Gary Neville believes that Arsenal may struggle to sustain their title challenge due to Mikel Arteta’s relative inexperience compared with his competitors.
The Gunners are currently top of the Premier League table, having won eight of their nine matches so far. Arteta’s side have beaten north London rivals Tottenham and perennial title challengers Liverpool in recent weeks to maintain their form and stay a point ahead of defending champions Manchester City.
Arsenal ’s impressive form means they are beginning to be considered as genuine title contenders. The club’s investment over the past few transfer windows means many fans and pundits believe they could have what it takes to challenge Man City over the course of the whole season, but Neville has issued a word of caution.
Arteta is approaching three years in the Arsenal hotseat, and although he learned from Pep Guardiola at City, he is nowhere near as experienced as the managers of his direct rivals. Neville believes that could make a huge difference when things get tough down the line.
“I want Arsenal to do well. I want Mikel Arteta to do well because he’s a young manager,” he said on The Overlap, in partnership with Sky Bet. “The managers he’s up against – Antonio Conte, Pep Guardiola, Jurgen Klopp, Thomas Tuchel, before he got sacked – they’re animals to be up against.
“You’re talking about machines, and even though there’s been a lot of investment, to break into that group of managers is just difficult to do. That’s why it didn’t surprise me at the end of last season that Conte did what he did, in pipping Arsenal to 4th place, purely because of his experience.”
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Arsenal have not won the Premier League since the famous Invincibles campaign of 2003/04 and have not even finished in the top four since 2015/16. Despite his affiliation with Manchester United, Neville insists he is happy to see Arsenal back challenging at the top of the Premier League after several years in the wilderness.
“I've always had a respect for Arsenal as a football club,” he added. “They’re one of the great traditional clubs in this country. However, the last few years has been a struggle. I remember at the end of last season, me and Jamie Carragher thought that it could be terminal for Mikel Arteta.
“I was at the Emirates stadium for the first time on Sunday against Liverpool. I watched Arsenal away at Old Trafford and at Brentford, and they played well at Old Trafford – even though they lost – and they were brilliant at Brentford, but the atmosphere felt a little bit different on Sunday – it was unbelievable.”
Arsenal will play Bodo/Glimt in the Europa League on Thursday night before travelling to Elland Road to face Leeds United in the league on Sunday. So far they have managed the two competitions well, winning both of their European matches, against Bodo and FC Zurich.
