Gary Neville's last season - "I was embarrassed every day"

Adisa said:
Will never forget the WBA game, he was a shambles. How we won that game remains a mystery.
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Two words: Javier Hernandez.

That season, every time he played you believed Chico would score.

United were genuinely shocking that day though. RedNev being the worst of all.

Genuinely respect how Gary never hides from reality. Never blames anyone else for things going wrong. Top lad.
 
Djemba-Djemba said:
He retired when he realised he couldn't do it anymore. So he stopped getting a salary from the club.

That's the whole point of the story.
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He admitted that he overstayed which was embarrasing and that he took more salary then he should.

Most people think I hate Gaz. Quite the contrary. He's a great lad, whose been coming to my country regularly before he actually he made his debut with United and had contributed positively to our society and the supporters club I am a life member in. I met him in numerous occasions, I shared pints with his dad (may god blessed his soul), I attended to his football farewell dinner which was organized by the club and I got mates who are so close to him that they were even invited to his wedding.

There again, I am a Manchester United supporter and not a Gary Neville one. I think that a player is paid enough these days not to overstay at the club once his career is clearly over. I also find his opinion very patronising tbh. Yesterday I heard an interview he did with the Arsenal fan guys which was surreal. He goes on defending Wenger, labelling a match going fan who showed a banner against him as an idiot and dragging us into his sad argument by saying that Manchester United's decision to sack Moyes was a mistake.

I mean can you imagine what would happen if Steve G start giving United fans lectures on how to support their own club? Actually it would be more like Carragher since that would suggest that Gaz was once a world class player.
 
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devilish said:
He admitted that he overstayed which was embarrasing and that he took more salary then he should.

Most people think I hate Gaz. Quite the contrary. He's a great lad, whose been coming to my country regularly before he actually he made his debut with United and had contributed positively to our society and the supporters club I am a life member in. I met him in numerous occasions, I shared pints with his dad (may god blessed his soul), I attended to his football farewell dinner which was organized by the club and I got mates who are so close to him that they were even invited to his wedding.

There again, I am a Manchester United supporter and not a Gary Neville one. I think that a player is paid enough these days not to overstay at the club once his career is clearly over. I also find his opinion very patronising tbh. Yesterday I heard an interview he did with the Arsenal fan guys which was surreal. He goes on defending Wenger, labelling a match going fan who showed a banner against him as an idiot and dragging us into his sad argument by saying that Manchester United's decision to sack Moyes was a mistake.

I mean can you imagine what would happen if Steve G start giving United fans lectures on how to support their own club? Actually it would be more like Carragher since that would suggest that Gaz was once a world class player.
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Gary Neville was at the club for nearly 20 years, and you're squabbling over him staying an extra 2 months. Do you remind your neighbours about the milk they borrowed too?
 
jymufc20 said:
Neville retired.
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Ah so the message should be, take as money as you can. Then retire only to say that it was embarrasing to take that salary in the first place.

Rooney should get lectures from the likes of Cantona, who retired BEFORE he became a burden rather then from Gaz
 
SteveTheRed said:
Gary Neville was at the club for nearly 20 years, and you're squabbling over him staying an extra 2 months. Do you remind your neighbours about the milk they borrowed too?
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I think he was a burden way longer then that. I would (and I have in fact said it) the same about Keane, Robson, Giggs and my favourite non United player Franco Baresi. I don't think we should be showing bias to our players.
 
Funny how in both the Stoke and West Brom games that Neville mentions that we won both due to Hernandez scoring late winners. Im at a loss at how any of this is new though as Gary Neville already covers this in his book and in a interview a few years ago.
 
devilish said:
He admitted that he overstayed which was embarrasing and that he took more salary then he should.

Most people think I hate Gaz. Quite the contrary. He's a great lad, whose been coming to my country regularly before he actually he made his debut with United and had contributed positively to our society and the supporters club I am a life member in. I met him in numerous occasions, I shared pints with his dad (may god blessed his soul), I attended to his football farewell dinner which was organized by the club and I got mates who are so close to him that they were even invited to his wedding.

There again, I am a Manchester United supporter and not a Gary Neville one. I think that a player is paid enough these days not to overstay at the club once his career is clearly over. I also find his opinion very patronising tbh. Yesterday I heard an interview he did with the Arsenal fan guys which was surreal. He goes on defending Wenger, labelling a match going fan who showed a banner against him as an idiot and dragging us into his sad argument by saying that Manchester United's decision to sack Moyes was a mistake.

I mean can you imagine what would happen if Steve G start giving United fans lectures on how to support their own club? Actually it would be more like Carragher since that would suggest that Gaz was once a world class player.
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I can see why most people would think that yeah.
 
Djemba-Djemba said:
I can see why most people would think that yeah.
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Well they are entitled to their opinion. I am entitled to mine. As said, as a person he's a great lad and he's probably way better as a person then most players are. However I find his opinion a bit iffy. Also based on his opinion, I am not surprised why he failed so badly in football management.
 
devilish said:
I think he was a burden way longer then that. I would (and I have in fact said it) the same about Keane, Robson, Giggs and my favourite non United player Franco Baresi. I don't think we should be showing bias to our players.
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It's not what you think as a "burden" that matters though. Neville retired when he thought he can't play at higher level anymore.

