Arsenal and Liverpool are definitely in with a shout, but the margin for error is so small that you really need to push on while city aren’t yet in juggernaut mode.

Every team attempts to buy success, City are just better at it than their competitors.

If you don’t buy players in this league you go backwards.

If you don’t spend that money well, you again go backwards.

United are a prime example that simply spending money doesn’t equate to success, city have spent, but have done so addressing the needs of their team and having a stable team in place.

I think stats and the eye test need to be used at the same time- the eye test is subjective, so if the person using the eye test is clueless then chances are their interpretation is terrible.

He’s understandably pissed off, but it’s best to not react publicly, as the perception is he’s being petty.

The voting system of the Ballon D’or is flawed, but Ronaldo should be above it- he’s one of the greatest of all time, and doesn’t need to give a shit about it. His achievements should stand for themselves, forget “chasing” Messi.

He’s having to rack them up in the group stage because we won’t get to the knockouts.

He’d be similar to where he is- he’d get compared to Pele or Maradona. The thing with the “GOAT” debate is that it will always be debated- people have different preferences based on what’s happened in the past or whatever.

Let’s not forget than until his WC win some Argentinians would argue that Maradona was a better player than Messi; it’s a very subjective debate.

Why can’t they just be appreciated for what they are? The narrative is that they need to be the next x or better than y, when they could just be enjoyed as the player they are, especially when the comparisons are often clumsy at best.