Gary Neville makes Arsenal v Manchester City prediction and sends warning to Premier League title rivals

Gary Neville believes Arsenal will prove too strong for Manchester City if they produce their best form but has warned both clubs there is the potential to ‘damaged’ during the Premier League title clash.

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Premier League title rivals Arsenal and Man City meet for the first time in the league this season on Wednesday night as Pep Guardiola’s defending champions make the trip to north London.

Mikel Arteta’s side enjoyed a near-flawless first-half to the Premier League campaign, amassing 50 points from their first 19 games to put huge pressure on Manchester City.

But Arsenal’s slight wobble – they lost to Everton earlier in the month and failed to beat Brentford at home on Saturday – has allowed Man City to close the gap to just three points ahead of Wednesday’s meeting.

Neville says the upcoming clash will not determine the outcome of the Premier League title race but insists both clubs have the chance to inflict a major psychological blow on their rivals.

Manchester City have not been at their scintillating best this season – dropping points in almost a third of their league games – but produced a convincing performance to beat Aston Villa 3-1 last time out.

‘We’re nowhere near a run-in yet and there’s been a lot of hype over the title in recent weeks,’ former Manchester United and England defender Neville said on his Sky Sports podcast.

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‘Ahead of this game I’m hearing what Sir Alex Ferguson would say all those years ago. I’m not sure Pep Guardiola or Mikel Arteta are wired in the same way but Fergie would be getting right into us.

‘He would be getting right into us in the next 48