England, Newcastle and Tottenham legend Chris Waddle believes that Man City will win the Premier League next season after their near-miss to Arsenal this time round, but he is predicting rivals Man Utd to finish outside the top six altogether.
It’s a summer of change with Pep Guardiola leaving the Etihad after 10 years of incredible success, winning six Premier League titles, one Champions League, four FA Cups and five League Cups. Enzo Maresca, formerly of Chelsea, has since been tipped to replace him.
Meanwhile, Michael Carrick has been handed the managerial role on a permanent basis on the red side of Manchester after overseeing a brilliant upturn in form – with Man Utd finishing third and securing Champions League football next season.
However, Waddle believes Carrick has over-performed and fears they could sink next season unless they spend serious money in the transfer market.
Speaking to BOYLE Sports, who offer the latest World Cup odds, Waddle said: “Who will be Premier League champions next season? I think it’s going to be between the same two clubs again and I’m going to go with Manchester City. Arsenal will finish second.
“I think Aston Villa will come in third. Liverpool will finish fourth, Chelsea fifth and sixth could be a club like Bournemouth, Brighton or Brentford if one of them brings in the right three or four players this summer and hits the ground running. I think if Eddie Howe is allowed to bring four or five players in then Newcastle United will get the sixth spot.”
Leaving out Utd altogether from his top six, Waddle – who won 62 caps for England, further explained: “I like Michael Carrick and I think he’s done a good job but my one concern about Manchester United is that I don’t think he has got the players and needs to make some acquisitions this summer, to be perfectly honest.
“He’s got them working for each other again but there’s a few aging players in that squad and the problem is when I watch their games, they never look in control of teams. They play very compactly and look to hit teams on the break but when they play against teams like Brighton or even Wolves they don’t dominate the game. If you let the other team create chances, eventually they will score those chances.
“We don’t know what they will do this summer. They could bring in three or four players who are all a big hit but it’s Manchester United. They will be linked with every Tom, Dick and Harry. We know that.”
