SHOCK REVEALED: WHY GARY NEVILLE IS OFFICIALLY "DRAWING A LINE" THROUGH ASTON VILLA
Gary Neville rules Aston Villa out of the title race, predicting a two-horse battle between Arsenal and Man City.
Gary Neville thinks the Premier League title is between two teams, counting Aston Villa out. Despite Unai Emery's team being only three points behind Arsenal after 17 games, Neville, who used to play for Manchester United, doesn't think they can win.
Emery's team has won seven straight Premier League games, including one against Arsenal. But Neville thinks Arsenal will win the title this time, even though they were top at Christmas.
Neville says Manchester City is Arsenal's biggest competition for the title. He thinks Pep Guardiola and Erling Haaland are very special and will make it hard for Arsenal.
He also said that if Declan Rice gets injured, it could really hurt Arsenal in the second half of the season. He also thinks it's important for Arsenal to keep playing well in April and May.
"I'm only looking at the top two teams," Neville said after Villa beat Manchester United. Aston Villa is doing well and deserves respect, but they won't win the league.
I'd be shocked if they did. Arsenal and Man City would have to have a lot of problems for Aston Villa to win.
The league is weird, except for the top two. I don't know what to make of the other teams.
Man City is obviously [very good]. They have Erling Haaland, an amazing player on the field, and Pep Guardiola, an amazing coach on the bench.
That's the biggest threat to Arsenal, besides injuries to Rice and a couple of other players. I'm not too worried about Arsenal winning some games by a small margin. It's going to happen this season.
They weren't great at Everton, but were they ever going to be amazing there? I think they're doing well.
It will be interesting to see how they do in March, April, and May.
I think they'll increase their lead in February and March and get a five- or six-point lead again. I think it's their year, even though the other teams are getting closer.
I might be wrong because I know City fans are feeling confident and think they're close and Arsenal will mess it up. But I don't think that will happen this time.
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.
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.
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.