Manchester United legend Gary Neville has said although things are not going well for Arsenal at the moment, he still expects them to give Liverpool a good fight in the title race.
Liverpool manager Arne Slot has done exemplary work in his debut season. Since replacing Jurgen Klopp at the helm, Slot has fine-tuned the Reds’ style of play, making them more efficient and fluid. Under his tutelage, Mohamed Salah has emerged as the most prolific player in Europe, scoring goals and creating chances at will. After 18 rounds of fixtures, Liverpool have amassed 45 points in the Premier League, climbing to the top of the rankings.
Arsenal, meanwhile, have not been at their best this season. Mikel Arteta’s men, who finished just two points behind champions Manchester City in the 2023-24 campaign, have not been confident in front of goal, squandering plenty of presentable opportunities since the start of the season.
The Gunners have secured 36 points from 18 matches in the Premier League. They have conceded a league-lowest 16 times but have scored 35 goals, which is only the fourth-highest in the division. They currently sit in third place — a point behind second-placed Nottingham Forest, who have played one game more.
Gary Neville Still Hopeful of Seeing Arsenal Beat Liverpool in the Title Race
Halfway through the season, Arsenal are a good nine points behind the Reds, but Neville still believes they have a fair shot at the title.
On Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football, Neville said (via Football365):
“Liverpool are massive favourites and they’re in great form, but there’s still a long way to go. Arsenal have been through the mill last couple of years, they’ve gone to the wire, and sometimes when you win your first title, it doesn’t happen in the most expected way and things can happen.
“Things are going against Arsenal in this moment in time, and they’re hanging in there, but they’re the only team that can take it off Liverpool. I’m surprised about Chelsea’s defeats in the last couple of games, but I never thought they would win the title this season.”
He concluded by adding:
“I think Arsenal have got a resilience to them, they have got a back four that can hold it together and get through games, and I do think they’ll attack better in the next part of the season.
“I think they’ll hang in there, and if they can just get close towards the end, it could be that they can hunt Liverpool down. That’s what I’m hoping for!”
The North Londoners will return to Premier League action with a clash against Brentford on New Year’s Day. Liverpool, meanwhile, will lock horns with Manchester United in their next outing on 5th January.
