Gary Neville looks up to England fullbacks and claims NOTHING could make him return to management
Gary Neville has admitted to ‘wishing he shared the outlook’ of England’s modern attacking fullbacks.
Neville won eight Premier Leagues and two Champions Leagues in over 600 appearances for Manchester United, but scored just seven goals in his professional career.
He singled out the likes of Reece James and Trent-Alexander Arnold as players he would have liked to have emulated.
Gary Neville wished he had the ‘outlook’ of England’s modern attacking fullbacks
He named Trent Alexander-Arnold and Reece James as players who look more ‘relaxed’
Speaking to Geoff Shreeves on the Overlap, Neville said: ‘I wasn’t very good at scoring goals. I didn’t take penalties at any point in my life. I wasn’t very good at kicking a ball. I could cross a ball but I’m not a goalscorer.’
‘I do see these young players, I see Trent [Alexander-Arnold] play and I see Reece James play, and I think I wish I had their outlook on life. They look a lot more relaxed than I did.’
When asked if he would go back into the management if the perfect job came along, the 47-year-old said: ‘No. There is absolutely nothing that would make me go back into football management.
‘That club [Manchester United] could offer me £500 million budget, do what you want, and I’d say no. Stay in your lane. Nothing will ever make me say yes again.’
Neville also claimed ‘nothing’ could make him return to management after his spell at Valencia
He went on to mention how playing under sir Alex Ferguson gave him ‘unachievable standards’
Neville has one previous experience of management after his time at Valencia in 2015-16. They won just three of the 16 league games during his tenure, and were famously beaten 7-0 by Barcelona.
The retired fullback also touched on the mindset instilled in his generation of United players by Sir Alex Ferguson. He said: ‘I used to have a lot more bad habits when I left United. All of us that worked under Sir Alex had these standards that were unachievable in any other walk of life that you’re in.
‘I used to get up at 4-5 in the morning, bombarding people with emails expecting replies back straight away. There was an expectation that everything’s got to be done, and now I’m completely different.’
