Anton Ferdinand believes his former club West Ham United could throw a spanner in the works this weekend as Manchester City go in pursuit of an historic fourth consecutive Premier League title.
Pep Guardiola‘s side did the business on Tuesday as they won their game in hand against Tottenham Hotspur.
Erling Haaland scored twice against the north Londoners, with Stefan Ortega also making a huge save from Heung-min Son late on, earning him huge praise from Jamie Redknapp and many others.
The result saw City go two points clear of Arsenal, meaning City will be Premier League champions if they beat the Hammers. A draw will not be good enough if Arsenal beat Everton as the Gunners have a superior goal difference.
City are expected to get the job done at the Etihad this weekend – but Anton Ferdinand isn’t quite so sure City will win the game…
Anton Ferdinand suggests Manchester City may actually struggle against West Ham
City have one hand on the trophy after the win over Spurs. But the job isn’t done yet and you would imagine Arsenal will beat Everton at home.
There could be some more nerves this weekend, as there seemed to be in the first-half against Spurs.
But it is important that City remain calm, stick to the plan and believe in their quality.
Most pundits believe City won’t have any trouble against West Ham, who have not beaten City in the Premier League since September 2015. And since that 2-1 win for the Irons, there have only been three draws between the two teams.
Despite City’s dominance of the fixture, Anton Ferdinand doesn’t believe it will be a straightforward home win. He said on Rio Ferdinand’s YouTube channel: “I think on the basis of it being David Moyes’ last game, and I know we’re coming up against an absolutely phenomenal team, I know it’s going to be difficult but you can’t write West Ham off. With the likes of Kudus, Paqueta and Antonio in the team.”
“What I will say is, we could do something.”
Man City know how to handle the pressure
West Ham have some quality players in their side, and it is also Moyes’ last game in charge and those players are going to want to send him off in the right way.
However, City are on an amazing run right now and obviously, the team has been in this position before.
Even if West Ham happen to take the lead on Sunday, or news comes through about an Arsenal goal while City are still drawing, there is no reason to panic.
The club have been in positions of jeopardy on the last day before, but the players know how to handle the pressure.
No doubt Pep will be reiterating that very message in the dressing room ahead of kick-off on Sunday.