Ex-Manchester City player and manager Stuart Pearce doesn’t believe his former club will retain their title this season.

Speaking on talkSPORT, Pearce said the loss of Kevin De Bruyne has seriously affected the team’s chances of lifting the Premier League, and he expects them to finish runners-up:

“I don’t think Man City will win the league. Losing Kevin De Bruyne [to injury] for the length of time they did at the start of the season is one of the main reasons. Make no mistake, whoever finishes above them will win win the league, because they will still be in the top two.”

“I just think this year, after what they achieved last year, that they will drop a little bit. I’m not judging it on the last two defeats, that is irrelevant to me. When De Bruyne is not in the team, Erling Haaland loses something. It’s his supply line.”

Pearce claims he doesn’t believe that we will see a serious drop-off from Pep Guardiola‘s side but he is still predicting a rival will beat them to top spot this campaign:

“Listen, they are a brilliant team and they will be right up there but I think with Arsenal and Liverpool, they have tougher challenges there, and I think Newcastle will go on a run.”

“It looks like we have lost Manchester United and Chelsea in the title race. They have not shown enough in their performances. still think Tottenham, if they lose Son Heung-min or James Maddison, it will affect them. The way the fixtures have panned out so far has helped them a little bit.”

Pearce could be rushing to judgement based on City’s recent form

There is no doubt that the Premier League champions have been below-par in recent weeks. They have suffered 3 defeats in their last 4 matches in all competitions after all.

However, after 8 games, they are only 2 points off first. With De Bruyne expected to return for the 2nd half of the season, there is every chance they will finish the campaign strongly. It means they should be in with a shout of winning the title, even if they do find it challenging up until Christmas.

Watch a recap of the weekend action in the Premier League on Shots! TV here