Jamie Carragher and Gary Neville selected their Premier League teams of the season so far, as we have passed the halfway point in the campaign and approach the new year.
In light of their shocking season so far, Neville unsurprisingly did not include any Man United players in his XI, while three Liverpool stars featured, and one Man City player made the cut.
Meanwhile, Carragher also chose three Liverpool players but there was no room for any of Pep Guardiola’s strugglers in his team.
Both pundits agreed on seven picks: Virgil van Dijk, Ryan Gravenberch, Moises, Caicedo, Mohamed Salah, Cole Palmer, Matheus Cunha and Chris Wood.
The only point of contention between the two was their choice in between the sticks and their back line.
Neville handed City’s Josko Gvardiol a spot in his side, much to Carragher’s discontent.
Gary Neville selected City’s Josko Gvardiol in his Premier League team of the season so far
Jamie Carragher disputed the selection, but agreed on seven of the other picks in Neville’s XI
Both pundits agreed on the same midfield and attacking players, but argued over the defence
‘What games have you watched? Are you serious? Are you serious?!’ exclaimed the Liverpool legend.
‘Yeah, I’m serious. To be honest with you, left back I was struggling with badly. It was the position that I was most struggling with,’ Neville said.
‘Obviously!’ Carragher added.
Neville completed his defence with Trent Alexander-Arnold, William Saliba and Van Dijk.
On Alexander-Arnold, the former right back said: ‘His defending has improved. There’s more intensity to his defending, I’m not saying it’s perfect, I don’t think it will be.
‘He has a far better attitude to his defending right now than I’ve seen previously. These last 12 months he’s improved enormously.’
Carragher instead opted for Nottingham Forest’s Ola Aina on the right flank, arguing that he has been a vital piece in their drastic improvement since last season.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s side lie second in the table, a stark difference compared to the 2023-24 campaign, where they finished 17th and avoided relegation by just six points.
Neville hailed Trent Alexander-Arnold’s defensive improvements under Arne Slot this season
Carragher preferred Ola Aina at right back, who has started all 19 games for Nottingham Forest
‘Every time I watch him he does a job on both sides,’ Carragher said.
‘Every time I watch him, I do look at him and think he could play for a team that expects to be in the Champions League every season.’
Each pundit chose a different option to partner Van Dijk at centre half. Neville argued that Saliba is the second-best in the position, as the Frenchman anchors Arsenal’s defence, which have conceded the fewest goals this season (16).
‘He just edged it. Arsenal have a good defensive record,’ he said.
‘Saliba, it hasn’t been the best start to the season for Arsenal, but defensively they’re still strong and he’s still outstanding. He’s the second-best centre back in the league.’
Meanwhile, Carragher heaped more praise on Forest’s defence, which have conceded the third-fewest goals in the league this season (19), and selected Nikola Milenkovic.
‘He’s like the Van Dijk of Nottingham Forest,’ Carragher said.
‘I was very close to putting in Gabriel for the defensive record but also because he’s almost the most talked about defender in the league because of what he does at set-pieces.
Neville argued that Saliba is second only to Van Dijk among Premier League centre backs
‘I just feel like what Nottingham Forest do defensively, I know Gary went for the goalkeeper, the actual protection of what those defenders do in front of him.
In goal, Carragher selected Arsenal’s David Raya, while Neville preferred Forest’s Matz Sels, who has logged the most clean sheets this season (eight).
