Liverpool 'bottled' winning the Premier League title last season, says former striker El Hadji Diouf, who backs Manchester City to retain their crown this term.
The Reds were 10 points clear of Pep Guardiola's side at the end of December, albeit having played one game more than their rivals, having won 17 and drawn three of their first 20 games.
However, defeat at the Etihad Stadium to kick off 2019 saw the Reds win just four of their opening nine games of the calendar year.
Even winning their final nine games of the campaign was not enough as City won the title with 98 points over Liverpool's 97.
"I don't see them doing as well as they did last season," Diouf, who played for Liverpool between 2005 and 2008, told FourFourTwo magazine.
"They had the chance to win the league title; they had it in their hands and then let it slip. They were seven points ahead around Christmas -- how City got it in the end beats my mind. As they say in England, I think they bottled it.
"If you have only one defeat in a whole season, surely you can't say that you didn't win the league.
"It's hard for me to imagine them having such a similar season and coming out as champions. City will be the team to beat once again."
