At the sound of the final whistle at St James’ Park, you wondered what the pretenders to Manchester City’s throne were thinking.
At Liverpool mainly, as that is where the only credible challenge is expected to come from, but also at Tottenham Hotspur, who are level on points with the champions after three games, and at Arsenal, who will find themselves sitting top of the pile if they take a premature look at the table. You wondered what the reaction might be at Chelsea too, despite them still reeling from defeat at Elland Road.
