On September 14 (CEST), Sky Sports football pundit Paul Merson discussed the performances of Arsenal, Liverpool, Tottenham, and Aston Villa since the start of the season in his column.

"Is Arne Slot finding the job harder than he thought?"

I'm quite worried about Liverpool now, because Saturday's result was dreadful. It was a really poor result. I don't know if he's finding it harder than he initially thought coming from Bournemouth to Anfield. No disrespect to Bournemouth, but if they draw 0-0 at home against Fulham, that's not an issue.

But for Liverpool, drawing at home against Fulham becomes a major talking point. That's something he has to adapt to. He needs to be more comfortable letting the team play a more open game. Right now, when you watch the matches every weekend, week after week, Manchester City and Arsenal have pulled away from everyone else. The gap is incredible.

Concerns over Wirtz, and is Barcola the right choice for Liverpool?

I don't know how much longer they can wait for Wirtz. I really like him; I think he's a special player. But things aren't right at the moment, really not right. I don't know how much longer they can afford to wait. I like Barcola too, but I'm not sure he's the player Liverpool need.

If you ask me what qualities Barcola has, he's quick. But you don't really need to be that quick to play for Liverpool. You don't need to be the fastest player in the Premier League. You need more than that. And right now, I'm not sure he has it. Don't get me wrong, he'll have his moments, but I think they need a smarter, more creative player. When Salah is firing, he has that ability—that's why he's so successful at the club.

At Liverpool, you don't just need pace. No one actively presses Liverpool. All the teams sit deep and defend behind the ball. There's no other tactic, and that's the concerning part.

Mentality and confidence are Tottenham's main issues right now.

Against Everton, in the first 15 to 20 minutes, I thought they played exceptionally well. I thought the way they passed and moved the ball caused Everton real problems. But they didn't score. And when they don't score, that mentality creeps back in. I think if they didn't score, they could still be playing now (the match felt like it would never end), right? That's the problem. They need to score early. And confidence is key.

I would say that for any footballer, whether you're a U10 player or a professional, if you could bottle one thing, it would be confidence. And right now, they just don't have that confidence, or that belief. That's the issue—that belief.

Arsenal will comfortably retain the title.

I think they'll win the Premier League by a double-digit margin. I think they'll win it easily. I've looked at Arsenal's fixtures: away at Manchester City, away at Manchester United, away at Chelsea, away at Liverpool. After those four matches, I don't see who else can beat Arsenal.

They're just a very, very difficult team to beat. I don't think they'll lose many matches this season. They're more comfortable now. No one can say Arsenal have "run out of steam" anymore, so the pressure is off. They play as if they've received an email in advance: "You know what the final score will be."

I just watched their match against Villa, and then you watch their match against Sunderland—they weren't anxious at all. They played very patiently. Eventually they'll score, and the opposition won't. That's where they are right now.

Is Aston Villa really in danger of relegation?

No, no. I think they have too many good players, to be honest. I think their result against Nottingham Forest was very poor. That's concerning. They dominated but couldn't score. But I'd be very surprised if they end up going down.

They have too many good players and one of the best managers in the business. They're just going through a difficult spell at the moment.

However, I think this weekend's match against Tottenham is very important. It's a crucial game. If you're at the bottom of the table, you stay there. I'm not worried about Tottenham or Villa, but I think it's an important match for both teams because it could change the momentum. Win the game, and then you can push on after the international break. It's an important football match.

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