Man Utd legend left red-faced over "depressed ambition" claim about Arsenal

Gary Neville's predictions on Arsenal's potential under Mikel Arteta have resurfaced after the Gunners' superb start to the 2022/23 season.

Prior to Tuesday's clash against Newcastle, Arsenal are seven points clear of second-placed Manchester City at the top of the Premier League table.

Arteta's side have lost just once in the league all season - a 3-1 defeat to Manchester United, in which they dominated play for substantial periods of the match.

They also have the second best defence in the league, with only Newcastle (11) conceding fewer than the 14 goals the Gunners have let in this term.

That has been largely due to the ever-present defensive quartet of goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale, William Saliba, Gabriel and Ben White, while Kieran Tierney and Oleksandr Zinchenko have also been highly impressive at left-back.

Summer signing Gabriel Jesus has made a huge impact, while Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Martin Odegaard have been providers and goalscorers. Thomas Partey and Granit Xhaka, meanwhile, have been valuable in midfield.

Speaking prior to the conclusion of the last campaign, however, where the Gunners finished in fifth, United legend Neville expressed doubt over how far Arsenal could go in future seasons.

Neville comments on Arsenal

Speaking on The Overlap in March 2022, Neville said: "I really like Mikel Arteta. I think he's a brilliant coach. I think the team is fantastic in terms of the young players they've got.

"But it's interesting when you're in a cycle of a club and you depress the ambition and have a significant period ofwhat would be failure, because you then get really happy about finishing fourth. I found myself saying that about Manchester United, but it's because of a depressed ambition.

"My concern is if Arsenal finish top four [last season] - which, to be fair, is 50/50, I still think there's a long way to go in that race - but if they finish fourth, that's in some ways as good as it gets.

"You've got Pep [Guardiola], [Jurgen] Klopp, Man United, Chelsea. Where can Arsenal go?

"They're not going to compete. Mikel Arteta is a brilliant coach. I love that we're seeing a team that he's getting the maximum out of. I can see exactly how he wants to play. We all can.

"But he gets to fourth, and if he was really hard about it, he'd probably say, 'Right, that's the best I can do there, I'm going now and getting my next job'."

Arsenal did miss out on finishing in the top four last season, with a mixed run of results at the end of the season ultimately costing them.

But they have channelled that disappointment into this campaign, so far confounding Neville's prediction and sitting on top of the division.