Jamie Carragher shares Liverpool Premier League title verdict and explains problem Man City may face

Jamie Carragher believes a Premier League title race may have come "one year too soon" for Liverpool as they look to challenge Arsenal and Manchester City for top spot this season.

Jurgen Klopp's side were way off the pace last campaign and ended up 22 points adrift of eventual champions City, who held off Mikel Arteta's men to claim a third consecutive top-flight crown.

A midfield revamp has resulted in the Reds bouncing back from their fifth-placed finish in style, having accumulated 16 points from a possible 21 so far this term, though it remains to be seen whether this impressive start can be maintained in the months to come.

City, spearheaded by Norwegian goal machine Erling Haaland, remain the favourites to come out on top once again and Carragher has conceded it is hard to look past the Sky Blues despite their shock defeat at Wolves last weekend.

Jurgen Klopp may have to rethink Liverpool future after delivering on transfer promise

Brighton dealt six injury blows for Liverpool Premier League match

"It might be a year too soon," the Liverpool legend told the ECHO of the Reds' title hopes. "I still just think City have got the edge, defensively. I don’t think there is a real weakness in their team. It’s whether De Bruyne is out for a while. They lost Gundogan, who was a massive player for them, and they will miss that at some stage. Of course they will."

Explaining one way the Reds could gain an advantage on City, the 2005 Champions League winner continued: "It's whether going to the Club World Cup, with the extra trips and games, will have an impact. Europa League games are going to be less intense for Liverpool compared to Champions League matches. If Man City are going a long way in Europe and Liverpool do the