Gary Neville has claimed he felt ‘massively inferior’ to rival managers during his time as Valencia boss, admitting he had ‘no idea what was going on’ on the touchline.
Neville lasted less than four months in charge at the LaLiga side after accepting an offer to coach the team from owner and close friend Peter Lim, with the Sky Sports pundit winning just three of his 16 league games in charge.
His disastrous tenure saw his side beaten 7-0 by Barcelona as he lost 11 of his 28 games in total before being beaten 2-0 at home to Celta Vigo in his final match in charge.
Neville, who has a UEFA Pro Licence, claimed his achilles heel during his time at the club was an inability to manage the game from the touchline and lacking the ability to change things up tactically during a game.
He said he struggled going up against top level coaches like Ernesto Valverde and Diego Simeone, who made him feeling like he was being ‘beaten up’ mentally.
Gary Neville opened up on feeling ‘inferior’ to rival LaLiga bosses during his time at Valencia
He said he felt intimidated and mentally ‘beaten up’ by Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone
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Speaking on the Stick to Football podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet, Neville said: ‘After a couple months into the job at Valencia, I remember looking at myself in the mirror one morning and thinking that I looked ill.
‘I remember we played three times against Athletic Bilbao, in the Europa League quarter-final and in a league game, and Ernesto Valverde was the coach – he played a different system that I thought he would and then he changed during the game, and I remember thinking that I was nowhere near that level.
‘I felt massively inferior to him because I struggled to manage and watch the game from pitch level, especially compared to how I see the game in the gantry.
‘You put yourself on the touchline and you’re watching a game where all you can see is legs, and how you think of the game tactically or how managers spot things, I have no idea because I remember thinking that I had no idea what was going on.
‘Seeing Valverde was the first time that I felt that I was miles off and then I coached against Diego Simeone, and on that day, I felt like he was beating me up in every way – with his tactics, his intimidation, and his mannerisms.’
Neville won just three of his 16 LaLiga matches in charge of Valencia before being sacked after less than four months
He claimed some managers – such as Barcelona’s Luis Enrique – made him feel he didn’t belong
Neville also felt some managers had been sending messages to him that he ‘didn’t belong’ in the league after being snubbed for a handshake by then-Barcelona boss Luis Enrique during the 7-0 defeat.
‘The other one was Luis Enrique, when Barcelona beat us 7-0 in the Copa del Rey, when they were winning 5-0, he didn’t substitute Neymar, Lionel Messi, or Luis Suárez, and at the end of the game, he walked straight past me and didn’t shake my hand, which I felt that he was sending me a message that I didn’t belong.
‘Rafa Benítez was good to me during my time at Valencia. We played Real Madrid, and he was under pressure at the time, but after the game he came over to me and shook my hand, and he was actually very good with me.’
When Neville arrived, his brother Phil – who came through Man United’s academy with him – was already at the club, having worked with former boss Nuno Espirito Santo.
Phil would end up working as Neville’s assistant during his brief stint, but the 49-year-old suggested his brother should have been given the job instead and said it ‘wasn’t right’ that he got the job over him.
He claimed his brother Phil – who was his assistant manager – should have got the job instead
‘When I look back now – I’ve never spoken to Phil [Neville] about this – Phil was over there [in Valencia] with Nuno [Espírito Santo] and Nuno asked him to go over and be a coach. I think Phil had gone over there to do a few weeks, just watching him, but they really got on well and he worked with him.
‘Honestly, there was no plan to get Nuno out of Valencia at the time, he was obviously struggling, but I think when I went over there and got the top job, and Phil was already there, it wasn’t right.
‘Peter [Lim] had asked me to do it, but Phil was obsessed witch coaching, and I think Peter just saw me as someone who could handle the media more.’
Neville has since returned to becoming a full time Sky Sports pundit alongside his other business commitments – having last been involved in coaching when he worked with England at Euro 2016.
Phil Neville, meanwhile, took on the England women’s national team job in 2018 after leaving Valencia – leading the Three Lions to an undefeated 2019 World Cup campaign, before losing 2-1 to the United States in the semi-finals.
He later stepped down in 2021 and took over at MLS side Inter Miami, where he stayed for two years before being sacked following poor results.
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