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Former Liverpool striker Stan Collymore reckons Arsenal will not be able to sustain their current form over the course of the Premier League season and will finish well below Manchester City in the final standings.
The Gunners are currently atop the standings with 15 points from five games. After opening their season with a 2-0 win over Crystal Palace, Mikel Arteta's side won their next four games.
Following the disappointment of missing out on UEFA Champions League football last season, the Gunners have earned a lot of plaudits due to their imperious form. They have scored 13 goals and conceded just four so far.
In his column for Mirror, Collymore said that the Gunners look good to return to the Champions League. However, he sounded sceptical about their Premier League title hopes despite their perfect start to the season.
"I'm happy to concede they could well qualify for the Champions League next May," said Collymore. "I'm also willing to stick my neck on the line right now and tell all those Gooners who think they will be challenging for the title after five wins from five that they simply have no chance."
He thinks Manchester City could canter to the title, with Arsenal lagging far behind:
"The smart money is on Manchester City to win the Premier League by anything between nine and 15 points. And history tells me that Arsenal won't be anywhere near them at the pointy end of the season. Just look at the gap they have to close – 24 points last season – and reflect on the previous seven or eight years."
He added that there are a lot of imponderables during a season, which have a say in the title race.
"What baffles me is that supporters and pundits alike seem to regularly suffer from collective amnesia when it comes to remembering how seasons pan out," said Collymore.
He added:
"It's not a case of teams playing 38 games on beautiful sunny days in front of a really enthusiastic crowd. There's cold weather to deal with, wet weather, international breaks, injuries, loss of form and a whole plethora of off-field issues, all of which will come along and test Arsenal."
Arsenal will lock horns with Manchester United at Old Trafford on Sunday (September 4). They will hope to win their first six games in a top-flight campaign for the first time since the 1947-48 season.
Arsenal complete squad overhaul in summer transfer window
The Gunners have made an extensive squad overhaul his summer. They roped in Gabriel Jesus, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Fabio Vieira, Matt Turner and Marquinhos - for a combined sum of around £120 million.
The Gunners parted ways with Alexandre Lacazette, Bernd Leno, Hector Bellerin, Matteo Guendouzi, Lucas Torreira and Konstantinos Mavropanos this summer. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang left in January.
Meanwhile, Nicolas Pepe, Nuno Tavares, Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Pablo Mari, Runar Alex Runarsson and Auston Trusty secured loan moves away.
