competitive and very, very evenly matched. And in this game I didn't think it was evenly matched at all. I thought the City were just much better than Liverpool. They looked like scoring every time they went forward. Liverpool didn't really create anything ap that disallowed goal and it just didn't mean. It meant that it didn't have that kind of tension that you get when it's the two best teams in the country competing. Like everyone knows that Arsenal are the best team in the country. These two are not. You know, City are a bit of the way off. Arsenal, Liverpool are probably further away and it just didn't have that same that kind of competitive edge you'd normally associate with this fixture.

[Ayo Akimolere]

Yeah Adam City had less than 50% possession in that match. And we'll talk about Jeremy Doku later. But even if Liverpool did get that goal in, do you think that looked like a team that looked like getting something out of that match?

[Adam Crafton]

Well, City have been doing that in a few games this season. You know, we can go back to quite a few at least periods of games where they're far more happy to you know, go without the ball to I wouldn't go as far as to say sort of Antonio Conte style suffering. But it's not like it was four or five years ago where every man City game is you know, 65 to 70% of the ball. Liverpool, I mean who knows, right? If you get a goal sometimes it can change the whole complexion. But I don't think apart from that one moment that they just didn't look like doing anything particularly in the first half. They looked sort slow. They looked quite an old team despite some of the players. You know, obviously not being old but I think particularly the defence looked really slow and old and tired.

[Ayo Akimolere]

Yeah, I mean Jack City's first goal felt like a Pep Guardiola goal of old. You know, the fact that all those players touched the ball and then finally Haaland headed it in. I mean are they finding their best again?

[Jack Pitt-Brooke]

They're trying to find their old form again definitely. But I think they're trying to do it in a new way as Adam says, they're much less dependent on possession. They're very happy to have less than 50% possession. When they beat Bournemouth at home the other week they did that with less than 50% possession which never would have happened even three years ago, never mind like six years ago. They've replaced probably the world's greatest ever footballing goalkeeper with a much more conventional goalkeeper. They've got a big number nine who puts himself about. They've got a brilliant winger in Doku. So they've moved to a style which I think is more. It's basically more conventional. It's less distinctly pep, it's less based around possession, it's more direct, it's more pragmatic. But he's decided that this is in, you know, in the changing game this is probably the best way to win games now.

[Ayo Akimolere]

Do you think City are good to watch Adam compared to what we remember seeing so many times them blitzing teams in, in such a way. They blitzed Liverpool yesterday. But was it enjoyable?

[Adam Crafton]

I think they're more enjoyable now but it's a matter of taste. But like I didn't actually find the period where they would have 75% of the ball that entertaining to watch because it was so one sided. So you know you'd get moments obviously and goals that were out of this world. But I actually find it more exciting to have you know, Haaland up front in a very just this completely unique. There is no other player like him in the world at the moment and I think that is very compelling to watch and also just to see how Pep is able to. This is kind of like a mixed use setup now. You know it's a team that can play, it's a team that can battle. I thought they out physically they looked really strong yesterday as well. So they look very well set for just the physical challenges of a full competition where you've also got all these extra Champions League games as well. You know ultimately there aren't more David Silvas and Kevin De Bruyne's always. So if you then have to maybe recruit differently and change your style slightly and that's what he's done. And you know the big signing Haaland I don't think he could play necessarily the way that City played five years ago and actually be able to enjoy it. So I think if you're going to involve him this is probably the way you have to play. But I mean Jack, you kind of know City. I mean do you think Haaland would be Able to play in the way City played four, four years ago.

[Jack Pitt-Brooke]

Yeah. Well, it's interesting, isn't it? Like, in his first season, they reached this amazing kind of. They like squared the circle, basically, of having the sort of pet possession style, but with Holland up front, which was for that season was really, really good and, you know, they won the treble. But I think that over time, I think that. I just think Pep's realized that that kind of possession play leaves you a bit vulnerable. Nowadays, opposition are more willing just to go long. They're not going to play into your hands so much. If you're going to beat teams who leave space, you have to be a bit more direct yourself. I think this is why it's so interesting, right, is that everybody associated Pep with this clear style of play for so much of his career. He's like 18 years into his elite managerial career now or something, and he's realized that, actually, I'm going to do it differently. I'm going to try a new approach and I'm not as wedded as people thought I was to this particular style that I made my name with.

