Gary Neville: ‘Wobbling’ Arsenal must focus on preparation for Southampton match to set up ‘once in a lifetime’ Premier League title decider at Man City | Football News

April 17, 2023 admin

The pressure is ramping up on Premier League leaders Arsenal after they blew a two-goal lead for the second time in a row.

Their gap to defending champions Man City is now just four points, with the chasers having a game in hand and eagerly looking forward to the showdown between the top two at the Etihad on April 26.

However, Arsenal have the chance to go seven points clear on Friday night when they host Southampton live on Sky Sports.

Gary Neville believes victory at the Emirates would allow Arsenal to land a psychological blow on their pursuers – despite the ominous form of Pep Guardiola’s side.

Here, eight-time Premier League winner Neville issues his advice to Mikel Arteta’s team, explaining how they must keep their focus for this defining period of the season…

“It’s no doubt it’s a wobble but there’s still a long way to go,” he told the Gary Neville Podcast. “Eight games to go is still a fifth of this league. People were telling me we were on a run-in 8-10 weeks ago. That Arsenal were nearly there. Nonsense.

“The big thing for me is they can go seven points clear on Friday night against Southampton. They mustn’t make a mistake in that game and must look assured and full of authority. There’s no doubt in their minds there will be a little bit of ‘hmmm’ going on but there doesn’t need to be. This was always going to happen.

“In a marathon, you’re always going to have difficult moments, you’re going to have ups and downs, you’re going to have injuries, you’re going to miss penalties, you’re going to have your goalkeeper maybe letting in one that he shouldn’t do.

“But they just need to recover for Friday night, take a single game at a time, get seven points in front and Man City, as much as they are a powerhouse and striding forward, it’s still a daunting task when you look at a team, even with two games in hand and you’ve got to play against them, it’s still not nice to look at the table and see you’re seven points behind.

“Man City will be buoyed by Sunday, smelling blood and Arsenal have just got to resist those thoughts, maybe not look at the newspapers, the social media because there will be the suggestion City are coming on top.

“You always have to cope with that. The year Blackburn beat us to win the league there was a point where they looked like they were going to falter and they came back.

‘Prepare perfectly for Southampton’

“It’s a wobble but you can recover from wobbles. The main thing is they don’t fall off the bike – and that would mean dropping points against Southampton at home. So be solid, get seven points clear and the Man City game at the Etihad will be a once-in-a-lifetime game that will take care of itself.

“What will happen will happen – these games you cannot predict, you’re not in control of it, you just go there have the time of your life and you sometimes win them and sometimes don’t. And they could win and be 10 points clear and probably be champions.

“Now they’ve just got to think about Friday night and doing the job against Southampton and then playing in the most important match of their lives at the Etihad, winning and then the title will be theirs. They’ve taken a punch, they’ve gone down to the ground, they’ve got up after three, they’re still fine, they’ve still got their senses and will have to pick themselves up this week.

“I thought these moments would come for Arsenal. What worried me a little bit was Arsenal looked the leggy team in the last half an hour – and West Ham were the team that played on Thursday night. I’ve been on those title run-ins where you have young players and you start to get a little sluggish, not moving as freely, not moving as quickly.

“Loads of recovery, loads of rest, get off your PlayStations, don’t go out for a meal, relax, watch films, sit in, do your preparation, everything perfectly, ice baths… whatever it is they do these days.

“Do everything perfectly, you’ve had a great season and win on Friday night. Don’t think of anything else. I’m sure they’ll be good enough to beat Southampton on Friday night but that’s a really important match for them.”

‘Man City have got serious – the treble is on’

Neville believes Man City are “far too close for comfort” to emulating the treble-win of his Man Utd side as Pep Guardiola’s team aim for the Champions League semi-finals.

City go to Bayern Munich on Wednesday evening with a relatively comfortable 3-0 cushion after an impressive performance in the quarter-final first leg at the Etihad.

Add in the FA Cup semi-final with Sheffield United at Wembley on Saturday and the pieces are in place for City to match the so-far unique achievement of Neville and his Man Utd team-mates in 1998/99 and win the league, the FA Cup and the Champions League.

“It is ominous,” said Neville, reflecting on City’s first-half demolition of Leicester which saw them go 3-0 up inside 25 minutes.

“I thought Manchester City were messing around a few weeks ago. Bernardo Silva at left-back in the last 10 minutes at Nottingham Forest when they scored to make it 1-1? Pep did that for around three or four weeks, with Silva at left-back coming into midfield.

“They were bored. Now they’re playing four serious defenders every match. Whether it’s Kyle Walker, Aymeric Laporte, Manuel Akanji, Ruben Dias, John Stones. They’re all in there now. He’s playing a solid back four and one steps into midfield.

“I thought their Bayern Munich game was sensational. Bayern Munich were fantastic in the game in the first half and when Pep Guardiola said after the game he was worried, I could feel that as Bayern looked dangerous and sharp.

“He was resting players against Leicester because he knows he has to go to the Allianz Arena and it will be tough and he knows that. If Bayern get a goal, it is a bit like Anfield where they can go and get two or three.

“They’ve had a brilliant week, City. To win that game 3-0 and beat Liverpool 4-1, they’re purring, they’re playing well. They’re serious now about it and they’re in great form now.

“Rodri, Kevin De Bruyne and Ilkay Gundogan in midfield, the best midfield you can get. Up front, Erling Haaland, Jack Grealish and Riyad Mahrez are really settled now. They’re hitting the home straight.

“The treble was mentioned last week – it’s definitely on. They can win the European Cup, FA Cup and the Premier League. There’s a long way to go, they can come up against a team that does them on the way: Real Madrid in the Champions League, Manchester United or Brighton in the FA Cup or they could lose to Arsenal at the Etihad, but they’re very close to it. Far too close for comfort.”