Gary Neville says it is ‘not ridiculous’ to suggest Manchester United could win the Premier League after title rivals Arsenal and Manchester City both slipped up, but he feels it is still ‘too early’ for Erik ten Hag’s side to challenge.
It was an interesting weekend at the top of the Premier League as Arsenal and Man City suffered defeats to Everton and Tottenham respectively.
The Gunners slipped to just their second defeat of the season as they were beaten 1-0 by Everton in Sean Dyche’s first game in charge at Goodison Park.
Manchester City then had the chance to cut Arsenal’s lead at the top of the table to just two points but lost by the same scoreline as Harry Kane became Tottenham’s all-time record goalscorer.
While the title rivals suffered setbacks, Manchester United beat Crystal Palace at home to move to within five points of local rivals Manchester City and eight points of leaders Arsenal.
‘Are we in with a chance again?’ Neville said on his Sky Sports podcast. ‘Look, I don’t think Manchester United will get there, I think they will fall short.
‘They’re just not quite there and the Christian Eriksen injury will hurt, but they’re doing really, really well and they’re competing again.
‘They look happy too and that’s a really big thing. You need that. From that point of view United are doing well.
‘It’s not ridiculous to say they could win the title. I don’t think they will and I’ve never thought they will this season because it’s a bit early for that but I would be getting worried if I was Manchester City.
‘The fans will start getting worried now with the way they’re playing and the way Pep Guardiola is tinkering with the team. United look a happy bunch, City look a bit moody and need to come out of that spell.
‘Man City could easily still win the league but Man United are in a good position too.’
Manchester United have not won any silverware since 2017 but appear to be making significant progress under Eeik ten Hag, who arrived from Ajax last summer.
The Red Devils are in a strong position to secure a top-four finish in the Premier League and will face Newcastle United in the Carabao Cup final.
Meanwhile, Pep Guardiola has claimed Manchester City should not even be thinking about defending their Premier League title after they dropped more points against Spurs.
‘We are not in the position to think about being champions,’ he told Sky Sports. ‘The position is the next game, Aston Villa.
‘We have one week, going to prepare well, and we’re going to play our game as best as possible. Against that team it has happened many times. Tottenham is a fantastic squad, team and manager.
‘They punish you. Every time we arrive hear I have the feeling they don’t need much to beat us. In the last times we’ve come, we monopolised the game, found the spaces and create chances, but we lose.
‘They have a lot of quality and they don’t need much in transition and set pieces. I give a lot of credit to them. I don’t say we cannot lose against them – I have the feeling all the time the same. It’s difficult.’
Arsenal will move eight points clear of Manchester City if they win their game in hand but still have to play Guardiola’s side twice before the end of the season.
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