If player retires when fan thinks they are on decline then most of the players won't even play when they are 27-28.
 
devilish said:
I think he was a burden way longer then that. I would (and I have in fact said it) the same about Keane, Robson, Giggs and my favourite non United player Franco Baresi. I don't think we should be showing bias to our players.
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I agree with the notion, but, 12 months at most is harsh?

Would you have got rid of Marco Van Basten if you were Milan (after six months of injury, or Ole after 2 years of injury)? Or is this purely age related?
 
Sparky10Legend said:
I agree with the notion, but, 12 months at most is harsh?

Would you have got rid of Marco Van Basten if you were Milan (after six months of injury, or Ole after 2 years of injury)? Or is this purely age related?
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I think that players at this time and age and with all the money they have earned they shouldn't overstay. Its not only a case of counting the pennies. Its more about not liking players ending up their career looking silly on the pitch (if you think that Gaz end of career was painful to watch then I encourage you not to watch Baresi's last derby). Also I don't like the notion that the club somehow owes players anything. Sure the players did very well for the club but its also true that they were paid great salaries to do so. Playing with a top club like Manchester United should be a priviledge.

Regarding the likes of Van Basten you're going in a grey area there

a- Van Basten was still relatively young when he picked that horrible injury
b- AC Milan messed it up badly
c- Salaries weren't as high back then as they are now.

Id add also Fletcher's sickness to that. Ok unlike Van Basten's case it wasn't the club's fault. However I can sympathise with the club giving the boy a helping hand. I would definately help Ben Thornley though. The boy was at the cusp of becoming something great only for his career to be stripped away from him by Colin Hendry. I find it disgusting that he was reduced to driving cabs instead of being offered a job at the club (tbf the club ratified to that afterwards). Id rather spent the dosh on somebody like him who needed the money then on Gaz/Rooney
 
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devilish said:
Ah so the message should be, take as money as you can. Then retire only to say that it was embarrasing to take that salary in the first place.

Rooney should get lectures from the likes of Cantona, who retired BEFORE he became a burden rather then from Gaz
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Sorry wayne i take my comment back and congrats on the record.
 
devilish said:
I think he was a burden way longer then that. I would (and I have in fact said it) the same about Keane, Robson, Giggs and my favourite non United player Franco Baresi. I don't think we should be showing bias to our players.
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Personally wouldn't say he was a burden. I think SAF takes majority of the brunt if you are saying that, Manager picks the players and not easy for any sportsman to accept they are no longer able to play.
 
jymufc20 said:
Sorry wayne i take my comment back and congrats on the record.
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Wayne Rooney is yet another player who thinks that United should close two eyes at his performance for the service rendered in the past. That's something Gaz defended in numerous occasions. I find that idea wrong.
 
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SteveTheRed said:
Personally wouldn't say he was a burden. I think SAF takes majority of the brunt if you are saying that, Manager picks the players and not easy for any sportsman to accept they are no longer able to play.
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If we want to be more specific then its the club fault who allowed SAF to have carte blanche on everything. No manager should be allowed that. It wouldn't happen at Juventus that's for sure.
 
devilish said:
If we want to be more specific then its the club fault who allowed SAF to have carte blanche on everything. No manager should be allowed that. It wouldn't happen at Juventus that's for sure.
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Yeah, we definitely should have had people at the club to keep Ferguson in check and make sure his decisions were in the club's best interest... people with finer judgement who can veto the decisions of our greatest ever manager. We all know what a disaster it was having Ferguson in charge of our club with free rein!
 
ZupZup said:
Yeah, we definitely should have had people at the club to keep Ferguson in check and make sure his decisions were in the club's best interest... people with finer judgement who can veto the decisions of our greatest ever manager. We all know what a disaster it was having Ferguson in charge of our club with free rein!
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A solid board of directors who know something about football and can stop managers from doing something silly, is the main reason why clubs like Juventus and Bayern keep winning year after year, decade after decade. You'll expect that United would have learnt their lesson after what happened with Sir Matt Busby. Unfortunately its not the case.
 
devilish said:
If we want to be more specific then its the club fault who allowed SAF to have carte blanche on everything. No manager should be allowed that. It wouldn't happen at Juventus that's for sure.
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Yeah they stick to doping and match fixing instead
 
devilish said:
Ah so the message should be, take as money as you can. Then retire only to say that it was embarrasing to take that salary in the first place.

Rooney should get lectures from the likes of Cantona, who retired BEFORE he became a burden rather then from Gaz
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This is such a stupid post.
 
devilish said:
Ah don't go in there mate, we'll end up discussing until the end of times and I am pretty sure you know very little about what really happened.

Lets keep it simple. The case was extremely fishy.
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Well whatever it was, I wouldnt be comparing how Utd was run compared to Juve.

Utd might have been guilty of showing too much loyalty at times, which is really a nice trait to have. Well one that I like
 
Randall Flagg said:
Well whatever it was, I wouldnt be comparing how Utd was run compared to Juve.

