Advertisement
Getty

Neville slams 'absolutely disgusting' criticism of Sterling by England fans

Neville is not happy with how the Man City forward has been treated by supporters and parts of the media.

GARY NEVILLE HAS hit out at the criticism of England attacker Raheem Sterling, calling it “absolutely disgusting”.

The Manchester City winger has come under fire by pundits and supporters, even before the World Cup started, when his choice of tattoos were questioned by British tabloids.

Former Manchester United and England defender Neville feels that the criticism is unwarranted and believes that some of the comments he saw on Twitter at half-time during England’s 2-0 win over Sweden were completely uncalled for.

Sterling missed a one-on-one chance to score for the Three Lions, but despite being one of England’s greatest attacking threats in the game, fans singled him out on social media, which upset Neville.

“The actual treatment at half-time of him across social media was absolutely disgusting, and isn’t representative of the performance he put in,” Neville told ITV.

“To run in-behind [Andreas] Granqvist all that time, he kept getting in and getting in. OK, we didn’t have the cherry on the cake, the goal, where all of a sudden you’re a hero, but it was a brilliant performance.”

Criticism of Sterling has continued from many pundits, with former Wales international Vinnie Jones the latest to attack the Premier League winner’s performances.

“I know there’s been a lot of criticism for Sterling,” Jones told talkSPORT.

“He is getting in all the right positions, but sometimes you look at Sterling and you think, if he didn’t have that pace he’d be playing for Exeter or someone.”

However, Sterling has also received support from David Beckham, who joined Neville in defending the 23-year-old.

Beckham admitted he didn’t see the negative social media comments about Sterling, but agreed with his former United team-mate that the criticism was not justified.

“Haven’t seen this but whatever it is it’s wrong,” Beckham wrote on Instagram.

“We are in the semi final of a World Cup. Every player deserves to be applauded. We as a country are united and behind the team.”

The42 is on Instagram! Tap the button below on your phone to follow us!

Brazil Football Federation condemns online racial abuse towards Fernandinho

‘Welcome back’ – Barcelona midfielder Paulinho returns to Chinese Super League

Author
The 42
View 17 comments
Close
17 Comments
This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic. Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy here before taking part.
Leave a Comment
    Submit a report
    Please help us understand how this comment violates our community guidelines.
    Thank you for the feedback
    Your feedback has been sent to our team for review.

    Leave a commentcancel