Leicester Collapse Predicted by Manuel Pellegrini After Premier League Title Win

Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini does not believe Leicester City will become perennial title challengers in the coming years despite being crowned Premier League champions on Monday. 

Indeed, though the Chilean boss admitted the Foxes' triumph is "humbling" for affluent sides like City, he claimed Leicester's relative lack of finances will see them drop back down the league in future, per Antony Kastrinakis in the Sun:

"

What Leicester have done should be seen as humbling for us—or as a lesson.

They have worked very well as a team and also had very few injuries.

Leicester deserve credit for what they have achieved but I do not think they will be in the top eight for years to come.

All great teams now are made by the money spent on them. So what I see with Leicester is similar to what we did at Villarreal in 2008, when we finished second in La Liga.

"

Tottenham Hotspur's failure to beat Chelsea on Monday handed Leicester their first English top-tier title with two games to spare in an extraordinary 2015-16 campaign.

The Foxes have proved many doubters wrong who predicted they would not be able to last the course by seeing out their title win in efficient and impressive fashion.

The so-called bigger sides, such as Manchester City, Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United, have not covered themselves in glory during the current campaign.

Defending champions Chelsea dropped out of the title race early on after a disastrous start to the season, while United, City and the Gunners have been left to scrap for the final Champions League spots despite their wealth and talent-filled squads.

The Sky Blues were widely tipped as potential champions ahead of the current season, but they are now in danger of dropping out of the top four. 

A 4-2 defeat to Southampton on Sunday has left City in fourth place, just four points ahead of fifth-placed United, who have a game in hand.

They cannot afford to drop any more points this season, though Pellegrini's focus will now be on Wednesday's UEFA Champions League semi-final second leg against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.

Last week's opening leg at the Etihad Stadium ended in a 0-0 draw—analysed below by Bleacher Report's Dean Jones and Sam Tighe—to keep the tie delicately poised:

It may prove necessary for City to advance to the final and win the Champions League as it could be their ticket to qualification for next season's tournament.

Pellegrini is set to be replaced by Pep Guardiola in the summer, and many have suggested the Spaniard's presence will make City title favourites next season, per football writer Jack Rathborn:

Meanwhile, Spurs will surely challenge again in 2016-17, United should improve—especially if they bring in Jose Mourinho as manager—Liverpool are on the up under Jurgen Klopp and Chelsea are unlikely to be as bad next term.

Leicester face a huge challenge in defending their title, and Pellegrini could well be correct in his assertion that they will not become consistent challengers at the top of the table.