Jamie Carragher has Premier League title theory - 'Getting under their skin'

Jamie Carragher believes Arsenal has already gotten under Manchester City's skin following Sunday's 2-2 draw at the Etihad Stadium.

The Gunners looked all but certain to secure a huge 2-1 victory away to the reigning champion before John Stones popped up with a 98th-minute equalizer, helping to maintain City's place at the top of the Premier League.

However, tempers flared both during and after the game between both sets of players and their newfound rivalry was certainly evident, with even the post-match interviews offering up some tasty comments - especially from the City camp.

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City midfielder Bernardo Silva, in particular, drew attention with some things he said after the game, claiming City's rivalry with Liverpool was bigger than with Arsenal because the Reds had actually won trophies in the last few years.

But it was these slight digs towards the Gunners that led Carragher to believe Mikel Arteta's players are finally making their presence felt inside Pep Guardiola's camp - with the cracks beginning to show.

Speaking on , he said: "When you listen to some of the quotes from some of the Manchester City players - Bernardo Silva mentioning Liverpool, getting a little dig in, or the fact Arsenal haven't won anything big yet. I think (Manuel) Akanji came out and said he’s very confident Man City will still go on to win the league.

"You can just see they're (Arsenal) starting to get under their (Manchester City’s) skin. And that's credit to Arsenal, that's what we want to see."

Silva namedropping Liverpool when discussing Arsenal's status as a true title rival may also unintentionally signify the level of respect City has for the Reds, following a number of years of closely contested title-races.

Under Jurgen Klopp, Liverpool played a far more attacking style of football than what Arteta's Arsenal do now. During Sunday's stalemate, the Gunners defended for the entire second-half, although this was in part due to being reduced to 10-men just before the interval.

But City's previous clashes with the Reds would have seen both sides going for the jugular and trying to claim all three points - something Silva hinted at with his comments on Liverpool's ability to face the game "head-on, to win matches".

It remains to be seen how Arne Slot will structure his team to face Man City this season but with the Dutchman getting his Anfield career off to an almost-perfect start with five wins from six games, there's every reason to believe Liverpool is once again in a three-horse title race.