David James makes fresh Premier League title prediction involving Arsenal and Manchester City

Former Liverpool goalkeeper David James has claimed that Erling Haaland could be a hindrance in Manchester City's bid to beat Arsenal in the Premier League title race this season.

James believes spreading the goals around in the team could be more beneficial to a team's chances of winning the league rather than one player getting all the goals.

Haaland has been City's top scorer this season, with 28 goals in 26 league games. Phil Foden is second with nine goals in 24 Premier League matches. Arsenal, meanwhile, have three players who have managed 10 or more goals in the league this term - Gabriel Martinelli (13), Bukayo Saka (12) and Martin Odegaard (10).

James told Topratedcasinos (h/t Metro):

"The reality is that top goalscorers do not win the league. Man City have got the top goalscorer… but I think that detracts from the productivity of the team. If you look at Arsenal, Bukayo Saka is their top goalscorer, but you’ve got Gabriel Martinelli and Eddie Nketiah all spreading the goals around similar to how City did it last season when they won the league.

The former England shot-stopper added:

"Now that Man City have that number nine, over the course of this season I think spreading the goals around would have been more beneficial than having this dominant player. I still think Arsenal are favourites to win the league.

Manchester City's Erling Haaland (R).

James concluded:

"It would need almost a catastrophic failure from Arsenal for City to win the league. Obviously, City play Arsenal which gives them a big opportunity, but it’s for Arsenal to lose."

The Gunners have 69 points from 28 games so far this season - eight more than second-placed Manchester City, who have a game in hand. James' aforementioned comments, meanwhile, hold true to some extent.

The top scorers in the last nine Premier League seasons have not hailed from the teams that won the league title.

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Arsenal vs Manchester City showdown at the Etihad could be crucial in PL title race

Arsenal's bid to win their first Premier League title since the 2003-04 campaign could boil down to the league clash against Manchester City on April 26.

The fact that the Cityzens will play at the Etihad hands them an automatic advantage in the game. The north London giants, moreover, haven't beaten City in the Premier League since December 2015.

Manager Mikel Arteta will hope that his former club drop a few points before the two teams meet in late April. The Sky Blues are also active in the UEFA Champions League and FA Cup. The Gunners, meanwhile, only have the league to focus on after being eliminated from all cup competitions this term.