Three reasons why Manchester City may retain the Premier League title next season

#2 They have the largest squad depth in the Premier League

Manchester City have strength in depth

One of the most crucial criterion in becoming league champions is having a strong squad depth. The Premier League takes place over nine months, from August through May, including a grueling and congested Christmas period where clubs play as much as three matches in the space of six days.

As the league matchdays begin to pile up in addition to Cup games and European ties, fatigue is bound to set in for players, as the debilitating fixture schedule begins to take its toll on the body.

Rotations would have to be made to preserve key players' freshness towards the business end of the season. This is where squad depth comes in, as the quality of the bench would be a determinant factor in whether the club achieves its objective of winning the league or not. A strong bench is also needed as a Plan B for when things go south during a match, it can give the coach viable alternatives to shake things up and change the course of a game.

No Premier League club has the quality of Manchester City's starting eleven, the difference in class is even more obvious when we look at their bench compared to other teams. Manchester City have an abundance of talent in their starting lineup, with the likes of Gabriel Jesus, Leroy Sane, Kevin De Bruyne, Fernandinho, Kyle Walker, Ben Mendy, David Silva being among the world's best in their positions.

Guardiola also has the luxury of turning to exceptional players like Bernardo Silva, Sergio Aguero, Aymeric Laporte, Ilkay Gundogan and Riyad Mahrez on the bench to rotate his first team players or change the tempo and direction of a game.

Liverpool have significantly strengthened their first team, buying players to solve areas of weaknesses, but their bench is nowhere close to that of Man City. The same can be said about Manchester United, Chelsea and Tottenham and when it gets to the nitty gritty period of the Premier League, it could be what sets the Cityzens apart from the rest of the chasing pack.