Gary Neville reveals Arsenal ‘bottle’ prediction as Premier League title race with Man City reaches crucial point

Neville has weighed in on the Premier League title race, offering his assessment of Arsenal’s credentials as they head into the second half of the season with Manchester City close behind. The Gunners sit top of the table at Christmas, but their narrow lead has once again sparked debate over whether they can finally see the job through.

Under Mikel Arteta, Arsenal have finished as runners-up in each of the last three league campaigns, twice losing out to City and once to Liverpool. That recent history has led to the familiar narrative that Arsenal struggle when the pressure intensifies, particularly in the spring months when City traditionally surge.

Despite that narrative, Neville believes this campaign feels different. While he accepts that City, led by Pep Guardiola, remain the benchmark in the run-in, he feels Arsenal now possess the resilience and maturity required to cope with the demands of a genuine title fight.

“City are dangerous,” Neville told Sky Sports. “They’ve got Haaland, and they’ve got Pep Guardiola. Somebody very special on the pitch, and somebody very special on the bench. That is the biggest threat to Arsenal, other than them getting injuries to, say, Declan Rice or a couple of other players.”

The former England defender was keen to stress that recent unconvincing performances should not be over-analysed. “Arsenal, I think, wouldn’t be too worried about the fact they’ve scraped through these last couple of games, that happens,” he said. “They weren’t great at Everton last night, but were they ever going to be amazing there?”

Neville then addressed the defining question of Arsenal’s season. “I think Arsenal are in a good position,” he added. “What will be really interesting is how they handle it when we get to March, April, May. That is where it’ll get really interesting. I feel like going into February or March, Arsenal will extend their lead, is my honest view. I think they’ll get back to five, six points again.

“I feel it's their year. They were always going to get closed down a little bit by City. They might be completely and utterly embarrassed if Pep Guardiola and Haaland and Co. could go and win the league again this year. City fans are getting confident. They’re thinking it's their year, they’re thinking ‘here we go, we’re close, they’re going to bottle it come March, April, May’, but I’m not sure this Arsenal team will bottle it this time.”

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Neville’s confidence in Arsenal is notable given his past experiences of backing them during previous title races. On several occasions, he has tipped Arteta’s side to go all the way, only for late-season stumbles to undermine those predictions and reinforce the “bottling it” narrative.

This time, however, Neville sees signs of growth. Arsenal have continued to collect points even when performances have dipped, a trait that often separates champions from challengers. Their ability to manage difficult away fixtures and grind out narrow wins has impressed the former United captain.

Neville also believes Arsenal are better equipped mentally than in previous seasons. He feels the scars of past failures may have hardened rather than weakened the squad, allowing them to approach decisive moments with greater composure and belief.

While Neville accepts Manchester City will close the gap, as they almost always do, he does not expect Arsenal to crumble under the pressure this time around. The Gunners will be up against Crystal Palace in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals on Tuesday before they take on Brighton and Aston Villa to close out their 2025 calendar year.

They will then face a crucial January when they will face off against Bournemouth, Liverpool and Manchester United in three clashes that could make or break their season.