LAST UPDATE | 14 Aug 2019
GARY NEVILLE BELIEVES Manchester United will rediscover some of their success of old in the not-too-distant future and claims his former club will “probably win the league before Liverpool”, whose talisman Mohamed Salah he ‘guarantees’ will leave Anfield in the next 12 months.
Neville also stated his belief that United’s owners, the Glazer family, will not be forced from their position by way of protest, and suggested fans’ dissatisfaction with the Americans only rears its head when the club isn’t winning trophies.
Speaking at a fans event for SkyBet alongside his fellow pundit Jamie Carragher, Neville backed United’s transfer business over the summer, and indicated that the loss of players such as Ander Herrera and Romelu Lukaku wouldn’t be detrimental in the long run.
“I don’t disagree with what they’ve done this summer,” he said. “Manchester United were never going to get the best player in the world, or [any of] the top 10 best players in the world this summer. They weren’t going to come.
“I think if [Pablo] Dybala had given them really good signs — ‘I want to come play for United’ — I think they would have signed him.
“You’ve heard my opinion on Ed Woodward the last 12 months. I do think United need a real football expertise in the boardroom who can control recruitment; I do think now, to be fair, it looks like they’ve made better decisions this summer.
“Losing [Ander] Herrera, losing [Marouane] Fellaini, getting [Romelu] Lukaku out of the club — Lukaku was 105 kilograms. He admitted himself he was overweight.
“I think there are three or four players that the club would like to get rid of, I think there are three or four players that Ole [Gunnar Solksjaer] would like to get rid of. I think getting rid of them all at once, though, would weaken the club and weaken the team for this season, so I think he’s getting rid of them one at a time. He’s bleeding them out of the club.
You’re not crying over Fellaini leaving. Herrera, to be fair, huffed and puffed, but there’s loads of him around — there’s loads of Ander Herreras around. He’s nothing special.
“If you said to me put [Scott] McTominay in the midfield for 30 games this season, would he do much worse than Herrera? I don’t think he would.
“Liverpool, City, Tottenham — all of these clubs have had poor recruitment policies over the last 35 years at times. So, United are going through one at the moment.
Eventually, they’ll stumble upon the right recruitment system, they’ll get a great manager — hopefully that’s Ole — and they’ll start to win again. That’s going to happen. I can guarantee you as clear as day, Manchester United will win again.
“They’ll win again, no problem,” Neville continued. “They’ll win a league. They’ll probably win a league before Liverpool, in my opinion, and that’s not being disrespectful — they’ll probably win the league before Liverpool.
They’re closer than you think, and it’s not as bad as you think. That’s always the way it is. And Liverpool… [Mohamed] Salah’s going to leave in the next 12 months — I can see it already. Salah will leave — he will, I absolutely guarantee you. I can see it, you can feel it, you can smell it.
Neville has faced criticism from a large portion of United supporters for not expressing opposition to the Glazers, who were the subject of widespread protest on social media when United failed to land a number of high-profile signings towards the end of the summer window.
The former right-back represented the club for six more trophy-laden years following the Americans’ takeover in 2005, and while he understands fans’ dissatisfaction with their handling of club business, he also remembers a significant period of time for which on-field success overshadowed those same fans’ contempt for their club owners.
“You’re never going to change the owners through social media,” Neville said.
What the owners withstood between 2004 and 2006 during that green and gold campaign — the setting-up of FC United, the disenchantment… They could withstand anything. They’re not going to blink about something trending. They’re not going to blink.
“We’re not going to change the owners by social media, we’re not going to change the owners by saying ‘leave’ — it’s not going to happen. I think Liverpool are in a similar situation with the owners, I genuinely do. The fact of the matter is at the moment, it’s quiet because Liverpool are winning — they’ve got a great side and they’ve got a great manager.
It can change very quickly. It went quiet for the Glazers under Sir Alex Ferguson from 2006 when we started winning the league and the European Cups.
In a separate interview, meanwhile, Neville dismissed the prospect of a return to coaching after admitting he has no desire to be on the training pitch.
