Ex-Manchester City player Trevor Sinclair thinks his former club’s failure to sign a new striker has made Chelsea the favourites to win the Premier League.
A key priority for the Citizens during the summer was to find a replacement for Sergio Aguero but, with the transfer window now having closed without a forward being signed, Sinclair concedes Pep Guardiola must now perform wonders to stop Chelsea from finishing first:
“I said this at the beginning. I said if Manchester City don’t get in a striker – a top striker like Harry Kane or [Romelu] Lukaku before he went to Chelsea, or Messi – I think Chelsea win the league and I’ve not changed that. Actually, I feel, if Manchester City win the league this season without buying a striker, it enhances Pep Guardiola’s reputation. If he wins the league again after all the teams around him strengthened as they have, I think that’s going to be Pep Guardiola’s best ever Premier League win.”
Sinclair may be underplaying City’s squad strength somewhat. They have still added a club-record signing in Jack Grealish to the team, while Ferran Torres and Gabriel Jesus are more than capable of scoring, at least, 15 goals each this season.
You also have to remember that Guardiola guided City to the championship last campaign without Aguero being fit for the majority of the season. Of course, as Sinclair mentions, teams like Chelsea and Manchester United have strengthened over the summer, so it will be a big challenge to retain the title nonetheless.
