Sky Sports pundit says City’s defensive vulnerabilities could cost them despite perfect start to Premier League season
Paul Merson has questioned Manchester City’s Premier League title credentials despite their perfect start to the 2026/27 campaign, following Sunday’s chaotic 5-3 victory over Sunderland.
City made it five wins from five matches with the eight-goal thriller at the Etihad Stadium, maintaining their place at the top of the Premier League table.
However, Merson believes their defensive performance against Sunderland exposed problems that could become costly against stronger opposition.
“There’s no way Manchester City win the league,” Merson said on Sky Sports.
“You can’t keep scoring loads of goals to win football matches. You can’t play that kind of football. Top teams will pick you off.”
Sunderland scored three times and created further opportunities despite City’s attacking quality, leaving Merson concerned about the balance of Enzo Maresca’s side.
City’s attacking players again provided the difference, but the defensive frailties were also evident throughout the contest. Reuters reported that Sunderland had more shots on target than City, while manager Maresca admitted he would rather win 1-0 than 5-3 and said two of the goals conceded were “too easy.”
Merson argued that City’s approach could be punished when they face the league’s strongest sides.
“Going forward, Manchester City were good but at the back they were all over the place,” he said. “It just catches up with you, especially against the big boys.”
The former Arsenal midfielder also turned his attention to Arsenal’s 3-0 defeat at Brighton, questioning Mikel Arteta’s decision to start Bruno Guimarães ahead of Myles Lewis-Skelly.
Merson felt Lewis-Skelly’s energy would have been better suited to a match in which Brighton consistently pressed and overpowered Arsenal in midfield.
“I’d like to ask Mikel Arteta what his thinking was behind playing Bruno Guimaraes over Myles Lewis-Skelly at Brighton,” he said.
“It just didn’t work. Arsenal got outrun, they got overpowered in midfield, they got ripped to shreds.”
Merson, however, stressed that he was not blaming Guimarães for Arsenal’s defeat, describing the Brazil international as an intelligent passer who can be effective when a team has time on the ball.
His comments came after Brighton produced a 3-0 victory over the reigning champions, with Pascal Groß, Charalampos Kostoulas and Chema Andrés on target. The defeat ended Arsenal’s perfect start to the league campaign.
Despite Merson’s concerns, City remain unbeaten and sit three points clear of Arsenal heading into the international break, with their five victories producing 17 goals.
The challenge for Maresca now will be to maintain City’s attacking threat while addressing the defensive issues exposed by Sunderland before the Premier League resumes.
