Liverpool has been backed to finish ahead of Arsenal in the Premier League once again next season, with the Gunners accused of lacking leaders in their squad.
Arsenal has finished second in each of the last three seasons — twice to Manchester City and once to Liverpool — and the London club has not won a league title since 2004. A supercomputer is even predicting Liverpool to win the title again in 2026.
Former Chelsea winger Florent Malouda, who won the league with the Blues in 2010, thinks that Liverpool and Manchester City are a cut above the rest of the pretenders in the league due to their mentality.
"I want Chelsea to be able to challenge Liverpool and Manchester City, but there is a difference in mindset," Malouda told bet365. "There is a difference in mindset and how the club will be able to compete in every competition.
"Chelsea have been able to compete in one off games with the top teams, but not in the long run. They have wasted too many points and that's the big difference.
"The difference is in the squad and the competition within the squad, injuries also play a part, but there are a lot of questions about Mikel Arteta's ability to win trophies with Arsenal and that is mindset.
Former Chelsea player Florent Malouda
Former Chelsea player Florent Malouda (Image: 2025 Icon Sport)
"I put Liverpool and Manchester City in the top two and then Arsenal, Chelsea and Newcastle in the level below. A lot will depend on the transfer window and the choices that the clubs make.
"When you look at Liverpool, they have the heritage of Jurgen Klopp and everything he built. All those players joined with his mindset and still have his mindset of competing for titles.
"Even though Chelsea have spent a lot in the transfer market, that spirit isn’t there yet. I hope that by winning the Conference League, even if it's not the biggest European cup, it convinced the players that they can’t be happy just being in tournaments.
"If that mindset returns to Chelsea, there is the potential with the current manager to disturb this hierarchy."
Malouda went on to describe Arsenal as a team of followers rather than a team of leaders, adding: "It's more about the experience of winning. If I look at the other teams, they have players that are used to competing for trophies.
"Arsenal have players that are more followers than leaders. So when it comes to the last sprint, the last few games of the league, or the knockout stage of the Champions League, you see that there's something missing.
"I don't think it's down to the manager. The manager is trying to get the best out of the players, but sometimes you compete with the teams that have more.
"If I take Arsenal, when they played PSG, they played well. But in those games, it's not only about playing well, it's about being consistent in both phases and scoring goals.
"That's an example of the standard that PSG set, their offensive players understood that they are the key to get the trophies, they need to be involved in both aspects of the game, and that's the challenge I think for Mikel Arteta."