Gary Neville predicts demolition job in Liverpool vs Man City, with shock result to shake up title race

Gary Neville has delivered his ‘gut feeling’ prediction ahead of Manchester City’s all-important visit to Liverpool on Sunday.

Man City have won four Premier League titles on the bounce and six of the last seven. But having tasted defeat in five of their last six matches across all competitions, Pep Guardiola’s all-conquering side look increasingly incapable of defending their crown.

City already trail runaway leaders Liverpool by eight points and defeat at Anfield on Sunday would stretch that gap to 11. Pending other results around them, Man City could finish the weekend outside of the top four.

Speaking on The Overlap US, pundit Gary Neville offered his prediction on the outcome of the crunch clash on Merseyside.

While Neville warned City have proven they can never be written off, his gut feeling is Liverpool will ‘run all over’ the champions and secure all three points.

Such an outcome – according to Roy Keane – would effectively end Man City’s chances of retaining their title and put the focus on a Liverpool vs Arsenal title race.

“I think Liverpool versus Manchester City is really interesting,” began Neville. “I’m doing the game and can’t wait for it because there is a lot riding on it. I’ve never seen City look as vulnerable in the Pep Guardiola era.

“Jamie Redknapp mentioned this and I thought it was a really good point, where he said that the pressure, all of a sudden, in this fixture is on Liverpool in the sense that everyone will expect Liverpool to win because everyone is beating City!

“What will that do to Liverpool? I think Liverpool will win. Looking at City at this moment in time, when you feel that intensity and passion that Liverpool have, I think they could run all over them is my gut feeling.

“But there is that Pep Guardiola, these group of players have achieved a lot in this last four, five years, you could never write them off.

“Is this the day that basically they’re poked that much that they stir and something happens? It could be but my feeling is that Liverpool will win this game.

“But the pressure, I think, is on Liverpool to win, more than it is on City to win because of what has happened.

“It’s mad to think that City have lost all those games in a row, it’s intriguing and I’m looking forward to it already.”

Gary Neville identifies biggest Man City issue

Neville then looked back at City’s 4-0 humbling at the hands of Tottenham before identifying their lack of legs and energy as their biggest issue.

Losing Rodri in central midfield is unquestionably a huge blow, though his various replacements (Mateo Kovacic, Ilkay Gundogan) have been criticised for being too slow.

“It was spectacular, it was absolutely spectacular,” added the Manchester United legend.

“I’ve been going to City now for six, seven, eight, nine, ten years and, for most of that, just thinking: it’s a foregone conclusion, in fact it has become a little bit boring. You’re basically looking one way during a game because they’ve got 75 per cent possession.

“But something is very different this season and, on Saturday, I have to say I expected City to win, I expected them to reset after the international break, I expected them to be really serious and Pep Guardiola to have said ‘Come on, we’re going to go for five in a row’, and it’s not there.

“The legs aren’t there, the energy, a bit of the quality as well is missing, but there’s something not right.

“It’s good for the league and good for us to see as well, I think, but Tottenham were spectacular, they were brilliant.”

READ MORE: Five reasons for Trent Alexander-Arnold to stay at Liverpool vs five reasons to leave for Real Madrid

Latest Liverpool news – Kelleher, Mac Allister, Alexander-Arnold

In other news, former Reds winger Steve McManaman has declared Caoimhin Kelleher must now be considered Alisson Becker’s equal.

On the back of saving Kylian Mbappe’s penalty and keeping a clean sheet against Real Madrid, McManaman stated: “He is not a number two. He is an equal number one. He is fantastic.”

Elsewhere, Alexis Mac Allister – who won the man of the match award against Real Madrid – was compared with Italy legend Andrea Pirlo by Rio Ferdinand.

“I thought Mac Allister was one of the best players on the pitch,” said Ferdinand. “It was a common theme, run from deep, he was floating that ball almost Pirlo-like at times.”

Finally, Marca have reported Liverpool and Real Madrid officials discussed the future of Trent Alexander-Arnold during a meeting prior to Wednesday night’s clash. The outcome of the meeting has not yet been divulged.