“They’ve got something to prove in the Premier League” – Ex-Man City boss makes bold claim as he picks the winner of the 2022/23 Premier League season
Former Manchester City boss Stuart Pierce is backing Liverpool to win the Premier League title this season.
The Reds made a perfect start to the season by winning the Community Shield curtain raiser 3-1 against Manchester City. Mohamed Salah scored one and assisted another while new Liverpool boy Darwin Nunez got the on the scoresheet after coming on in the second half.
City won the league last season, with Liverpool finishing one point behind them. The Reds have been tipped to challenge the Cityzens once again going into the new season.
Former City manager Pearce has now told talkSPORT that he feels the Reds will lift the league title this season.
“If you asked me who I think will win the league this year, it will be Liverpool. Personally, with City winning the league twice in a row, I think it takes away a couple of per cent. I think Liverpool will have that little bit more hunger in their bellies and their striker options are so outstanding. So yes, I think they’re the ones and they’ll beat Man City this year.”
He added:
“They’ve got something to prove in the Premier League. I think it’ll be a great battle and I can only see the two of them going head-to-head again. If another team breaks into that I’d be a little surprised. Credit to City, they’ve pushed the standard up once again, but these two are going head-to-head and I think Liverpool might just nick it.”
FA Cup winners Liverpool deserved 3-1 victory over Premier League champions Manchester City in the Community Shield
Liverpool and Manchester City have been the top two teams in England over the last few years. Their games have been enthralling to watch for the spectators and have swung from one end to the other on most occasions.
However, on Saturday, despite the game being deadlocked for a while, it was the Reds who appeared superior to their City counterparts. Liverpool were more incisive in the final third and more aggressive with their off-the-ball pressing.
Jurgen Klopp will be delighted with his team's preparedness ahead of the start of the Premier League season. City, on the other hand, played some neat football but appeared disjointed at times in attack.
Erling Haaland was handed a big start but failed to shine against the Reds. He will need some time before he can create a link-up with his team-mates and Liverpool took advantage of that in the Community Shield final.
Haaland missed a number of chances and will be keen to move past this match quickly. However, Guardiola will surely back his marquee signing to deliver over the course of the Premier League season, given his goalscoring reputation.
First official goal at @LFC 🫶🏼
And first trophy 😜 https://t.co/Tkp8U6I0QW
Liverpool appear unfazed by the loss of Sadio Mane as Luis Diaz continues to torment defenders with his energetic running throughout the match. Klopp's new signing Darwin Nunez will be eager to add more strikes to his name after scoring against the league champions last Saturday.