[Ayo Akimolere]

Well, Adam, we're talking about Pep Guardiola. This was his 550th game in charge of Manchester City. He's won 395 games with 86 defeats. Much has been made as to whether or not he's still got the stamina to keep going at the top. I mean, surely we can see it now.

[Adam Crafton]

He's ready to fight, clearly, based on, you know, what are they second in the League? And, you know, that's a win record of like 70% pretty much just at Man City, which is insane. You know, that's like not far off, you know, the best sports teams of all time. So, yeah, I mean, like, they had one bad season last year, but other than that, if I was to look at the two squads, I do think Arsenal's squad is more complete. I do think Arsenal's understanding of what they're trying to be and do is more complete. But if you look at kind of the spine of City's team, you know, the Donnarummer, Diaz, Haaland, I still think midfield's not as good as it was. If they can get Rodri back for the second half of the season playing like he was pre injury, and they're within four to five points of Arsenal and Arsenal go quite far in Europe and City maybe don't, then I think Arsenal might have a problem. But I still just think Arsenal are a more complete team at this point.

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Dot simple, beautiful goal from Jeremy Doku.

[Jack Pitt-Brooke]

Who has glittered the afternoon one Erling.

[Ayo Akimolere]

Haaland may have got his customary goal, but the star of the show and man of the match was Jeremy Doku. I mean, this is a player we've been waiting to really set the Premier League alight. We've seen raw talent, but I guess we're now seeing a finished product. Now, Jack, how impressed were you with him?

[Jack Pitt-Brooke]

Yeah, I think he's been the most improved player in the Premier League in the last few years, just because when he first signed for City, you could tell he was talented, but he was, you know, he was inconsistent. There wasn't a lot of end product. But this season he just looks like a completely different player. Like, he, I think he was brilliant in that Arsenal game, you know, back in September a few months ago. And then in this game, he, this was clearly the best he'd ever played for City. Like, he was so powerful, he was so positive, he was so confident. He was able to kind of wriggle through really tight spaces with the ball. He was always producing either a cross or a good shot on goal. And it's just, you know, it's a joy to watch him when he's in this kind of mood. It just shows how different Pep is, right? Like when Grealish was in that position, Grealish was all about, you know, slowing things down, trying to win him free kick, putting on a pass for a teammate. And people always used to say, oh, Grealish isn't allowed to take risks. He's not allowed to try things anymore with the ball. Like, it's all very kind of everything he does has to be straight out of the pep kind of coaching manual. But now he's got Doku in and Doku is so quick and positive and tries things and you realize that actually what Pep wants from a winger has probably changed if he turned Grealish into this very, very kind of like conservative player. And yeah, he's now got Doku playing like he did yesterday.

[Ayo Akimolere]

That's a really interesting point, Adam. There's, I guess a slight criticism that Pep Guardiola takes sometimes magic out of players. Grealish, case in point, to a certain degree. But we are now seeing a player like Jeremy Docu left to fully express himself the way we've seen in those clips. What I saw anyway, before he came to Manchester City, he looks really dangerous at the moment.

[Adam Crafton]

Well, I think it's probably partly because the emphasis on keeping the ball is less than maybe it was last time. So maybe that does actually just give more freedom. It almost makes you wonder if Grealish had stayed this season, whether this style may have suited him a little bit more. But I still think kind of Grealish comes inside more. You know, he's almost trying to be a number 10 from the left winger times, ideally for him, whereas Docu is a bit more old school. You know, he'll take on a full back, he'll get his crossing, he'll cut inside, he'll have a shot. I think increasingly City players know what he's going to do and I think that's making a big difference still. I think the opponents necessarily know what he's always going to do and when they do, he's getting so good at it that they can't actually stop him from doing it. But when he first came through, you know, in Belgium, people were talking about him like as a new Thierry Henry, the level that people were talking about. So I think there's always been excitement about Docu. I think it's been tough at City because they've had some incredible wingers over the years with Pep, you know, sterling or sane for a bit and he just didn't immediately hit that level. Mahrez as well, and they all kind of left at similar ish times and they kind of went out and then all of a sudden you were looking and saying they're just not hitting the level they were two or three years ago. But now it doesn't feel like he's got that much competition for the place as well. So it feels like that place is his own and maybe that's given him some confidence.

[Ayo Akimolere]

Adam talks about old fashioned winger. I just think about all the long throws and all that kind of stuff we're seeing this season. Isn't it refreshing just a little bit just to see an old matador do his tricks as a winger really express himself on the field yet.

