Gary Neville has effectively ruled Arsenal out of the Premier League title race after praising Liverpool’s “title-winning performance”.
It’s been a fruitful week for Arne Slot, who can now enjoy a rare weekend without a game after securing a 2-0 away win against Manchester City and replicating that result against Newcastle United at Anfield in midweek. Meanwhile, Arsenal’s slip-ups, dropping five points in the same timeframe, have given the Reds a 13-point lead at the top with 11 matches remaining for the Gunners.
Yet Neville’s attention wasn’t on Liverpool’s title rivals stumbling. The ex-Manchester United star was captivated by how Slot’s team varied their attack against City.
Reflecting on pivotal victories on the road during his time at United, he said on the It’s Called Soccer podcast: “When I think back to the perfect, big game, away wins late on in a season that sometimes happened for us, that’s how it happened. You were never in control, you didn’t have possession.
“You felt like you were in control in a different way through not having possession, just through being so hard to beat. That performance will not go down in the history books as being the best game of football ever but it really hit home to me that that was a title-winning performance because it was many different things in one.”
Neville, along with several pundits and some of the Liverpool faithful, doubted the Reds would be title contenders after replacing long-serving manager Jurgen Klopp. The Sky Sports pundit initially had Liverpool pegged for a fifth-place finish in Slot’s debut season. However, Neville has owned up to his error and lauded the Liverpool coach for flexibly adapting his playing style.
“It’s a testament to [Slot],” Neville declared. “Absolutely incredible, the transition from Jurgen Klopp, who’s one of the greatest managers the Premier League’s had, and I thought there would be a natural drop-off from Liverpool.
“I thought the players that have listened to that same inspirational voice for so many years and having someone else come in, that [Slot] wouldn’t be able to make it happen for them. But what he’s done from day one is bring composure. Obviously, he’s won games.
“I said it earlier on in the season, there was a game where I thought they played three or four different styles within a certain game. That’s what I like most about this Liverpool team, to be honest, because we’ve been conditioned for years to think you’ve got to have this principle and this philosophy of play and you must stick to it.”
Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
Sky Sports deal
Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle in an unbeatable new deal that saves £192 and includes 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.