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GARY NEVILLE PREDICTS ARSENAL WILL LIFT TITLE, ENDING YEARS OF WAITING

Gary Neville declares the Premier League title is "Arsenal's to lose" after they go four points clear. He backs Mikel Arteta's consistent, set-piece-driven side to win their first league title in over 20 years.

Gary Neville predicts Arsenal will lift title, ending years of waiting
Neville gives a clear timeline for Arsenal to finally win the championship - Photo Credit: Getty Images

Following Liverpool's fourth straight league defeat and Manchester City's loss at Aston Villa the day before, the Gunners' 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace on Sunday has put them four points clear at the top of the table.

Mikel Arteta's set-piece-driven strategy is working, and Arsenal is now the clear favourite to win the Premier League for the first time in more than 20 years.

As long as Arsenal "keeps doing what they are doing," they should be able to win the title with about 85 points, according to Neville, who has predicted Arsenal to win it for the last four seasons.

Doesn't this have to be them? He stated on the Gary Neville Podcast that this year must be theirs.

You have the chance to win. Arsenal, this is your title. It is true.


Gary Neville


"They are not necessarily much better; they are just repeating their levels of consistency, and that is all they need to accomplish this year to win the league. This is the fourth consecutive season that I have had them win the league.

The mid- to high-80s will earn them this title, and they can achieve it. They will not need to go out and score 100 points, or even 90 or 95 points, to win the league.

"As I previously stated, the other teams are unstable and erratic, but this Arsenal team is not one of them. They are incredibly trustworthy. You can rely on them. They defend excellently. They are surrounded by one another. They never give up goals.

"They pose a threat in some places up front. Although they do not have a particularly good centre-forward, they do have a battering ram who can be a useful asset up there.

"They have several players who can contribute goals, including [Eberechi] Eze, [Noni] Madueke, [Gabriel] Martinelli, and [Leandro] Trossard. They have Declan Rice, who is definitely capable of producing quality set pieces. They have three outstanding centre-backs and four outstanding full-backs.

Arsenal has a lot of excellent things going for them. Now, it is about ensuring they do not go overboard. Making sure people simply continue to perform the same things is the goal. Here, they do not have to accomplish anything noteworthy. Simply continue to perform your duties. You will win this league if you keep doing what you are doing.

"You have the chance to win. Arsenal, this is your title. Never in my life have I felt so certain. For someone with my level of title-winning expertise to claim that "it is yours" at this early stage of the season is absurd, yet it is.

"They have to experience it themselves. It must be felt by the Arsenal supporters. They must be aware that this is Arsenal's chance to regain the lead. This is Mikel Arteta's, these players', and Arsenal's chance to show that they are the greatest in the nation. They must go and seize the opportunity and chance that are available to them

VAR REVIEW: CHELSEA 2-2 BOURNEMOUTH, ESTêVãO PENALTY DRAMA EXPLAINED! WAS IT A FOUL OR A DIVE

Explaining the VAR: How an 11th-minute penalty check at Stamford Bridge saved a point for Chelsea against a resilient Bournemouth.

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Antoine Semenyo’s clumsy challenge handed Chelsea a vital lifeline

Every week, the Video Assistant Referee stirs up drama in the Premier League. Let's break down how these calls are made and if they're actually right.

This season, we're digging into the big moments to explain the VAR process and the rules of the game.

What went down: Chelsea's Estêvão was moving into the Bournemouth box, with Antoine Semenyo on his tail. Estêvão went down after some contact with Semenyo. The ref, Barrott, waved off Chelsea's penalty shouts, saying there wasn't a foul. He thought both players made contact naturally as they were running, and Estêvão basically tripped himself.

VAR said, "After looking at it, VAR Pawson suggested Barrott take another look at the monitor for a possible penalty because Semenyo might have tripped Estêvão."

VAR's take: Pawson had to figure out if the contact was just part of the play, like the ref thought, or if Semenyo fouled Estêvão. It was clear Estêvão tripped, but the question was how the contact started.

At first glance, it would be hard for Pawson to disagree with the ref because the main TV angle wasn't clear. But after checking out the sideline and behind views, Pawson saw that Semenyo stepped into Estêvão's path, making enough contact with his leg to cause him to trip.

Pawson told Barrott to check the monitor for a possible penalty. Barrott watched the replays, agreed, and gave Chelsea the penalty.

The call: It was a reasonable VAR call based on today's standards. But it's a borderline case.

Barrott seemed unsure of the monitor and needed some convincing from different angles.

A lot of the time, this kind of contact is just from players running normally, and someone goes down. To give a penalty, there really needs to be a clear foul by the defender. You could say that happened here, but it's a pretty low standard for VAR to get involved.

Chelsea 2-2 AFC Bournemouth

Referee: Sam Barrott

VAR: Craig Pawson

What: VAR check for a foul in the box

When: 11th minute

BREAKING: UNAI EMERY REVEALS THE REAL REASON BEHIND HIS COLD ARTETA HANDSHAKE SNUB NOW

Unai Emery explains why he skipped the post-match handshake as Arsenal’s 4-1 win ends Aston Villa’s 11-game streak at the Emirates.

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Emery snubs Arteta's handshake

Unai Emery said he didn't shake Mikel Arteta's hand right after Aston Villa lost at the Emirates Stadium since the Arsenal manager kept him waiting.

This loss stopped Villa's winning streak at 11 games, their first in almost two months.

Villa held their own in the first half, but Arsenal scored early in the second when Gabriel got to the ball before Emi Martinez on a corner.

Martin Zubimendi quickly made it 2-0, and Leandro Trossard scored a third goal a little after an hour had passed.

Soon after entering the pitch, Gabriel Jesus scored, making it 4-0. Ollie Watkins was able to respond by tapping in a goal late in the game after Donyell Malen's nice play.

After the game, Emery waited to shake Arteta's hand, but he went to the locker room since Arteta was still celebrating with his team.

It’s easy to see. I like to do things fast,” Emery said when asked about why he didn’t shake Arteta’s hand.

“I shake hands, then I go to the dressing room with my players and coaches. I was waiting.

“Arteta was busy with his coaches, so I went inside. It’s not a big deal for me.”

About the match, Emery commented, “We played great in the first half, and things were going our way. We had corners and defended well. We didn’t let them get a corner in the first half.

“We felt good, but we let in the first goal in the second half. Onana getting hurt didn’t help since he’s important for set pieces and in the midfield.

“We didn’t quit, and we kept playing hard. We scored one goal and almost scored more. Arsenal is the best team in the league and should win the title.

“I’m not sure which day it is since we’ve played Arsenal twice already, and we still have to play Nottingham. But I’m happy with our goals and how we're trying to attain them.

Premier League Standings

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