Gary Neville proclaims Arsenal quartet are ALL better than Liverpool counterparts – it’s a ‘big problem’ for Arne Slot | OneFootball

Gary Neville believes four Arsenal stars are all superior to their direct counterparts at Liverpool, and it’s a ‘big problem’ for Arne Slot.

Arsenal are the bookies’ favourites to lift their first Premier League title since the Invincibles season of 2003/04. Their defence is their greatest strength and for good reason, William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes continue to earn universal acclaim.

But according to Gary Neville, Arsenal’s quality and depth in both full-back positions cannot be overlooked. And in his mind, the four Mikel Arteta can usually choose from are ALL superior to their counterparts at Liverpool.

That means that in his mind at least, none of Jeremie Frimpong, Conor Bradley, Milos Kerkez or Andy Robertson would even make the bench at Arsenal.

Speaking on the latest episode of The Overlap, Neville said: “When I was watching Arsenal vs Atletico, I was watching [Myles] Lewis-Skelly, obviously Jurrien Timber played, you’ve got Ben White and [Riccardo] Calafiori, I thought all Arsenal’s full-backs are better than Liverpool’s, all four of them, that’s a big problem for Liverpool. Timber is the best full-back in the league at the moment.”

Neville went on to claim Timber is not far off matching Real Madrid’s Dani Carvajal who he believes is the world’s best full-back right now.

He added: “I think Timber is almost, in my mind, I would class as being… do you know the guy that plays for Real Madrid? Carvajal.

“For me, he’s the best. And I think Timber’s the nearest to him at the moment, I see, in terms of being able to do that bit and do that bit, do the forward bit well enough, but definitely cuts everything off down his side.”

Worryingly for Liverpool, Neville is correct

It’s inarguable Arsenal’s defence as a unit is vastly superior to Liverpool’s right now. The Gunners have conceded a measly three goals in 12 matches across all competitions this season. Liverpool, meanwhile, have shipped an eye-opening 18 goals in 13 matches.

We’re almost at the point where scoring one goal almost guarantees Arsenal three points. The Reds, meanwhile, have only kept two clean sheets all season. One came against newly-promoted Burnley who were reduced to 10 men late on, while the other curiously came against Arsenal.

Specifically on Neville’s claim about Timber being the best full-back in the league, he may well be right.

Robertson was generally viewed as the league’s best left-back up until his standards dramatically dipped last season. Kerkez has looked like a fish out of water since arriving at Anfield.

You can argue all day about whether Trent Alexander-Arnold was the best right-back in the league prior to his defection to Real Madrid.

Alexander-Arnold’s defending has never been his strong suit, but no full-back in England could affect the game so positively from an offensive standpoint too.

In any case, Alexander-Arnold is now warming the bench in Madrid and neither Frimpong – who is now sidelined with a hamstring injury – or Bradley have made the shirt their own since.

In truth, there really is a sizeable gulf in class between Arsenal and Liverpool’s respective full-back groups right now.

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