Gary Neville's £5000 bet with Jamie Carragher resurfaces after Man Utd defeat including bold Roy Keane prediction

A backstage charity bet between Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher is set to lighten Neville's wallet by £5000 at the end of the 2024/25 Premier League season.

The Reds are top of the league and 16 points above Manchester United with a game in hand after the postponement of Saturday's Merseyside Derby, putting Carragher in pole position to win a £5000 charity bet with his rival pundit.

Neville and Carragher revealed their wager on Friday Night Football after Man Utd's 1-0 opening weekend win over Fulham.

"Me and Carra had a £5000 bet for charity," said Neville at Old Trafford in August. "Liverpool are going to finish above United, United are going to finish above Liverpool."

At least Neville, hamstrung by his loyalty to Man Utd and cruelly reminded of his imminent donation by a user on X after Man Utd's home defeat by Nottingham Forest, put his money where his mouth was before the Red Devils had played a game.

Sky Sports anchor Kelly Cates and fellow pundit Roy Keane witnessed the wager before the Fulham game, after which Neville put his former captain on the spot by asking him who would win.

"I think United," came the inevitable but hesitant reply from Keane. Having seen them in action that night, it's doubtful he'd have staked £5000 on his prediction.

Gary Neville is six months away from making a significant charity donation (Image: Getty)

Forest's pulsating 3-2 win over Man Utd was Ruben Amorim's first defeat in charge and left his team in 13th position in the Premier League, closer in terms of points to Southampton at the bottom than Liverpool at the top. It was their second consecutive loss after an unbeaten run of four Premier League matches.

Man Utd have won just five times in the league this season and face neighbours Manchester City next weekend. They're already more than five wins behind the league leaders before fixtures against Bournemouth, Wolves and Newcastle complete the first half of the season.

Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes scored in defeat against Forest (Image: Getty)

Neville's faint hopes of holding on to his cash aren't helped by the Old Trafford club being in fresh turmoil off the pitch. Sporting director Dan Ashworth has agreed a deal to leave his position after just five months, following reports of a transition into the role that was anything but smooth.