Ex-Manchester City keeper David James believes his former club will secure Champions League qualification this season.

Speaking to Prime Casino, James said that he can see Pep Guardiola‘s side finishing behind the top 2 with the likes of Nottingham Forest and Chelsea missing out.

“Obviously, Liverpool, Arsenal. I think Man City get in there for third. Newcastle, definitely, they’ll be fourth. Do you know what? I was looking at this and I’m thinking, regarding Nottingham Forest, they’re almost like the fly in the ointment at the moment, aren’t they, with regards to the sort of the prestige of the Premier League.”

“But Aston Villa, because I think PSG will go through, I think similar to Liverpool, and yeah, it was a tricky month for Liverpool with other results, but I think that will allow Villa to focus on the Premier League. I would like them to go through against PSG. If they do that, they’ve still got semi-final and final play, so it’s not like you’ve won anything by beating PSG. Similar to Liverpool, had they won that, they still would have had more games.”

“With regards to qualifying for the Champions League, it becomes a little easier to focus on. I know with the FA Cup as well, there are still question marks, but Aston Villa ahead of Nottingham Forest.”

City have a battle on their hands to secure a top 5 spot

Despite James’ confidence, there is no guarantees with six matches to go that Guardiola’s men will get a Champions League spot.

The gap between 3rd place and 7th is just three points at the moment, and Newcastle’s game in hand means they could move clear of the chasing pack if they beat Crystal Palace on Wednesday.

Of course, that’s no guarantee. City had to come from two goals down to beat the same opponent at the weekend so fans will be keeping a close eye on that match at St James’ Park later this week.

What games have City got left to play?

The Cityzens face Everton away from home in their next fixture on Saturday before hosting Villa in midweek.

Next month, the reigning champions will take on Wolves (h), Southampton (a), Bournemouth (h) and Fulham (a).

Find out who is in Manchester City’s first-team squad for the 2024/2025 season here