Utd might have been guilty of showing too much loyalty at times, which is really a nice trait to have. Well one that I like
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Its silly to say that we shouldn't learn anything from a club who won the league 32 times especially since they have spent less then us in the past 20 years. The fact that they immediately jumped to success after being kicked down to Serie B is amazing. It took us decades to return to our former best.

Juventus learnt alot from us especially about giving youths a chance (ex Pogba) and about slowly turning the club in a successful business. There's nothing wrong in learning a thing or two from them.
 
Adisa said:
Which game was this?
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Most players wouldn't have done what Neville did. They'd have carried on until the end of their contract, played like crap when called upon and wouldn't care less. So yes, what he did is worth an honourable mention.
 
Amir said:
Most players wouldn't have done what Neville did. They'd have carried on until the end of their contract, played like crap when called upon and wouldn't care less. So yes, what he did is worth an honourable mention.
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exactly well said mate. In fact when Nev went to see Fergie on the Monday morning after that WBA game and told him he was done, Fergie tried to talk him out of it. Told him to take a holiday and have a break. It was Nev who didn't feel he could carry on, the manager still wanted him. This notion that as soon as a player is past his peak he should tear up his contract and leave is naive beyond belief. Their influence in the dressing room cannot be understated, their influence over younger players is invaluable. Even their roles as a squad player is vital
 
poleglass red said:
exactly well said mate. In fact when Nev went to see Fergie on the Monday morning after that WBA game and told him he was done, Fergie tried to talk him out of it. Told him to take a holiday and have a break. It was Nev who didn't feel he could carry on, the manager still wanted him. This notion that as soon as a player is past his peak he should tear up his contract and leave is naive beyond belief. Their influence in the dressing room cannot be understated, their influence over younger players is invaluable. Even their roles as a squad player is vital
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Agreed!
 
ivaldo said:
Remember watching those games with Dad and we talked about Neville. It was clear he was a spent force, and he was keeping a better player out of the team. Kind of shows how, towards the end of his managerial career Fergie become over reliant on his old core of players. I can't imagine Fergie wouldve had much job the seasons after he retired either.
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What the hell does this mean?!
 
jem said:
What the hell does this mean?!
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From my knowledge of West African Pidgin English, I'd say this translates to :

"if Fergie hadn't have retired when he did, he would have been sacked for failing, through relying on the old guard to much."

Maybe the original poster can confirm ? :)
 
devilish said:
I would definately help Ben Thornley though. The boy was at the cusp of becoming something great only for his career to be stripped away from him by Colin Hendry.
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I agree with your sentiments with regards to helping such players but the bolded is wrong - it was a guy called Nicky Marker.
 
Ekkie Thump said:
I agree with your sentiments with regards to helping such players but the bolded is wrong - it was a guy called Nicky Marker.
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You're right, apologies.

Before the class of 92 became the players everyone knew they would be, we had the rare honour to have Harrison as guest at our supporters club. Information about United was scarce back then. Giggs was already a first teamer and we already had glimpses of what the likes of Gaz and Scholes could do. Everyone suspected that something special was coming out of the youth academy and were therefore eager to pester Harrison to know more.

His first answer was that Ryan Giggs wasn't a one off, and that there were players in the youth academy who were equally brilliant. That text book answer didn't satisfy anybody so the next question was, who was he referring to and who was the best of that crop. His answer was Ben Thornley.

As said, I don't know if he excluded Scholes and Gaz out of the picture since they had already played with the first team in a number of occasions. For sure he really rated the boy, possibly more then he did with Beckham or Gillespie. That's how ridiculously good Ben was at the time.

Its a shame really. England and United would have done so well with another Giggsie like winger in the team

It seem even gaz agrees to that

http://www.skysports.com/football/news/11096/9042966/our-best-player
 
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jem said:
What the hell does this mean?!
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Oyibo said:
From my knowledge of West African Pidgin English, I'd say this translates to :

"if Fergie hadn't have retired when he did, he would have been sacked for failing, through relying on the old guard to much."

Maybe the original poster can confirm ? :)
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The joys of typing on a mobile.

Not sacked, struggled.
 
The moment I read the headline in this thread, I thought, "Wayne Rooney. Are you listening?"
 
ivaldo said:
Remember watching those games with Dad and we talked about Neville. It was clear he was a spent force, and he was keeping a better player out of the team. Kind of shows how, towards the end of his managerial career Fergie become over reliant on his old core of players. I can't imagine Fergie wouldve had much job the seasons after he retired either.
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Think you are underestimating SAF massively yes he was loyal but he wasn't daft. Ask any number of players how ruthless he was.
 
Lawman said:
Think you are underestimating SAF massively yes he was loyal but he wasn't daft. Ask any number of players how ruthless he was.
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Towards the end of his career he convinced Scholes out of retirement and Neville to continue playing despite both deciding on finishing their careers, Neville had to tell Fergie he was done before he believed it. Fergie became incredibly reliant on the old guard towards the end, its not just about loyalty but familiarity. The man was on his seventies, it's not surprising.
 
gary neville pretended to be injured so that he wouldnt have to train much tbf. He was pretty much in retirement mode from the start of that season.
 
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