Gary Neville Reflects on Liverpool’s Narrow Win Over Arsenal | OneFootball

Neville Reflects on Liverpool’s Win and Arsenal’s Missed Opportunity

Intent defines everything

In the latest episode of The Gary Neville Podcast, recorded at Anfield, Gary Neville delivered a passionate and forensic breakdown of Liverpool’s gritty win over Arsenal. Speaking alongside Peter Drury, Neville dissected how Arne Slot has built a team capable of outlasting and outwitting top opponents, even without hitting top gear.

“There was a narrative building before this game,” Neville observed, “that Arsenal would wait till the last 20 minutes and then Eze and Ødegaard would come on and Arsenal’s bench was stronger, but it was actually Liverpool that got stronger.”

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What turned the tide, according to Neville, was belief. He pointed to a defining moment around the 65-minute mark when the Kop began to rise: “You felt they smell this a little bit, they want this now.” It was capped by a “ridiculous” free-kick goal that Neville described as “a violent shot” with “swerve, power and dip. Everything was perfect and it goes in off the post.”

Neville heaped praise on the player responsible for that goal, Dominik Szoboszlai saying, “I thought he was outstanding from minute one right the way through. I don’t think he gave Martinelli a kick.”

Winning ugly still wins

While acknowledging Arsenal’s technical superiority in moments, Neville’s focus turned to Liverpool’s transformation as a defensive unit. “This was the team that couldn’t defend. This was the team that couldn’t keep a clean sheet. This was the team that were easy to play against,” he noted. But at Anfield, Liverpool “found something” deeper within themselves.

A standout aspect was their set-piece defending. “Konate in particular headed two or three. I think Joe Gomez headed two or three out at the end,” Neville noted. He emphasised how Liverpool’s comparatively shorter players showed the required aggression: “You’ve got to ask your 5’10, your 5’11 players to be absolute pit bulls.”

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He added, “Liverpool today on those corners were absolutely outstanding and they deserve great credit.”

Arsenal fall short again

Despite dominating stretches of the first half, Arsenal once again failed to turn control into points at Anfield. “They didn’t have the intent,” Neville said, noting that “with a bit more risk they can go and win this game.”

Citing past failures at Anfield, the Etihad, and Goodison, Neville questioned their title credentials: “If you’re going to win the title, you have to win sometimes. You have to think you can go and win there.”

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He urged Arsenal to take the handbrake off. “You’ve got really good players in attacking areas,” he said. “There isn’t that commitment to go and disrupt and do something a bit special. They’ve got to find that.”

His analysis sharpened further: “Liverpool are there for the taking,” he recounted telling Mike Dean, adding that after another missed opportunity, “we’re sat here again at the end of a game where they’ve not won and they’ve lost.”

Confidence surging at Liverpool

Neville was full of praise for Liverpool’s start to the season. “Liverpool nine points and the two games they’ve just played,” he began. “They had a right battle up at St James’ Park… and then to do this today, that must give them massive confidence.”

He singled out key players and potential additions. “If they can get Guehi and Isak through the door… Isak’s one of the top centre forwards in the world,” he said. “He’s really causing problems. He’s a different level player.”

Even Florian Wirtz earned nuanced feedback, with Neville observing, “He needs a bit of coaching… he’s not the finished article at £115 million.” Yet there was patience: “He’s shown glimpses, but there’s an element of him fitting in.”

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Summing up, Neville concluded, “For Liverpool to be on nine points, the two games they’ve just had… they’ll be absolutely buzzing and confident as hell.”

Final word

Intent, grit and home advantage defined Liverpool’s win, while Arsenal’s tactical caution cost them. For Gary Neville, the message was clear: one side believed they would win, and that belief made all the difference.