Gary Neville has delivered a blunt assessment of Chelsea’s title ambitions, insisting the club remains far from competing with Arsenal despite recent improvements under Enzo Maresca.
Chelsea’s 3-1 defeat to Leeds United left the team nine points behind Arsenal and raised fresh questions about their consistency as winter fixtures intensify.
Neville believes the squad still lacks key components needed to compete at the highest level, even though he expects them to secure a top-four finish.
Neville said: “I’ve never bought into this, ‘Chelsea are going to challenge for the title’.”
He argued that the Premier League landscape remains unstable, with only Arsenal showing sustained elite form.
Neville added that while Chelsea might push for third or second place, they do not have the goalkeeper, centre-backs, or strikers needed to mount a serious title charge.
He said: “They haven’t got the goalkeeper for it, they haven’t got the centre-backs for it, and they haven’t got the centre-forwards for it.”
Neville criticised Chelsea’s slow and passive approach at Elland Road, arguing that the young lineup struggled to cope with Leeds’ intensity.
He said the team circulated the ball too slowly and repeatedly passed backwards, allowing Leeds to press aggressively and dictate the early stages.
Neville explained that Chelsea lacked the strength and physicality needed to withstand Leeds’ pressure and were ultimately “out-muscled, out-fought, out-run.”
He argued that Maresca’s tactical decisions and squad rotation contributed to the performance issues.
Neville emphasized that title-winning teams must withstand the grueling December-to-February period, where fixture congestion and cold conditions test a squad’s durability.
He said Chelsea do not yet have the physical profile required to survive that phase and maintain momentum.
Despite acknowledging the club’s significant investment and promising talent, he reiterated that the squad remains incomplete.
Neville said Chelsea fans know what a title-winning team looks like and that this version does not match past championship sides.
While harsh in his assessment, Neville concluded that Chelsea should still secure a Champions League position due to their underlying technical quality and depth.
However, he stressed that expectations must remain realistic and that claiming Chelsea are contenders is premature given the gaps in the squad’s spine.
He said the team remains “nowhere near” the level required to challenge the league’s best.
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