“They’re nowhere near as good as our league” - Graeme Souness makes bold Champions League prediction involving Arsenal and Manchester City
Former Liverpool midfielder Graeme Souness believes Arsenal and Manchester City are the favorites to win the Champions League this season because of the English Premier League's quality. His comments come in the wake of the Champions League's Round of 16 draw, which took place on Monday, December 18.
Souness believes that the Premier League is stronger than La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga, and Ligue 1, which is why Arsenal and Manchester City are favorites for the title.
Mikel Arteta's Gunners will face Portuguese side Porto in the Round of 16, while Manchester City, under Pep Guardiola, will compete against FC Copenhagen, the reigning champions of Denmark.
These match-ups are considered favorable for the English teams, with both teams hopeful of progressing to the quarter-finals and potentially further. Souness notably believes they can make it right to the final. He said (via TalkSport):
“Maybe this is an enormous compliment to the Premier League but I look at Spanish football and Italian football and German football – then there’s PSG who are not the same team – and I’ve got question marks about the leagues."
Souness continued:
"They’re nowhere near as good as our league. There’s not the same intensity and I’m not sure if they’ve got that desire that our players show. I think that with Arsenal and Man City, we’ve got the best teams. Looking at them, I think that our league is so good now that most of our teams are the outstanding favourites. Maybe first and second or first and third.”
With Arsenal already showing impressive domestic form, and Manchester City looking to defend their European crown, Souness's bold prediction may yet come to fruition.
Edu emphasizes preparation for Arsenal's Champions League clash with Porto
Arsenal's Sporting Director Edu has issued a stern warning to the Gunners in the wake of their UEFA Champions League Round of 16 draw against Porto. His remarks were made following the draw at UEFA's headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland.
Edu acknowledged the experience and regular participation of Porto in the Champions League. He said (via Daily Post):
“We are going to play against a club that is very used to playing in the competition because they play in it every single year and they have a lot of players as well with big experience."
He continued:
“We have to understand how we are going to play and respect them as much as we can. We will play our game and see if we can go through this stage. We can see how they are playing, how organised they are, and the players that they have."
Finally, he included a warning for the Gunners:
“Porto is a club that you have to be really prepared to play against or we’ll have problems, so what we have to concentrate on is maintaining our levels and the way we are playing.”
Arsenal finished top of their group, losing once, drawing once, and winning four games. They ended with 13 points, four points clear of PSV Eindhoven, who also got past the group stage.