[Jack Pitt-Brooke]

Yeah. Somebody said to me the other day that in modern football now there's a lot of space for an old fashioned winger. Just because so many players are all about cutting inside and everything and trying to get everybody's coalescing around that number 10 space. There's actually, if you can be an old fashioned winger who's direct and gets down to the byline, you know, and gets 1v1 against the fullback, there's a huge amount of space you can exploit by doing that. And I do think that the way that like how aggressive Doku is on the ball, it does give opposition defenders questions that they haven't had to think about for a while because people are so used to, you know, the kind of like side to side football instead. So yeah, that's really, really exciting to watch. And you can tell that defenders don't like playing against him when he's in the mood like he was yesterday.

[Adam Crafton]

Yeah.

[Ayo Akimolere]

Some stats from that match. Jeremy Docu won 11 duels, completed seven dribbles, created three chances and had three shots on target. Only Eden Hazard for Chelsea versus West Ham back in April 2019 can boast such amazing numbers. I wonder how important this is, Adam, especially at a time when everyone thinks, or Pep Guardiano has even said it, that there may be a little too reliant on Erling Haaland up front. Players like Foden now stepping up to the front. Players like Doku now finding their form as well. So actually City can spread the goals a bit and be less predictable fundamentally.

[Adam Crafton]

Yeah, I mean, clearly you're going to need goals from, from different positions. I think they've been good at that. You know, historically, you know, Foden's had periods where he'd score 15, 20 goals. Doku, I think if he can get to 15 goals, I think that would be like a real breakthrough, emerging season for him. Seems weird to say that because he's a, you know, he's obviously a great player, but I think that that would make a massive difference. But ultimately at the same, you know, if Harlan's fit and scores two goals every game, you don't need that much more, to be honest. And, and that's kind of what he's doing at the moment. So. Yeah, I guess so. But I don't think it's. If Holland is fit and firing, then I don't think it's, it's going to be such a difference maker.

[Ayo Akimolere]

What about Nico Gonzalez, Jack in place of Rodri, obviously we mentioned Rodri, just earlier, have they finally found a solution? I mean, we saw the Kovacic kind of experiment. It worked at times, but obviously also got caught at times with Kovacic in that position. Do you think they found a patch for the time being at least?

[Jack Pitt-Brooke]

Yeah. I mean, I don't think he's obviously not as good as Rodri. I thought he did. I thought he did pretty well yesterday. I was surprised that Liverpool didn't ask more questions of him, to be honest, because he's not, you know, he's not played a huge amount in the Premier League and he's clearly not on the same level as Rodri. So I just thought, like, with the team, when you've got Mac Allister, Szoboszlai, Wirtz all in the team, like, why aren't they. I thought they could maybe have tried to, you know, drag him out of position a bit more. I did think that, you know, but he had Bernardo Silva alongside him. He was really, really good and like showed again that he's able to take on basically any midfield role that Pep gives him. But, yeah, I did. It was a bit strange to me how Liverpool weren't able to cause City any problems given that City didn't even have Rodri.

[Ayo Akimolere]

Yeah, I know we're just reeling through a list of names here, but another player that's really caught my eye season I feels like he stepped up is Nico O'Reilly. I think we talked about him last season on this podcast and thought about how he's going to advance in this team. But for a fullback, he loves getting forward. Very pet. But also he's got a goal to him as well and a bit more matureness to his play this season. Are you impressed by what you're watching?

[Jack Pitt-Brooke]

Yeah, yeah, really impressed. And he's, you know, he's in the England squad for this month. He's basically taken Miles Lewis Skelly's place, which is really interesting because obviously Louis Skelly's done pretty well for England so far. Had a fantastic season last year, but he's not playing a lot in the Premier League for Arsenal. So O'Reilly's taken his place and, you know, it's totally plausible that he could be the starting England left back at the World cup, but there's not really a very obvious candidate. And yeah, he does look very good. I like watching him play. I think he's very confident, big and physically imposing as well as being technically sound. So, yeah, really interesting player.

[Ayo Akimolere]

Okay, well, let's move on because let's Find out what this resort actually meant to the title race.

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[Producer/Announcer]

You're listening to the Athletic FC podcast with Ayo Akamolere.

[Ayo Akimolere]

Well, Arsenal's lead at the top of the table is now down to just four points after they drew through 22 with Sunderland. Adam, we have to talk about Liverpool right now. Some people are saying they're out of the title race already. Too early to call.

