Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville has made a very interesting admission about the Newcastle United job.
The outspoken pundit is never afraid to voice his opinions, and has recently been very open in his criticism of the way that profit and sustainability rules are holding Newcastle United back.
Gary Neville was also critical of the situation Steve Bruce found himself in towards the end of his tenure at St James’ Park. He took aim at the new owners, who took more time than expected to move Bruce on after they bought the club from Mike Ashley.
The 49-year-old more often than not says it how he sees it, despite not having a good managerial record to fall back on.
Gary Neville has only managed one club
His only experience of management was at Valencia, which was an absolute disaster that he still gets mocked for today.
Neville has also been part of the England coaching staff, but he has never taken complete charge of a domestic club.
It is not something that has interested him, despite being given opportunities.
And he has now admitted that one of those opportunities came from Newcastle United.
What Gary Neville said about the Newcastle United job
Speaking on the latest episode of the Stick To Football podcast, Neville admitted that Newcastle wanted to speak to him about becoming manager – seemingly when Mike Ashley was the owner.
“The more I think about it I took the Valencia job due to the fact I knew the owner,” he said.
“I felt like I was loyal to him and I felt like I owed him in terms of the business.
“But I had been asked to go to Middlesbrough, Newcastle had asked to speak to me, and a couple of other clubs – Derby I think had asked. All in that previous three years and I’d said no to every single one because it wasn’t where I wanted to be. I started my businesses and media career, I didn’t want to be a coach.
“I’d said no to Newcastle previously, and I’ve never said this publicly, it was actually someone from Sky who had a contact at Newcastle who said they want to speak to you. I’m not saying that it would have got me the job, but it could have got me the job.”
Neville would have been an odd appointment at St James’ Park
His move to Valencia in 2015 came as a real shock. There had been no hints of him moving into management. But he did know the owner Peter Lim, who is also a shareholder at Salford City.
That led to Neville taking charge at the Mestalla, where he boasted a record 10 wins, seven draws and 11 losses from 28 games. He was in charge for four months, and has never managed since.
His exploits in Spain suggest that he would have been a disaster at St James’ Park, although there at least would not have been a language barrier.
But it is really odd to hear that Newcastle United officials wanted to speak to Neville about taking over back in the day. He had no real coaching pedigree, and bringing him in would have been a major risk.
And considering the culture at St James’ Park during Ashley’s time, it probably would have gone badly for Neville in the North East.
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