"There's a bit of science behind it" - Gary Neville changes his top-four prediction after watching Manchester United vs Arsenal

Former Manchester United captain Gary Neville has made a bold change in his 2025/26 Premier League top-four prediction after watching his former team in action against Arsenal. Ruben Amorim's men were condemned to a 1-0 defeat in the opening game of their season at Old Trafford last Sunday as Riccardo Calafiori pounced on an error from Altay Bayindir to set the Gunners on course for the win.

Despite failing to secure a point, Manchester United showed flashes of improvement throughout the game. Summer signings Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo left their mark on the game, with the former reminding everyone of his menacing ability to drive forward with the ball.

Buoyed by his team's encouraging performance, Amorim even went on to claim that Manchester United have now proved that they can win against any opponent in the Premier League. Notably, the Red Devils finished 15th last season - their worst ever campaign. To put things to perspective, it was also the season where Manchester United registered the fewest points (42), fewest goals (44), fewest wins (11) and the most number of losses (18).

Amid the positivity surrounding their performance against Arsenal, Neville has now decided to change his top-four prediction for the 2025/26 Premier League season. The eight-time Premier League winner-turned-pundit believes his former team can now finish in fourth-place behind Arsenal, Manchester City and Liverpool.

Neville pointed out that he noticed something similar with Chelsea last season, when the Blues lost to Manchester City in their opening despite playing well. He feels Manchester United could go on a similar run in the Premier League and finish in the top-four like Chelsea last season.

Neville said during 'Monday Night Football' on Sky Sports:

“It’s a late change but I think there’s a bit of science [behind it].

“Last season, I remember watching Chelsea on the first game of the season and, at that point, no one had Chelsea finishing in the top four I watched them against City and I thought: ‘They are not bad, that will do damage this season, that’s a good team’.

Neville also admitted that he believes Manchester United will rope-in a new goalkeeper before the summer transfer deadline. In his opinion, the addition of a new custodian and them being free of the demands of European football could work in their favour.

“When I watched United [against Arsenal], I thought the performance was very good and I think they will get a goalkeeper. I’m banking on that – they will not make the mistake of not getting a goalkeeper in.

“When you bring a goalkeeper in, and you have those players up front with that front line and you have no European football, I think they will surprise people.

“Last week I had them finishing sixth to eighth, but I thought the performance was really good and I genuinely liked it.

“They were high energy… and it was a dominant performance against a top-three team. When United have beaten a top-three team in the last five, six, or seven years, it has been smash and grabs on the counterattack.

“Yesterday was a loss, but I value performances and if they perform like that, they will win a lot of football matches.”

Manchester United next face Fulham in the Premier League on Sunday, August 24.

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Ruben Amorim defends Altay Bayindir despite error that led to Manchester United loss

Manchester United v Arsenal - Premier League - Source: Getty

Altay Bayindir was the subject of criticism after his mistake led to Manchester United conceding the only goal in their 1-0 loss against Arsenal at Old Trafford. The Turkish shot-stopper was overpowered by the presence of William Saliba during a corner-kick, and could only get a weak hand on Declan Rice's delivery into the area.

Riccardo Calafiori pounced on the opportunity by nodding home his header from close range at the far post. The need for a new goalkeeper had become a pressing issue among the Red Devils' faithful since last season, and the error from Bayindir has only made matters worse.

However, head coach Ruben Amorim publicly defended Bayindir after the loss to Arsenal. He pointed out how Saliba appeared to have blocked the goalkeeper in the build-up to the Gunners' goal.

Amorim told reporters:

“If you watch the ball, [the opponent] is allowed to do a lot of things at the corners. “We need to do the same. But when you touch that way [block], the goalkeeper needs to [be able to] use his hands to catch the ball, not push players [out of the way].

"He chooses to push players and let the ball pass. But again, it’s the rules. If it’s allowed, we need to do the same thing.”

Notably, Bayindir produced arguably his best performance for the Red Devils in their FA Cup third round win over Arsenal last season. The 27-year-old famously denied Martin Odegaard and Kai Havertz from the penalty spot in regulation time and the shootout, respectively, to emerge as an unlikely hero.