Ex-Liverpool star predicts Arsenal title collapse as Chelsea tipped as dark horses | OneFootball

Gunners have a history of buckling under pressure and could be overtaken by their London rival

Former Liverpool goalkeeper David James believes Arsenal will collapse in the title race again.

Reigning champions Liverpool face a very tall order to retain their crown after losing five of their last six top-flight games, but James has backed the Reds to still be a threat towards the end of the season.

The former goalkeeper also believes Chelsea are a dark horse to put the pressure on Mikel Arteta's side, who have a recent history of buckling under the pressure during a title run-in.

"I'd be foolish to say, no, I haven't changed my mind about Arsenal with them at the top of the table," he told AskGamblers. "There's something about Arsenal I really like.

I don't think Arsenal will win the title ... the likes of Man City, Chelsea and Liverpool will decide the title race.

David James

"It was a really weird stat, and I just questioned what was going on in the changing room. Now that's changed now to the point that they've even come back from losing positions at half-time to win games. You look at the Man City game where they were losing 1-0 early on, and they, if it had not been for some ridiculously good defending, would have won that game at the Emirates. So there are improvements there.

"The test for them, as I'm sure many people will say, is now that they're top of the table, how are they going to handle that?

"There's another caveat to this because last season they played 14 Champions League games which meant they played 14 Premier League games before those fixtures and they only won four and it appeared that there was a definite focus on the Champions League.

"Maybe that was because Liverpool started to run away with the title race quite early, but there seemed to be a lot of emphasis on the Champions League more so than the Premier League, especially towards the end of the season where there was a chance of obviously getting to the final.

"Now it's how Mikel Arteta handles the balance of the Champions League and the Premier League, especially when you're leading the Premier League.

"I don't think Arsenal will win the title if that's an answer, even if they've started well. I think the likes of Man City, Chelsea and Liverpool will go into the last weeks of the season, if not the last game of the season, and possibly decide the title race.

"But it will be interesting with Arteta to see how he handles qualification for the Champions League and maintain that top position in the Premier League, and I don't think they'll be able to do it."