Alan Shearer thinks Liverpool will have a major job on its hands to defend the Premier League title that it won so comfortably this season. The Reds secured top spot with four games to spare on Sunday, hammering Tottenham 5-1 to spark celebratory scenes on Merseyside.
Liverpool’s win over Spurs opened up a 15-point lead over Arsenal, while the Reds also moved further clear as the league’s top scorers this season, with 80 goals to Manchester City’s second-best 66.
In Mohamed Salah, Liverpool possesses both the league’s leading scorer and its leading assister, while the team has also kept more clean sheets than any other club in the division.
With the destination of the title now officially confirmed, the attention of some pundits is already turning to next season, and Shearer, a league winner with Blackburn in 1995, thinks the title race will be hotly contested next time around — despite Liverpool’s absolute dominance this term.
“I would be amazed if Liverpool won it as easily next season. I don’t see that happening at all,” Shearer said on The Rest is Football podcast. “There are so many teams waiting to improve, Arsenal being one, Man City being another, Newcastle and Aston Villa as well. Chelsea are another one. There are so many teams that are willing and have to improve next year. If Liverpool win it next year, it won’t be as easy.”
Speaking on the same podcast, Gary Lineker tipped Manchester City and Arsenal to run Liverpool closer in 2025-26. City has endured a surprisingly difficult season, trailing the Reds by 21 points and still facing a battle to qualify for next season’s Champions League.
(Image: The Rest is Football)
“I would think Liverpool will challenge for the title for the next couple of seasons now,” Lineker said. “What I think will happen though is both Man City and Arsenal will put up a better fist of things and probably not have the amount of injuries they’ve had this season.
“I think it will be a lot closer. I don’t think for one minute they can win it as easily next season but who knows. I suspect Man City get back to somewhere approaching their best, I would be shocked if they had another season like this one.
“I think Pep Guardiola will want it even more next season, if that’s possible, because that drive hasn’t gone. I think the title race will be a lot tighter, it has to be. They’ve won it at a canter this year. I think it will be a great season actually and hopefully a bit more competitive at both ends of the table.”