[Adam Crafton]

It's not the way they're going at the moment. I think for them it's just a case of they need to get some consistency back. It's weird because they had, in many ways they had a good week. They had a really good week, you know, to beat Villa, who are in really good form, beat Real Madrid deservedly, but they're kind of flimsy at the moment and I didn't really expect them to do very much against City yesterday. And they didn't do very much. I think they're quite easy to play against at the moment. I mean, I know everyone's talking about their forwards and clearly there are issues. You know, Isaac's not started scoring and he's got injury issues that by the way we all could have predicted because he's always had injury issues before. Wirtz hasn't got going at all and maybe we'll talk about him a bit more. And Salah is really having a poor season, quiet season. But I still think there's so much quality in those players that you would think at some point that will start to make sense and come good. I think their problem is more at the moment defense and the goalkeepers. Yeah, I think since Alisson's fallen out of the team they've got a lot poorer in terms of results and outcomes. And Konate has been poor pretty much from the start of the season. The fullbacks he can't get right. You know, he's brought Robertson and Bradley back in but you know, yesterday I don't think Robertson had a particularly good game. The two new ones that they bought in. I mean Kirk has been, I mean what an amazing advert for Iriola's coaching. It's like you remember that period where people would sign players from Brighton and then they wouldn't just play like they were at Brighton or you'd get a coach from Brighton. It's a bit like that with Kirk as you sort of put him in a different environment. He just doesn't look kind of up to it at all. So at the moment there's just so many question marks and I think slot had kind of fallen back on, you know, over this past week a bit more on things they did last season but now even that's not working. So I think they're miles off Arsenal because they can't clean sheets often, you know, with consistency. So I would have Arsenal and City way ahead of Liverpool at the moment.

[Ayo Akimolere]

Yeah. Can we put Florian Wirtz into that category of being taken out of a particular. A specific setup and being brought into another one and not quite shining in the same way.

[Jack Pitt-Brooke]

Yeah, I mean he's clearly not. Not doing at the moment what they paid the money for. You know, he's very young. Like it is definitely a long term investment. I do think it's a very difficult environment to go into for a player like this simply because if you look at Liverpool like they're kind of, I thought at their best last season they were a really effective platform for Salah. Basically they had lots of, you know, they had Salah and they had lots of other players who would operate in such a way as to create opportunities for Salah and to get him into good position. So he could score goals. And now for, I think for Viets and Ekatike and Isak, they've been bought for really big money by Liverpool. And so they're going to want to be the main man. They're going to want to have the chance to express themselves and show how good they are. But that's like a bit of a cultural change, I guess for Liverpool. Right. Because it's if you're going in to dominate the game and take the initiative, that's not really the same as like I'm going to go in and help Salah to get into good positions. And so I just think, I feel like at the moment they're in the real kind of transitional moment. It actually reminds me a little bit of Manchester City last season. Right in the sense that City won the 2324 title with a really old team and they basically got the last. Squeezing those last bits of energy out of players like Edison Walker, De Bruyne and so on. And then the next season, as in last season, City just went off a cliff because all those players had kind of nothing left to give. And I watched Liverpool a little bit now I wonder whether the impact of having won the league last season with a kind, you know, it's not an old team, but a team with some old players in it. And now you wonder whether they don't really have the kind of. They're kind of struggling to find themselves again, aren't they, after that big high of winning the title.

[Ayo Akimolere]

Yeah, I guess this was always the conversation, Adam, is whether or not Liverpool could mount another title challenge this season. You know, it's a new iteration of that team. But then I do think about what a coach like Pep Guardiola has done over the last few years. Jax has spoken about squeezing the best out of an aging squad in this current rendition of the Premier League and the amount of quality there are with the teams. Can we just speak for a moment, just applaud what Guardiola's done consistently to keep that team right up there?