The ex-Manchester United right-back had an ill-fated spell at Valencia in 2015-16, where he was sacked after just four months, and spent four years as part of Roy Hodgson’s England backroom coaching staff between 2012 and 2016.
However, the 44-year-old says he is much happier focusing on his TV punditry work and business interests, which include his co-ownership of League Two side Salford City with fellow members of United’s ‘Class of 92′ including brother Phil, David Beckham, Nicky Butt, Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes.
“There is not one single part of me that wakes up and thinks ‘I want to be on the training field’,” Neville told BBC Radio 4′s Today programme.
I had my foray into management in Valencia and it was probably one of the best learning curves I have ever had. It was a clip around the ear, sometimes you need one in life.
“I’m more interested in the board room or in the business side of things. The football side I love.
I love watching matches but I just don’t want to be on the training pitch, I feel like I’ve done that part of my life and want to move on.”
Neville’s brother Phil is manager of the England women’s team, while his sister Tracey recently left her role as head coach of the England women’s netball team.
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Smart move.
He was a great player and is a great pundit.
@Quoka: think he meant to say no clubs have any interest
@John Duggan: obviously and he acknowledged that he isn’t up to it
He very rarely goes after coaches in his analysis. I think Spain taught him some harsh lessons
@Tommy D: but at least he accepts the lessons learnt. I’d rather give guff to someone who doesn’t learn than someone who does learn and fair play to him he’s a better pundit for knowing it’s not always the managers fault. Too much of football criticism today is focused on the managers and too many clubs and fans are in a mindset of improvements must be immediate when in fact improving teams is a long term investment of time and energy and sacking managers on the reg can do more harm than good in a lot of cases
Absolutely frothing at the mouth of the thought of salah leaving. He comes across pathetic at times.
If Salah does leave he won’t be the same player. Chelsea Salah,Roma Salah not the same player as Liverpool Salah. It’s Klopp who made that happen.
@CaptMattBusby: Nail on the head
@CaptMattBusby: Chelsea & Roma Salah. Are they his daughters?
@CaptMattBusby: klopp + Liverpool football club. Same thing with torres and Suarez.
@CaptMattBusby: that’s fair but nobody outside of Pool will give a monkeys how he gets on if he leaves…….. wherever he goes.
Neville winding up the pool fans . Love it !
@Niall James Fergal McCormack: if people are wound up that easy it’s sad,this is aimed at a British audience,you love it of course,good lad.
@realcork: read the comments , plenty of people biting . I most certainly did love it .
Why would salah leave? He was a nobody before joining liverpool in terms of top players and he just won the ucl
@Eoin Murphy: maybe a bigger club may want him? Maybe to win league titles even for money . Maybe to experience a different culture and league. Hope he doesn’t leave Liverpool as I like to watch him for them and he’s one of the better players in English football . But I’m sure if he’s leaves it wouldn’t be a shock and there many reasons to leave.
Neville is such a richard cranium
Who cares.
@francis walsh: at the moment 1300 views on this article so some people must. Including you it seems.
@irishoverseas: You need to read it before you decide whether you care or not….I read it and now I know I don’t care either, poor Gaz searching for attention.
@Caoimhin O’Murchadha: pretty sure he’s isn’t looking for attention more like getting a load of money from skybet so people will read articles like this. So skybet looking attention. Seems to be working.
After his disastrous spell in charge of Valencia, who would take this fool seriously
@Seàn Mc: the fact that you have bothered to comment shows that you do Séan
@Ruairi McEntegart: strange logic, so you can’t comment when someone says something absurd?
Gary needs to be piss tested
Ok Nostradamus
The only thing I can smell is desperation.if he leaves he leaves.even United’s shit footballers want out of there.
Absolutely hilarious how people take a football club being criticised so personally.
Just came here for the comments and to say Neville is a spoofer whose company line opinions get too much respect.
Click bait headline much
I think Gary is suffering from premature Man U celebration. Ole Gonner by Christmas
He might be wrong about salah but if he did leave I could see the rest of the team breaking up especially if they don’t win the league this season or next, because if they don’t win the league with that team and that manager then it will be a very very long time before they will win it
He’s history of talking utter shite tbh.