Graeme Souness believes four clubs are in contention for Premier League glory this season, marking an end of the recent dominance of Manchester City and Liverpool.
City have won four of the last five top-flight titles, with the Reds pushing them close on numerous occasions and snapping up the league crown in 2020. The two North-West clubs were head and shoulders above the other 18 teams in the division last season; 18 points separated runners-up Liverpool - who finished one point behind champions City - and third-place Chelsea.
Despite the vast gap, Jurgen Klopp has already insisted the table did not reflect the quality of the Blues and other teams involved in the top-four race. Souness appears to share this view, picking out Chelsea and Tottenham as two teams who could challenge at the summit in the upcoming campaign.
"No, I don't think so," the Anfield legend told Sky Bet when asked if the 2022/23 title race will be another two-horse contest. "Manchester City and Liverpool will be the outstanding favourites but I think you've got to factor Chelsea into the argument as well.
"I think Spurs have got a determination and a doggedness about them that I've not seen since the early days of Mauricio Pochettino." As Souness alluded to, Tottenham appear to be a resurgent force under Antonio Conte and they have been highly active in the summer transfer window.
Having finished fourth last season, the North London club have added Richarlison, Ivan Perisic and Yves Bissouma to their ranks, while Djed Spence is set to become their latest arrival. Chelsea, meanwhile, kicked off their summer business on Wednesday by signing Raheem Sterling from Manchester City for £47.5million.
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More business is imminent at Stamford Bridge, with Kalidou Koulibaly set to join the Blues in a £34million switch from Napoli, while Paris Saint-Germain's Presnel Kimpembe and City's Nathan Ake are also targets at centre-back. It is not hard to see why Souness predicts a much closer title race next season - and he also picked out his former club as the team to beat.
"I think Liverpool will win it after coming so close last year," the Scot added when asked for his selection. The Reds fell short on the final day of last season as City produced a stunning comeback against Aston Villa to retain their crown. In early August, Klopp's side get their league campaign underway with a trip to Fulham, City travel to West Ham, Chelsea are away at Everton and Tottenham host Southampton.
