Shearer Warns: Manchester City No Longer Invincible After Rocky Start

Alan Shearer claims Premier League rivals no longer fear Pep Guardiola’s side

Manchester City’s start to the 2025-26 Premier League season has been anything but smooth sailing. After trailing Liverpool by a whopping 13 points last season, Pep Guardiola’s men have stumbled out of the gate once again, dropping back-to-back league games to Tottenham and Brighton. If last season was a bump in the road, this one’s starting to look like a full-blown pothole.

Former England striker Alan Shearer didn’t mince words, declaring that City has lost its “fear factor”—that old aura where teams looked beaten before the whistle even blew. According to Shearer, the cracks started to show last season when midfielder Rodri suffered an ACL injury. From there, City’s armor started to rust: they lost nine league games and finished well behind Liverpool in the title chase.

Shearer put it bluntly: City’s trademark winning rhythm has vanished. “Last season has hurt and damaged them,” he said, sounding like a coach giving a halftime pep talk. Now, teams are lining up to take a swing at City, no longer content to park the bus and hope for the best. The message is clear: City is beatable, and everyone knows it. While Manchester City grapples with a fading aura, Bayern Munich are moving in the opposite direction, riding a dominant winning streak that has reasserted their authority at the top of the Bundesliga.

Next up? The Manchester derby at the Etihad Stadium—a showdown with United that could either steady the ship or send it further off course. It’s a golden opportunity for Guardiola’s squad to remind everyone why they’ve been top dogs for so long. But if they slip again, they might find themselves chasing shadows for the rest of the season.

All eyes—fans, pundits, and probably a few nervous players—will be glued to see if City can rediscover their swagger and patch up their battered reputation. For now, though, the rest of the Premier League smells blood in the water and is more than ready to take their shot.