Shearer: Arsenal, Manchester City and Chelsea Form Premier League Title Race Group

On September 5, England legend striker Alan Shearer updated his personal column and analyzed the Premier League title race situation.

Maresca will face huge pressure this season.

Looking at the honors Enzo Fernandez has won — he has even won the World Cup — it is difficult to say he does not deserve Manchester City paying such a high transfer fee for him. This now seems to be a trend, right? You start with the transfer fee when he joined Chelsea, then Caicedo, then Declan Rice, then Elliot Anderson, and of course Enzo Fernandez this summer. The transfer fees for midfielders are truly astonishing.

I can understand forwards being expensive because when you invest so much money, you are looking for goals and other things. But midfielders? There is no doubt Enzo Fernandez has quality, and if you do not have something special, a new club would not keep pushing for that kind of fee. However, midfielder transfer fees surprise me; they are unbelievable.

You spend that much money in the summer because you want to win the league title, so Manchester City now have to be title contenders. If they fail to win the league title, the manager will certainly come under huge pressure. You do not spend that much money just to finish second or third.

I have no idea how Manchester City can still make such expensive transfer investments while facing charges. I understand why so many people have raised questions, but this matter has gone on for such a long time, hasn't it? Not long ago, I saw an interview with Richard Masters (Premier League CEO). He said he understood how people viewed the issue, but also mentioned that it was a decision for an independent commission, so I am not really sure.

Manchester United cannot challenge for the Premier League title.

Manchester United cannot challenge for the title, but I think they have a chance of competing for a top-four place. I do not think they can challenge for the championship because I do not believe they are strong enough, their transfer investment is insufficient, and the players they signed have not reached title-contending level. Therefore, I would be very surprised if Manchester United were genuinely competing for the title.

Liverpool and Manchester United are behind Arsenal, Manchester City and Chelsea.

I originally thought Liverpool had enough funds to sign Barcola and then buy one or two full-backs. Last season they spent heavily to bring in Frimpong and Kerkez, but both players' defensive performances were clearly not good. I think Liverpool have never solved this problem, so they are unlikely to compete for the title.

I do not think Liverpool have enough quality to win the Premier League title. They are behind Manchester City, and I also think they are behind Arsenal. Chelsea may have one or two issues defensively, but I believe only these three teams truly have the ability to compete for the title. I cannot see Liverpool or Manchester United having the ability to compete with them.

Assessing Everton's transfer deadline day activity.

On transfer deadline day, Everton looked and sounded very chaotic and tense, making it an embarrassing transfer window for the club. They signed Grealish, then were close to signing Balogun, but withdrew at the final moment. To be honest, it was not a good impression.

What they need most now is luck, because if one or two players in their forward line get injured, they could face a difficult situation. Therefore, they must do everything possible to get through until January.

I do not think Everton will be relegated. I believe they can stay up with Moyes' experience. I initially thought Everton could qualify for the Europa Conference League or finish eighth, but after the window closed, I need to reassess that.

They need a great deal of luck to make it through to January. I guess Moyes is very angry about what happened during the summer window and the deals that were not completed.