Sky Sports pundit Neville lashed out at Arsenal left-back Oleksandr Zinchenko after the game, arguing that Arteta should have been left on the bench. In addition, the Manchester United legend has a hunch that Arsenal's "Christmas curse has started again".
The Ukraine international has been criticised for being directly responsible for Liverpool winger Mohamed Salah's equaliser at Anfield, as he allowed the Liverpool winger to get the chance to score with ease. Throughout the game, Zinchenko's performance was a disaster, as his left flank became the Reds' main attack, and Salah was in the middle of nobody's defence.
At the start of the second half, Zinchenko played the ball straight to Salah in a dangerous position when Liverpool tried to press high up the pitch, the second low-level mistake in two minutes. Luckily for Zinchenko, Salah's next pass was not at the feet of centre-forward Gakpo and the pass was intercepted. Otherwise it would have been another fatal blow for Arsenal, but Sky Sports pundit Neville has not forgotten the low-level mistake.
Speaking on Sky Sports' syndicated commentary, Neville said: "Arsenal have better options on the bench. Zinchenko should have been pressed to the bench, conceded the ball twice at the back, what was he doing?He's a liability. ”
The Manchester United legend then made another shocking statement: "This game gave me a bad feeling that Arsenal's Christmas curse was about to start again. ”Last season, when the Premier League battle between Arsenal and Manchester City heated up and the Gunners led by five points, Neville was firmly on Manchester City's side. He believes that Arsenal do not have the temperament to win the title, and will be overwhelmed by the intense schedule and pressure after Christmas, thus becoming the public enemy of Arsenal fans. Then in the end, Neville made a fool of himself and the Gunners collapsed in the final moments, which became a stepping stone for Manchester City to be crowned treble-winning.
Surprisingly, Arsenal fans have also shown the same views as Neville on social media, criticizing the Ukrainian defender as a leakhole in the team. The following is an excerpt from the fan's message:
Fan A said: "Zinchenko is a burden on the team. Arsenal won't win the title because of his major tournament matches. ”
Fan B added: "Sell that damn clown Zinchenko!."”
Fan C said: "Zinchenko is about to give birth to another title, and that is the collapse champion.... ”
Fan D claimed: "Zinchenko's suitable position should be in midfield. This lie that he is a defender must end. He is by no means a defender and his destruction at the back is deadly. ”
Fan E wrote on the team's official social media: "Except for our left side, our right side is very solid. Zinchenko was very bad, but so was Martinelli. ”
As for the game itself, it ended 1-1, which means Arsenal will be at the top of the Premier League table for Christmas for the second season in a row. However, what is alarming is that Arsenal is also the team that has won the Christmas title in the history of the Premier League and has missed out on the Premier League title in the end.