Gary Neville doubles down on Liverpool stance with 'short' comment after Chelsea win

Liverpool’s recent triumph over Chelsea has sparked discussions about Arne Slot’s potential to lead the club to glory in his debut season, with the Reds climbing back to the Premier League summit and continuing their new head coach’s impressive start at Anfield.

Despite Liverpool securing a 10th victory in 11 matches across all competitions under Slot’s guidance, Gary Neville remains sceptical about their title-winning capabilities.

The Reds edged ahead by a single point over Manchester City, who had earlier secured a contentious last-minute win against Wolves, placing them temporarily at the top before being overtaken once again by Liverpool following their thrilling 2-1 win against Chelsea at Anfield, courtesy of goals from Mohamed Salah and Curtis Jones.

Arsenal’s recent loss to Bournemouth has widened the gap to third place, adding further intrigue to the title race.

Neville, while commending Liverpool’s performance on his podcast and singling out Jones for his “swashbuckling” play, as well as praising their midfield, defence, and Salah, also acknowledged the improvements in the Chelsea squad.

However, the Manchester United icon and Sky Sports analyst has doubled down on his previous stance that neither team has the necessary edge to clinch the league title.

Neville, who had previously dismissed Liverpool’s chances by not predicting them to finish in the top four, praised their experience and confidence on his podcast: “Liverpool have got a lot of players who have done a lot. They’ve won the Premier League, they’ve won trophies and cups, they’ve won (the) Champions League, and that gives you a confidence and an authority and I think that what’s helping Arne Slot settle into this club.

“Would they win the title? I don’t think so. What Liverpool are doing defensively at the moment is interesting, interesting. But I’d like to assess it at Christmas. I still think they’re short. I do feel like they are short.”

Elsewhere, John Stones emerged as the saviour for Manchester City once again, scoring the winning goal against Wolves, reminiscent of his late equaliser versus Arsenal last month.

Commenting on Man City’s prospects, Neville didn’t mince words: “It’s moments like that, even this early, which make you think (they’re going to do it again),” acknowledging Stones’ critical contributions.

Reflecting on past seasons, he added: “I remember the goal they scored late on at Newcastle last season through Oscar Bobb and watching that and thinking, ‘here we go again, they’re going to win the league’.”

He also noted City’s ecstatic response to their victory, highlighting their celebrations: “They will be ecstatic – and they were, we saw them celebrating with the fans. It’s a big win.”

Neville has offered a mixed review of Arsenal’s performance, noting their tendency to drop points when down to 10 men. Despite this, he still sees them as the main challengers to City for the Premier League title.

Neville, who had tipped Arsenal for the top spot at the season’s start, expressed his concern over the Gunners falling behind: “I think Arsenal are the only team that can take on City,” he said, cautioning against losing too much ground in the title race.

He also pointed out Arsenal’s failure to secure wins against teams like Brighton and Bournemouth, even with a man down: “You can lose any match in football but the most disappointing thing is they’ve not gone and won the game against Brighton or Bournemouth. With the quality they have they should still be able to win those matches.

“Point one – don’t get players sent off as much. That sounds easy but you’ve got to deal with it and stop it. And if you do go down to 10 men, you’ve got to go and win.

“On a general note of Arsenal, it’s still very early in the season, early enough for them to recover and be really dangerous and win the league. But I was disappointed with them and I think they should be disappointed with themselves.”

Looking ahead, the Champions League will see the top three in action midweek before they return to their Premier League campaigns, with Arsenal set to host Liverpool at the Emirates on Sunday following City’s match against Southampton on Saturday.