It was left, as it often is with these things, to Jamie Carragher to sum it up best. The Liverpool legend has made something of a post-football career out of making Gary Neville the butt of the jokes and the 2005 Champions League winner wasted little time doing so once more after the Reds had secured their passage to the Carabao Cup final on Thursday night.

Having just seen his former club see off Tottenham with a convincing 4-0 victory at Anfield to turn around the 1-0 deficit from the first leg, Carragher - having praised Virgil van Dijk to the hilt and administering some uncomfortable truths for Tottenham - then took to Instagram to dish out some prime Neville-bashing.

Alongside a quote given by Neville this week that claimed Spurs would advance to the final at the expense of their hosts, Carragher simply tagged in his Sky Sports sparring partner and added a clown emoji for added effect. The message was clear.

READ MORE: Arne Slot all smiles at Liverpool press conference - but one issue is clearly playing on his mind

READ MORE: Richarlison night goes from bad to worse as fuming Tottenham man held back after Liverpool antics

For posterity, Neville's actual prediction, given earlier this week on his It's Called Soccer podcast alongside Carragher and host Rebecca Lowe, went: "I think Tottenham are going to get a draw. I don’t know how they’re going to get a draw at Anfield, but I feel like it’s going to be an emotional, mad night where something happens.

“[Ange] Postecoglou said earlier on in the season…I’m maybe not hanging my hat on what he’s saying entirely, but I’ve just got a feeling [for] Tottenham. I’ve got a feeling Tottenham could win the Carabao Cup this season.

“And I’ve got a feeling that, to be fair, they’re always going to have to come through a moment like this. It will be absolute Liverpool favourites, but I feel somehow Tottenham are going to get a draw by hook or by crook.”

It's not the first time Neville has seen his analysis backfire where Liverpool are concerned but the egg on the face has arrived much sooner this time than previously. The most jarring aspect of this latest one is how Neville's gazing into the crystal ball was so wrong, so quickly. The Mancunian is the most ubiquitous figure in Premier League coverage now week to week, with his three podcasts alongside weekend and Monday evening roles with Sky Sports.

As a result, it would stand to reason that the occasional pre-match shout does not come to pass but the biggest reason why Carragher is digitally referring to his former rival as a clown is likely the lack of impartiality in the analysis.

Claiming Manchester United would win the Premier League again before Liverpool did back in August 2019, just weeks after the Reds won the Champions League, has become a stick with which Neville is often beaten with.

"I can guarantee you as clear as day that Manchester United will win again," he said on Sky's Big Season Debate "They will win again, no problem. They will win the league again. They will probably win the league before Liverpool, in my opinion. And that is not being disrespectful but I think they will win the league before Liverpool."

That claim was up in smoke inside a year as Liverpool romped to the title by 18 points, winning it in record time with seven games to spare. United look further away from a title right now than they have in decades.

"I'm not nervous," Neville countered to Graeme Souness on the Anfield sidelines two years ago. "I've never been as confident coming here in nine years as a Manchester United fan. Honestly, this bunch [of United players] are tough."

A little over 90 minutes later and Neville's haunted expression was a unique blend of disgust and shame by what he had just witnessed as Liverpool ran out 7-0 winners on a historic Anfield afternoon.

His summer claim that his beloved Red Devils - who now languish 13th in the table - have a more rounded midfield than the one at Arne Slot's disposal has also proven to be woefully short of accuracy too.

While the former England international has established himself as one of the most astute analysts in the country since his playing career ended, there is an argument that he has now spread himself too thin with his deluge of weekly commitments.

Because when it comes to Liverpool, discourse is increasingly rooted in whims and wishes; vibes and hopes. There is no objectivity when discussing a team who many have argued are currently the best team in European football. Neville might as well be any other Manchester United fan with a microphone and a podcast at this point when it comes to all matters at Anfield.

Whether it is It's Called Soccer, The Overlap, the imaginatively named Gary Neville Podcast or the actual television coverage he is part of, barely a day goes by without Premier League supporters hearing a take from Neville on the hot topics and the big issues. And more often than not, he and Carragher remain appointment viewing.

But like the ageing veteran whose form has dipped, maybe there is an argument to be made for taking Neville out of the team now, even only for a bit. Pundit fatigue might be a very real problem. To paraphrase Carragher from earlier this season, leave the punditry before the punditry leaves you. A 'mini-retirement' perhaps, Gary?

There is no shame in being wide of the mark with the pre-match opinions but Neville might now be forced to wake up to exactly what is happening this season under Slot. He appears to be the last one to know.