Liverpool first, Manchester City second.

That’s how the Premier League table looks on the morning of September 1, 2019.

And it’s hard to see any other team entering the top two before the end of the season.

The two clubs are so superior to the rest of the competition that it’s hard not to feel like the title race is already a two-horse battle.

Tottenham Hotspur, for all their promise, were outclassed by City last month and were fortunate to get a point.

And their 1-0 defeat at home to Newcastle United highlighted their frailties.

Chelsea, meanwhile, have endured some early struggles under new manager Frank Lampard. They’ve drawn at home to Leicester City and Sheffield United and, after losing Eden Hazard, don’t have enough quality to compete for the title.

Manchester United? Like Chelsea, they are on five points after four games and have had some results to forget.

Since their impressive 4-0 win over the Blues on the opening weekend of the 2019/20 season, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side have drawn against Wolves and Southampton and lost at home to Crystal Palace.

Despite adding Daniel James, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Harry Maguire in the summer, Man United are still not on the level to challenge.

More investment is required and Solskjaer still needs to show that he is good enough for the job.

Arsenal are better than they were last season and should be eyeing a top four spot.

But their 3-1 defeat to Liverpool just showed that that’s the best they can hope for this season.

It leaves Liverpool and Man City as the two teams who can win the title this year.

Just like last season, in which they separated themselves from the rest of the league in astonishing fashion (Liverpool, who finished second, had 25 more points than third-placed Chelsea), Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola’s teams are going to run away with it.

It’s a far cry from the situation in 2013/14, when just four points separated champions Man City from third-placed Chelsea.

Or in 2007/08, when Arsenal, third in the table, finished four points behind eventual winners Man United.

The situation is better than it is in France, where Paris Saint-Germain have won the title in six of the last seven seasons, or in Italy, where Juventus are going in search of a ninth-straight title.

And this isn’t a knock on Liverpool or Man City. Both teams are a joy to watch and long may it continue.

Their rivals simply need to pick it up. And fast.