An Early Look At City’s Top EPL Rivals

This is a guest post by Roger Dunn, a Premier League follower who loves writing about his favourite clubs as much as he enjoys watching them play. When he’s not doing something football-related, he’s searching for the perfect beer.

It was a strong opening week in the EPL for City. As noted in the match report, the 2-0 win over Newcastle served as a strong message to league rivals. It was also mentioned specifically that City’s EPL rivals will have been watching carefully, keeping tabs on what ultimately amounted to a very satisfying bit of play.

But just as rival clubs atop the league (or at least, expected to be atop the league standings deeper in the season) were watching Man City’s opener, we too will be keeping tabs on the other contenders as we ease into Premier League play. With that in mind, here’s a quick look at the opening performances for some of City’s top rivals. 

Visiting Turf Moor and a freshly promoted Burnley club, Chelsea got off to something of a rocky start. In its first league match without PSG-bound Brazilian defender David Luiz, Chelsea conceded a 14th-minute shot on goal to Burnley’s Scott Arfield, who sent it past Thibaut Courtois (Chelsea’s young star goalkeeper in the making, starting in place of club veteran Peter Cech). Chelsea quickly righted the ship, however, with new addition Diego Costa equalizing in the 17th minute. Two goals later (from Schurrle and Ivanovic) and Chelsea had, as Betfair’s Premier League News section aptly noted, justified their early favourites tag. Conceding an early goal on the road isn’t ideal, but it is understandable in the excitement of week one, and Chelsea’s response was swift and emphatic. Particularly on Schurrle’s goal, the attack looked fluid and unified.

In most cases, Arsenal are viewed as the third betting favourite to win the league and should ultimately serve as the other main rival to City’s championship ambitions. However, they had a touch more drama in their opener. Starting off at the Emirates Stadium in London against visiting Crystal Palace, Arsenal conceded a rather unexpected goal in the 35th minute when Brede Hangeland knocked in a header. Just 10 minutes later, the Gunners tied the score with a beautiful combination from newcomer Alexis Sanchez to defenceman Laurent Koscielny, which really highlighted the main bright spot of this match for Arsenal. Sanchez, though at times working awkwardly with Aaron Ramsey, looked fit and deadly in his London debut. Still, the score remained tied at one goal apiece until Ramsey’s dramatic stoppage time goal gave Arsenal its 2-1 win. 

Ultimately it could be viewed as a shaky start, though the club did show some resolve that it lacked in 2013-14. It should also be noted that ordinary starters Per Mertesacker and Mesut Ozil were kept inactive (along with Lukas Podolski). According to The Independent, this was because of an extended rest Arsene Wenger gave to his Germany players following their World Cup win.

Elsewhere in the league, no one looked particularly threatening. Manchester United, projected by most to finish fourth, had a disastrous start and fell 1-2 to Swansea at Old Trafford in Louis Van Gaal’s managerial debut. Liverpool (projected fifth) proved it could win without Luis Suarez, beating Southampton 2-1 behind goals from Raheem Sterling and Daniel Sturridge. However, it will take competition with other contenders to convince most fans that they’ll be anywhere near as strong as they were in 2013-14.

Ultimately, in checking in with their rivals, it seems fair to say no one showed more promise than City. Chelsea will certainly be a strong side. Also, if Arsenal continues to get strong play from Sanchez and Ramsey (who is effectively a newcomer after spending so much of 2013-14 injured), they will compete as well. But one week in, City and Chelsea again look like co-favourites.