Arsene Wenger thinks Arsenal are one of seven contenders for the title this season but he won't assess his rivals until the transfer window shuts.
The Gunners finished seven points behind champions Manchester City last term but Wenger has strengthened his squad this summer with the signings of Alexis Sanchez, Mathieu Debuchy, Calum Chambers and David Ospina.
The Arsenal manager is expecting another fluctuating title race but says it's too early to make judgments.
"A lot can happen until August 31," Wenger said. "That's why I always said that it will be better that the transfer window closes before you play the first game, it would be much easier for everybody.
"We have to take more points from the top teams, that will be our real challenge this year"
"You have six or seven teams. You have the top four and then you have Man United and Everton; how well will Tottenham respond? I don't know. But Everton was very dangerous last year as well and they could be candidates.
"I believe we have a chance because we were a long time top of the league last year. It is difficult to know how much better the other teams will be. We have some challenges that we did not face well last year.
"That means we have to take more points from the top teams, that will be our real challenge this year and also keep the consistency against the teams who do not fight for the championship.
"We finished fourth and made 79 points. Man City won it with 86, so it was very tight in the top four, that [difference] is one or two games. If you win against them, they have three points less and you have three points more, that means it is down to one game."
Copyright 2024 The Arsenal Football Club Limited. Permission to use quotations from this article is granted subject to appropriate credit being given to www.arsenal.com as the source.