[Adam Crafton]

Yes, I mean it's amazing. And that's, you know, that's why he is the best. I mean, he's been the best coach in the world for the past 15, almost 20 years now. And I don't think that changes until, you know, someone else goes and wins back to back titles. When Liverpool last won the league, I know it was then entered kind of COVID period. I remember Roy Keane saying they were bad champions, which is a pretty brutal thing to say. But actually look at some of these players, like, it isn't an easy thing to go for. I don't mean bad champions in terms of the season, they won it in terms of the season after that ability to go again and maintain a level and keep standards and keep hunger, that's a really hard thing to do. It's why, you know, only City have been able to defend the title, I think, since maybe Manchester United did it. That's a long time ago. So I do wonder that about some of these Liverpool players, some, even some of the most senior ones, that it's not easy to sort of go back to the well and keep getting that energy and that desire. And so far they've not proven that they're actually able to do that. I still think on vert I said this after the Community Shield podcast that we did. I just think he plays the game at a different tempo to how Liverpool should play football at their best. In terms of what we see as Liverpool at their best, which is fast and direct and kind of quick and exciting, I think he plays football like Man City did three years ago. Although he's got this clear and individual quality, I just don't see how that is going to fix itself in a Liverpool team that still looks most dangerous when it is going kind of direct to someone like Mo Salah.

[Ayo Akimolere]

Is there an argument here, Jack, that Florian Wirtz could probably flourish at Manchester City versus how he's been asked to play at Liverpool, for instance, in terms of his style of play, for instance?

[Jack Pitt-Brooke]

Yeah. I mean, I certainly think his style of play would be. I mean, Pep would love him, obviously. It's not really clear exactly how he fits in at Liverpool. He's been on the left recently. But you do wonder if he was bought with the idea of being a 10, but would that be like if he's going to be a 10, how does that. It's kind of difficult to have a 10. And Salah, Adam's right that like Liverpool traditionally haven't always played with a 10 like in the, you know, the great Klopp teams. They had Coutinho and they sold him and that was a great thing for them to do because they, you know, they. They could go to 4, 3, 3, they could get lots of money which they could spend on players who were more aligned to how they did want to play. And it's not really clear how what Slot's idea is for fitting Salah, Witz, Isak and Ekatike. That's. That's the big question for this season. Nobody really knows what the answer is, it's November already. Maybe Salah being away playing for Egypt in January will provide a bit of extra clarity about how they're going to go about it. But for now, it all seems a bit of a muddle.

[Ayo Akimolere]

If City are to be a threat, Adam, we're still relatively unconvinced, but they're the closest anyway that we're seeing. What do they have to do? Is it just more consistency? Because actually, let's face it, Arsenal, we've seen capitulate when the pressure's on, really, and this is a team that know how to do it.

[Adam Crafton]

Yeah, I don't see Arsenal capitulating. I think if City are going to win the League, I think they're going to have to hit probably 93, 94 points, because I think Arsenal will get pretty close to that. If City carry on losing three games out of 11, as in their current points ratio, they won't win the League. So, yes, they do need to be more consistent. They can't lose, you know, nine, 10 games over the course of the season and win the title ahead of Arteta's Arsenal. So I still think, you know, that gap, you know, if you were to kind of, kind of elongate what we've seen so far over the course of the season, then Arsenal are winning the league by 10 to 12 points minimum. So City, there's kind of been games where you've lost and thought, oh, something could happen there. Whether it was the opening day, I think it was against Wolves. Obviously, Wolves have turned out to be something else entirely. But the way they beat Man United, the way they beat Liverpool yesterday, their performance at Arsenal, where they came very, very close to winning that game and actually that equalizer now for Arsenal, which, you know, at the time, people were having a go at Arsenal saying they should have won this game, that point now looks massive, you know, when you look at the table. So I still fancy Arsenal strongly. City would have to really. They'd have to be pretty much perfect in many ways for the next 10 to 15 games.

[Ayo Akimolere]

Arsenal have been here before. 23 season, City were miles behind and City ate up those points very, very quickly. Is there still a psychological edge to this Manchester City in. You don't want to be the team that they're chasing.

[Jack Pitt-Brooke]

Yeah, maybe that's a really interesting question. Like, I think that. So this City team is probably less experienced than that City team. Right. They've, like, they've brought in quite a few new players who maybe don't have the same. The same winning Experience. And while Arsenal, this Arsenal team, has not won anything together, I do think that the experience, the last sort of three or four seasons especially, will probably put them in good stead for, you know, if it gets very tense during the title run in. I think Arsenal are fundamentally better than City. I think they've got more depth, more to them. I think City are very brittle because they're so dep. City are miles more dependent on Harland than Arsenal are on any one player. And I think that has to be a positive for Arsenal. But, yeah, that. That particular question about the mentality and the experience and how that. How that comes into play in the second half of the season, that's definitely going to be a really interesting topic. Brilliant.

