Gary Neville Football Expert & Columnist @GNev2 Sunday 6 September 2026 20:58, UK Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Despite losing 2-1 to Arsenal at The Emirates, Gary Neville was full of praise for Chelsea and their improvement under Xabi Alonso and suggests that fans should be excited about the future at Stamford Bridge. Alonso suffered his first defeat as Chelsea manager at the hands of Premier League champions Arsenal, despite scoring first after just 77 seconds through Morgan Rogers. Chelsea have now conceded seven goals in three Premier League games – and Neville says the Blues may need to sign more players in their defensive line in order to reach a new level. No blockbuster signing but Arsenal’s attack still finding another levelArsenal 2-1 Chelsea – Match report and analysisAs it happened | Teams | Stats | Watch FREE PL highlightsGot Sky?
Watch Premier League games LIVE on your phone📱Not got Sky? Latest Sky Sports deals or stream Premier League games with no contract📺 , which may be using cookies and other technologies. To show you this content, we need your permission to use cookies. You can use the buttons below to amend your preferences to enable cookies or to allow those cookies just once.
You can change your settings at any time via the Privacy Options. cookies. To view this content you can use the button below to allow cookies for this session only. He told the Gary Neville Podcast: “The back three, when I watch them, it’s almost like their legs aren’t connected to their hips and the hips aren’t connected to their bodies. It’s almost like they’re a bit all over the place.”I look at the sort of best back three probably that I ever saw which was the Juventus and Italy back three with Andrea Barzagli, Leonard Bonnuci and Giorgio Chiellini – three real giants.
“They worked together as a three, they knew how to position themselves, they were great in the air, they knew how to push up and when to drop deeper. They organised the people in front of them. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player FREE TO WATCH: Highlights from Chelsea’s defeat to Arsenal “Maybe Chelsea will need to actually recruit more players as they move on through the next year or two with Xabi Alonso. He’s done a lot already.
He’s just needs to get a back three that feels solid. They don’t look solid, they look like they’re a little bit all over the place. So that that’s the main thing right now.” Also See: Got Sky? Watch now on the Sky Sports app Not got Sky?
Get instant access with no contract Live Premier League table Premier League fixtures Neville did praise the rest of the Chelsea team though – including wing-backs Pedro Neto and Jorell Hato, and says they have a great midfield and forward line if they can keep their key players fit. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player During Arsenal’s 2-1 win over London rivals Chelsea, England midfielders Declan Rice and Morgan Rogers squared up to each other after Rogers was unhappy with an alleged trip from Rice. As a result, Neville believes Chelsea will at least finish third – and could strive for second place on the basis of their start under Alonso.”I think they can finish second – third is the absolute lowest I can see Chelsea finishing,” said Neville. “So that’s really good.
If you said that to me a year ago, I couldn’t see where this project was going.”I’m as positive as I have been for three four five years about Chelsea because I think they’re going in the right direction. It’s not perfect, they were always going to be [against Arsenal]. I wouldn’t have expected them to win – but that was as good as I felt they could have done in the game.”They can go home tonight thinking: ‘yeah we can take that confidence out of that defeat’. That doesn’t sound right does it, when you’re at sort of the elite level?”But I think that those Chelsea fans over there in the corner of the ground that have travelled from Stamford Bridge will be thinking: ‘yeah I can buy into what I’m seeing.
I like this.'”Alonso: We need to address issuesAlonso admitted Chelsea need to find solutions to their defensive problems but stressed that it will take time to develop their solidity having only taken the job in May.”My priority is to win games. Normally you win games when you don’t concede many goals.”It’s something we need to address. We need to be tighter, more clinical, more balanced. But this takes time.”We wanted to compete, win here.
We knew we were not that far but it went their way. We could have scored for 2-1 and you never know what happens.”The result is the result; I can’t argue against that. But we need to take it, not happy. It hurts.
Disappointed for sure. This is our first defeat.”I want to compete in the best possible way to win. Today we didn’t want to sit deep from the first minute. We want to be active, protagonists in the pressing.
We have done many right things. We need to make it better, learn from them.”When you play at the top level, we want to be as efficient in all the phases of the game. But this is where we are.”It’s game three or four for us in a new phase starting with Chelsea. I’m pleased with the spirit and attitude of the players.
They worked hard.” Play Super 6 to win £1m! Play Super 6 for a chance to win £1m! Enter for free.
