Gary Neville claims Arsenal need rivals Man Utd and Chelsea to “blow up” to finish in the top four this season

PUNDIT Gary Neville has predicted Arsenal won’t finish in the top four and Manchester United and Chelsea will need to ‘detonate’ to make it.

The ex-United star continues to have doubts about the Gunners and Mikel Arteta after they narrowly missed out on qualifying for the Champions League last season.

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Neville told Overlap: “I’m just worried about the experience of a young manager.

“To be fair, it’s not unfounded, the evidence is there.

“Last season, Arsenal should have finished in the top four. But in the end, the experience of Antonio Conte, the experience of the Tottenham Hotspur players [meant they did instead].

“In this game [Tottenham 3-0 Arsenal], Spurs’ experience that night, it was alarming how naive Arsenal were and how short they were. My concern is only about that.

“I know Chelsea and Manchester United have a bit of a problem where they stand and they could both explode, but I think both have to happen for Arsenal to finish in the top four.”

Arsenal have strengthened their squad this summer, gaining more experience from the likes of Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko, but the Sky Sports pundit suggests it won’t be enough.

The club are still on the hunt for more players after Arteta hinted yesterday that there is still a lot more business to be done.

Neville wasn’t exactly friendly to Chelsea either. He criticized owner Todd Boehly for the way he handled the transfer window, comparing it to a Football Manager game.

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The eight-time Premier League champions have also fired shots at his former club Man Utd.

He has slammed the transfer window as ’embarrassing’ and urged the club to ax Cristiano Ronaldo for the club’s benefit.

The Premier League season begins tonight as Arsenal take on Crystal Palace. Chelsea travel to Everton the next day. Man Utd then meet Brighton on Sunday.