Manchester City are not quite behind the eight ball, but they do have some work to do to defend their Premier League title. Pep Guardiola's side enter the World Cup break five points behind leaders Arsenal. It is far from an insurmountable lead, as recent seasons have shown, but the manner of City's most recent result left a bitter taste in the mouth.
They were hit with a sucker punch by Brentford, who escaped from the Etihad with a 2-1 victory on Saturday afternoon. Later in the day Mikel Arteta's side recorded a professional win over Wolves to extend the buffer over the reigning champions even further.
Gary Neville, the former Manchester United defender-turned-pundit, has lavished plenty of praise on Arsenal but he still backs City to come out on top - although perhaps not by as big a margin as first predicted.
