Is Manchester City’s title hopes over? A closer look into the 2024/25 title race

With Manchester City failing to pull of a win over Crystal Palace, what does it really mean for the title race?

Is Manchester City’s title hopes over? A closer look into the 2024/25 title race

Manchester City is now eight points away from top spot in the League (Via Manchester City & X/@brfootball)

With a 2-2 draw against Crystal Palace on Saturday, Manchester City have all but confirmed the fact that the Premier League title is out of reach. City’s frustration saw no end as poor defending saw The Eagles claim an important point at Selhurst Park.

City boss Pep Guardiola is currently going through his worst spell as a football manager and will look to turn things around as soon as possible. Even though City’s troubles have gone on for a while, the draw against Palace now means that the club has 27 points from 15 games. Thereby, it creates an eight-point gap between Liverpool.

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The Reds also have a game in hand, setting it up for the chance to go 11 points clear. City is in fourth position behind Chelsea and Arsenal, who both have a strong chance of pushing Liverpool all the way. Following the 2-2 draw, Pep Guardiola faced the press, as he attempted to make sense of the club’s emergency situation.

We have to survive this season, every game. This season started difficult and will be more difficult than last season. We are also missing important players.

Pep Guardiola told the press via The Mirror

The manager seemingly conceded the title to his rivals as he stressed the need to take on each game at a time. With mounting injuries, upcoming crucial fixtures and the risk of falling out of the top four, the club desperately needs to fix things up. Guardiola, despite his confidence and tactical brilliance, will need a bit of luck to come out of the storm his side is currently going through.

What went wrong for City against Palace?

Manchester City, despite being on the back of a convincing 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest, looked like an entirely different side on Saturday. Guardiola did not hesitate to point out his side’s weaknesses at full-time. He started with the fact that his team is extremely vulnerable from set pieces.

He, however, swiftly denied that his players were ‘tired.’ City players only have themselves to blame for not scoring more goals, especially in the first half.

Crystal Palace vs Man City
Man City conceded the equalizer from Palace form a corner (Via X/@CPFC)

A brilliant volley from Ilkay Gundogan hit the post, with the follow-up skied over the bar by Savinho, who is yet to get off the mark at his new club. Erling Haaland opened the scoring for his side from a brilliantly placed header into the top right corner.

However, Kyle Walker was to blame for playing Daniel Munoz onside for Crystal Palace’s opener. Both Walker and Josko Gvardiol stood rooted to their spots as Maxence Lacroix pushed his side back in front.

The defensive duo could only watch as the centre back leapt above them to head home from close range. Walker has been under criticism from fans on social media for several games, highlighting his errors leading to goals.

Even though Rico Lewis emphatically pulled his side level, his ‘unnecessary’ red card took the fight away from City. After picking up a yellow for dissent, the youngster was shown his matching orders for a reckless tackle inside the opposition’s penalty box. City players also felt wrongly done when the referee blew for full-time right when Jeremy Doku picked up the ball for a final counter-attack.

Who are the real title contenders?

With 35 points from 14 games and a seven-point lead over Chelsea and Arsenal, it goes without saying that Liverpool is the obvious candidate to lift the Premier League title. However, with 24 games to go till the end of the season, history accurately depicts that any side in or outside the top four has a chance.

Mohamed Salah vs Manchester City
Mohamed Salah for Liverpool has been a force to reckon with this season (Via X/@LFC)

Liverpool’s claim to the title is the most solid, given the fact that no other club is currently going through a winning streak like the Reds. Manager Arne Slot has revolutionized the club’s style of play, with Mohamed Salah spearheading the attack.

As things stand, Salah has 13 goals and 8 assists so far in the Premier League this season. Moreover, wins against Manchester City and an upcoming calendar without any real threat gives Slot’s men an opportunity to pull away even further.

Chelsea can really go all the way

Despite Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca‘s reluctance to place his side in the Premier League title race, the numbers do not lie. The club is currently scoring an average of 2.6 goals per game, the highest in the club’s history!

Cole Palmer and Christopher Nkunku
Chelsea no longer rely only on Palmer to get the job done (Via X/@ChelseaFC)

Besides, Cole Palmer, Enzo Fernandez, and Noni Madueke are in top form, contributing to the club’s strong position in the League. The Blues will take on Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday night, with a win establishing the Blues’ claim as a title contender.

The give goals Chelsea scored against Southampton in the last Premier League outing should be enough to scare future opponents in the League. The club has successfully managed to break free of its reliance on Cole Palmer for goals, with Nicolas Jackson and Noni Madueke filling in.

Is it right to write off Arsenal?

Even though Arsenal has made it difficult for itself to be considered as a serious title contender based on previous seasons, Mikel Arteta’s men are playing with intent. Recent results suggest that the Gunners are out for blood, scoring ten goals in the last three League outings.

Jurrien Timber and William Saliba
Arsenal hasn’t lost a game in the last four outings (Via X/@Arsenal)

Moreover, the club has only let in two goals in the meanwhile, that too, against West Ham United in a 5-2 win. With the club nearly perfecting the technique to score from corners and set pieces, the possibility of Arteta and co. making a late charge cannot be ruled out.

Arsenal’s next games are against Fulham, Everton in the PL and AS Monaco in the Champions League. With William Saliba also staying put (he recently ruled out a move to Real Madrid), it is difficult to see how the club will find it difficult to manage as the season progresses.

What can Manchester City hope for this season?

With just one win in the last nine games in all competitions, Manchester City doesn’t have a lot to work on at the moment. Even though the title may seem out of reach, manager Pep Guardiola has outlined certain things his side can achieve as the season progresses.

Pep Guardiola with the PL trophy
Can Pep Guardiola turn things around from this point for Manchester City (Via Premier League)

Portuguese star Bernardo Silva assessed his chances of getting back into the title race, but claimed that his concerns are different at the moment. To begin with, several players are out injured from Guardiola’s go-to XI.

Phil Foden, Manuel Akanji and Nathan Ake are the latest to join the list. With a mentality fit only for champions, Silva said that a draw is always ‘two points lost’ for a club like City. As things stand, City can only hope to rack up wins to stay inside the top four and hope for a splash of good fortune to get back into the title race.