Alan Shearer rules two teams out of Premier League title race after Arsenal beat Chelsea

Alan Shearer believes only two teams stand any chance of stopping Arsenal from retaining the Premier League title.

Mikel Arteta’s side continued their perfect start to the new season with a hard-fought 2-1 win over London rivals Chelsea on Sunday.

Chelsea, tipped by many as dark horses for the title, broke the deadlock inside two minutes, £117m summer signing Morgan Rogers volleying past David Raya.

But Arsenal were level midway through the first half through ex-Chelsea forward Kai Havertz, who cut in from the right and beat new Blues No. 1 Emiliano Martinez at his near post.

The Gunners were marginally on top throughout Sunday’s clash and scored a deserved winner just after half-time through in-form captain Martin Odegaard.

Only Arsenal and Manchester City have amassed nine points from their first three games, with newly-promoted Hull City up in third after a sensational start to the campaign.

Chelsea’s first defeat leaves Xabi Alonso’s side fourth ahead of the likes of Brentford, Liverpool and Newcastle United.

Shearer backed Arsenal to retain the Premier League trophy before a ball was kicked and has not seen anything to force him to change his mind.

The former England striker in fact views Chelsea and Man City as the only two teams who could keep pace with Arsenal, ruling Liverpool and Manchester United out of title contention.

‘They were really, really impressive,’ Shearer said on The Rest is Football podcast after Arsenal’s victory over Chelsea. ‘I was really, really impressed with that performance and their reaction after going behind.

‘We all said Arsenal would win the league before the season started and everything I’ve seen just reinforces that opinion. They’ve been brilliant, Arsenal.

‘The defence are brilliant. Obviously they get a lot of help from what’s in front of them but Arsenal as a defensive unit are so solid.

‘When you do get through their midfield you’ve got that back four that work so well together and are so tight and then a brilliant goalkeeper.

‘It’s probably the best defence in world football so that’s a brilliant base to work from.’

Asked who he sees as Arsenal’s biggest rivals for the Premier League title, Shearer added: ‘Chelsea and Man City. I’d probably go with Man City.

‘Manchester United are not good enough defensively to be anywhere near challenging the teams we’ve already mentioned.’

Micah Richards also views Enzo Maresca’s Manchester City as Arsenal’s biggest title rivals due to Chelsea’s defensive fragility.

‘I would go with Man City purely because they’re probably better defensively,’ Richards said. ‘They’ve worked together as a unit more than Chelsea.

‘Chelsea might be more entertaining but they’re giving away a lot of goals and chances. If they really want to be title challengers, they need to improve on defensive actions.’

Meanwhile, ex-England striker Chris Sutton insisted he ‘can’t see anyone stopping’ Arsenal after they proved too strong for Chelsea.

‘They’re such a powerhouse,’ Sutton said on BBC Radio 5 Live. ‘Chelsea are a good team, but Arsenal always find a way to win.

‘Can you stop Arsenal? I don’t think they [other Premier League teams] can.’

Arsenal put their Premier League campaign on hold this week as they face Napoli in their opening Champions League fixture.

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