Shearer says: “14/1 is too big for a side of Man United’s quality.”

Premier League great discusses the big six

There seems to be an on-going battle between Jose Mourinho and Paul Pogba at Manchester United and it does not appear to be going away.

Most of the time in this situation, the players win the battle as Jose Mourinho knows as he has experience of this at Chelsea. If Jose does try to take on too many players at United, I would not be surprised if the same thing happens again.

Conte came in at Chelsea with virtually the same team and won the league. Whether you like it or not, the players have all the power in the game now and inevitably they end up winning when there is an argument like this.

I think Pogba will stay

Having said that, I would be amazed if United were to sell Pogba before the end of the month now.

We don’t know what has gone on in the background but nobody is coming out and denying it, not the player or his agent. If they were prepared to sell him they should have done it before the English window shut so they could replace him.

I know the player or their representative does not have to make a statement but it would certainly defuse the situation if they did come out and say something, rather than allowing all the media speculation.

Don’t rule out United just yet

When I looked at the betting at the start of the season, Manchester United were 6/1 to win the title. They are now out to 14/1, even after winning their first game and I think that is an over-reaction.

Very much like Tottenham, they weren’t that impressive but they did what they had to do against Leicester. 

Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea were all comfortable in their games but they all only have three points too at the end of the day.

When you look at the players Manchester United have, the likes of De Gea, Bailly, Pogba, Martial, Lingard, Rashford and Lukaku, it is a very talented squad.  

I don’t think it will be enough to get past Manchester City, or even Liverpool, as I can see them finishing first and second respectively, however, I do think the odds of 14/1 are too big for a team with this much quality.

Liverpool look strong

It was a good start for Liverpool against West Ham last Sunday. They have to win a trophy this season given what they have spent on the team. I don’t think they will be far away in the league. The way they played against West Ham, they showed their intentions in terms of how they are going to play.

Jurgen Klopp does have a poor record in Cup finals and I am sure that will be in the back of his mind. He can’t do anything about the past so he will be concentrating on the future. They have talent right the way through the team.

They invested in the areas they needed to during the summer, most notably in the goalkeeping position.

There really are no excuses now for them so they have to go out and win something, Jurgen knows that, and while that expectation brings with it a certain amount of pressure, it’s the sort of pressure every manager wants.

Arsenal are still off the pace

It’s been a difficult start to the season for Arsenal, I don’t see them being anywhere near contending for the league title, that is there for everyone to see. They have some decent players but it isn’t going to be enough to push the likes of Manchester City and Liverpool.

Their aim has to be to try and break back into the top four and maybe challenge for one of the cup competitions.

It is never easy when a new manager comes in to replace someone who has been there as long as Wenger was.  It is going to take a long time for everyone at the club to adjust to a new way of doing things.

De Bruyne absence could be Foden’s gain

Losing Kevin De Bruyne for a large part of the season is going to be a big blow for Manchester City as he is one of the best players in the Premier League. 

Along with Mo Salah, he was the standout star of last season.  However, if there is one team that can cope with losing a player of his ability, it is Manchester City as they have a lot of quality in their ranks.

De Bruyne’s absence might be good news for Phil Foden.  He played in the Community Shield earlier in the month and he looked completely at home at that level.

They have a lot of depth in midfield with the two Silvas, Fernandinho and Riyad Mahrez.

That is why they went out and spent £65 million on Mahrez, as there is always the chance of an injury to a key player. They wouldn’t have expected it to happen so soon in the season but now they have the cover to deal with it.

Positives and negatives for Newcastle

I thought it was a positive performance for Newcastle on Saturday against Tottenham. They hit the woodwork twice and created a lot of chances.

The problem remains though with the relationship between the manager and owner.

There was a joint-statement sent out from the manager and managing director but that does not fool anyone.

I think they will have enough to stay up but the real problem is going to be at the end of the season when Rafa’s contract runs out.