'Ones to watch' - Ally McCoist names dark horses who could rival Arsenal for league title

Former Scotland striker Ally McCoist (Picture: Getty)

Ally McCoist has named his dark horses to challenge Arsenal this season as Mikel Arteta ’s side prepare to begin their Premier League title defence.

Following three successive second-place finishes, Arteta finally guided Arsenal to their first league title in 22 years last season .

And with the World Cup finished and pre-season back underway, the Gunners now turn their attention to defending their title this season.

Christos Tzolis and Illan Meslier have already arrived from Club Brugge and Leeds United , respectively, while Arsenal are now set to complete a £75million deal for Bruno Guimaraes .

The defending champions are still holding out hope of completing adeal for Vinicius Junior, who is undergoing crunch talks with Real Madrid this week about his future with the Spanish giants.

But regardless of whether they pull off the blockbuster signing of Vinicius, McCoist still believes that Arsenal will go into the new season as the team to beat.

‘Arsenal, I think at this moment in time would be my favourites, just, at the start of the tournament,’ he told talkSPORT .

Arsenal are seeking to defend their title (Picture: Getty)

‘I think there’s improvement in Liverpool, improvement in United. United obviously have European football to think about as well, but I think it’ll be interesting to see.

‘Manchester City, we don’t know with no Pep, but I thought Rodri was massive, outstanding at the World Cup. I thought that was him back to his best. I thought he was immense. So he’s vital, absolutely vital.

‘We’ve known how difficult it is to defend the league title, but I just think Arsenal, there’s no way they’re certainties, but I would probably have them just starting as favourites.’

Xabi Alonso has taken charge at Chelsea (Picture: Getty)

However, McCoist was also keen to talk up the hopes of Chelsea following the arrival of Xabi Alonso over the summer.

The Spaniard has been backed in the market, with Morgan Rogers arriving from Arsenal for a mammoth £117m fee.

And the Blues have also looked to address their lack of experience within the squad by signing Jordan Henderson and Danny Welbeck from Brentford and Brighton, respectively.

Danny Welbeck has been brought in from Brighton (Picture: Getty)

‘I’m very excited. I think the manager [Xabi Alonso] is a clever, clever move,’ McCoist said when asked about Chelsea’s chances next season.

‘What is important, as much as anything, is what goes on in the dressing room before training, after training, all that kind of stuff.

‘And we’ve looked at Chelsea and one of the criticisms has been that they look as though they’re a young group of players. They looked as though they didn’t have any real direction or togetherness at times.

‘But those two signings, Henderson and Welbeck, they get right into that dressing room and one thing they get is respect, you know. And they’ll be able to see and monitor things.

‘I’m really interested to see how Chelsea start the season. I think they could be one to watch; they’ve obviously got some real quality players. Of course they have.

‘And I just think with a bit of togetherness, a bit of direction, I like the manager, and I think it’s a shrewd move bringing those two in.’

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