Sky Sports pundit and ex-Manchester United fullback has claimed that Arsenal are now his favourites to win the Premier League title, citing their recruitment over the summer and one small statistical quirk that puts the ball firmly in their court.
The Gunners topped the Premier League for much of last season, only to fall away at the end of the campaign and leave Manchester City with their third consecutive Premier League title, part of a historic treble for Pep Guardiola’s side only ever achieved by Neville’s 1999 Manchester United side.
Neville had been consistently vocal in his prediction that Arsenal would fall away, at one point putting them below his former side Manchester United when predicting the end of the season, though they ultimately finished nine points clear of the Red Devils.
This time, however, his prediction will come as music to Arsenal fans’ ears, with Neville believing that they will finally knock Manchester City off their perch as Premier League champions.
Explaining his reasoning, he revealed he felt Arsenal’s recruitment had been spot on, while he didn’t think Manchester City would be able to overcome the stats, which show that no side has ever won four Premier League titles in a row.
“I don’t think Arsenal could have done any more to close the gap”, he told the overlap.
“Just because of the three thing and never winning a fourth, I am going to go Arsenal to win the league, City second. I think Arsenal can beat them.”
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Arsenal are expected to recruit further this summer, but are waiting on sales before proceeding further, with David Raya expected to join the club from Brentford once Matt Turner completes his move to Nottingham Forest.
The Gunners face Forest at the Emirates Stadium on the first day of the season, and will be looking to kickstart their campaign in style.