[Ayo Akimolere]

Yeah. Let's see if Haaland stays fit for the rest of the season, because I can't think of anyone else, really, that's going to be as prolific as him up front for Manchester City. Right, before we go, Adam, it's time for the final whistle. Over to you. You've got 60 seconds to tell us what's been on your mind from the world of football this week. All right? Three, two, one. Off you go.

[Adam Crafton]

Okay, so do we all need to, like, apologize to Frank Lampard? Is Frank Lampard actually a really good manager? You know, we saw him do well at Derby, obviously struggled and did okay at Chelsea for a little bit, but obviously Everton was a difficult experience. But you know what he's actually doing at Coventry at the moment, where he went into a club where I think when he was hired and Mark Robbins was moved out, there was a lot of people who thought that was harsh on Mark Robbins. But they're now 15 games, the Championship season one defeat. They beat Stoke, who were second or third over the weekend, late on, and they're now how many points? Seven points clear of third place at the top of the Championship. And Coventry, who we've not seen in the Premier League since 2001, I think, you know, when you look at how poor the relegated teams have been in the Championship this season, it's an amazing opportunity. Even sold, I think, their captain to Wrexham as well in the summer. So, yeah, fair play. Frank Lampard. Sorry, Frank Lampard.

[Ayo Akimolere]

Stop. Yeah, we all owe Frank Lampard a bit of an apology. Do we have Frank Lampard apology?

[Jack Pitt-Brooke]

Yeah. Yeah, I think so. I think he's been. I really love how well he's done at Coventry. I love it for him. I also love it for Coventry City as well, because they've had a pretty miserable time of it. Well, For a long time, losing playoffs, all the stuff of the stadium. But they're really on the right track now. And what I really love about it, for a few reasons, One, for Lampard, I love it that everybody was really skeptical when he took over from Mark Robbins, right, because Robbins had done so well and people thought it was. A lot of people thought it was unfair to sack him, but Lampard has confounded that. What I love about it for Coventry is that generally, this is a bit of a generalization, but generally in the championship if you're going to do well, you need either parachute payments or a documentary or a kind of oligarch, like a kind of oligarch owner or one of those things to give you the extra edge. Whereas as far as I know, Coventry City don't have, well, they certainly don't have parachute payments. They've not been in the Premier League for ages. They don't have a kind of suspicious owner pumping tons of money in and they don't have a gimmicky documentary. So it's all based on Lampard being a good manager, good recruitment, good coaching. And I'm really, yeah, I'm enjoying watching how well they're doing this season.

[Adam Crafton]

Just the difference in terms of what they're doing relative to the rest of the division. Like only two other teams have scored more than 25 goals. They've scored 40 goals this season. So they are just way outperforming the division at the moment. And it is amazing how bad the relegated teams have been as well. You look at Ipswich are getting a bit better, but I mean Southampton are a disaster. Leicester have been really poor and the two documentary boys, Rexam and Birmingham have been pretty, pretty meh so far. So I mean there'll never be a better chance for a team, whether it is a Coventry in Middlesbrough, a Preston Hall, Millwall, to just go and do that without parachute payments.

[Ayo Akimolere]

Our video editors basically said Southampton have actually won back to back games finally. So we've got to give them some props for that.

[Adam Crafton]

We can tell our video. So they are still 17th in the championship with probably one of the most expensive squads in the league. With love to the video editor.

[Jack Pitt-Brooke]

With love, Liam. With love. With love.

[Ayo Akimolere]

All right, Adam, Jack, I really appreciate your time. We'll be back tomorrow.

[Producer/Announcer]

You've been listening to the Athletic FC podcast. The producers are Guy Clark, Mike Stabre and Jay Beale. Executive producers are Abby Patterson and Adie Moorhead. To listen to other great athletic podcasts for free, including our dedicated club shows. Search for the Athletic on Apple Spotify and all the usual places. You'll also find us on YouTube at the Athletic FC podcast, so make sure you subscribe. The Athletic FC Podcast is an athletic media company production hey, it's Maya and Sim from the Girls that Invest Podcast. If you are an IT or security pro, you know managing devices, identities and applications can feel overwhelming and honestly, risky. That's where Trelica by1Password comes in. It helps conquer SaaS, sprawl and shadow it by discovering every app your team uses, managed or not. With pre built app profiles, you can assess, risk, manage, access and even optimize your software spend. Plus, IT simplifies onboarding, offboarding and compliance, all while cutting costs by eliminating unused licenses. Take the first step to better security for your team. Learn more at 1Password.com specialoffer AI agents.

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