Gary Neville, Jamie Carragher, Jill Scott, Roy Keane, and Ian Wright dive into managerial turmoil at Manchester United and Chelsea, weigh up interim solutions and long-term gambles, and celebrate a remarkable FA Cup upset that captured the magic of the competition.
00:00 Intro
13:33 Man City’s controversial offside goal
24:05 Ruben Amorim sacked
31:37 Michael Carrick appointment
27:38 What is Man United’s DNA?
55:13 Liam Rosenior Appointment
01:03:50 Roy on United’s new background staff
01:19:42 Super 6
01:23:51 John Rooney on beating Crystal Palace
Video can be embedded into online articles or using the full interview link which is available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7PTTqRaULyM
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Key Quotes:
The panel on the Newcastle vs Manchester City offside decision….
Gary Neville: “Just a quick one on it. I thought it was one of the worst decisions I’ve ever seen. I think Pep was absolutely spot on. I couldn’t believe what I was watching. He was never getting near that goal, the goalkeeper. I thought it was a really bad one. The keeper was nowhere near Haaland.”
The panel on Ruben Amorim’s sacking…
Jamie Carragher: “It sounds like he wasn’t sacked because of the results. He was sacked because there were words – but he should have been sacked for the results.”
Gary Neville: “What probably cost him in the end is results 100%. But the Wolves game for me was the killer moment. The fact the players never adapted to the system better over 18 months is ridiculous. You can’t play three at home against Wolves when they’ve got one up. You just can’t. After the Wolves game, I was certain it was going badly wrong if he didn’t change. The performances against Everton, Wolves, Burnley were awful. I said offensively he wasn’t good enough to be United manager, but none of us actually asked for him to be sacked – we were critical of the football, not calling for him out of the club.”
The panel on Michael Carrick’s appointment and the next Manchester United manager…
Gary Neville: ‘‘I honestly feel like at the end of the season, when you’ve got Pochettino, Tuchel and Ancelotti – and I’ve said Ancelotti – I just feel purely because he’s 66 years of age, he’s got probably the best job in the world right now. He’s probably got one job left at club level. He’s probably got the patience, the composure, the experience of the Premier League. He doesn’t care about the media at all. I like Eddie Howe as well, to be fair. He’d be in the top four for me as well if he was available. What’s killed United managers over the last few years is they’ve tried everything. David Moyes is a certain type, Louis van Gaal and Mourinho are giants of the European game, they then got two fresh young ones, they’ve tried absolutely everything. So you just have to remove risks now. Who can handle the media, who can sort the dressing room out and not take any nonsense, who can handle the owners, who’s been there, seen it and done it.’’
Jamie Carragher: “I just think Man United right now are a Europa League sort of level team. It’s going to take a lot of energy, driving the club forward every single day, to get them back up there. It’s not like we need someone to get us over the line – I think Ancelotti would almost be the guy after that guy.”
The panel on Manchester United’s DNA…
Gary Neville: “If you look back at Manchester United from 1945 – not just Sir Alex Ferguson – the DNA has always been about pace, risk, wingers, wide players, and young players. United can’t be a team that defends deep and plays reactive football; they have to be on the front foot. Historically, United’s deal is risk losing to win. That’s Busby, that’s Ferguson, that’s Ron Atkinson. When we’ve had positional, cautious football – Mourinho, Van Gaal – we didn’t like it. The fans didn’t like it. United’s DNA is similar to Real Madrid’s:, attacking football, and the thrill of taking risks. It’s a way of approaching matches, not just a system.’’
The panel on expectations playing at major clubs today…
Gary Neville: “You’ve got to be inspired by the history of the club, not overwhelmed by it. Seeing legends like Kenny Dalglish or Bobby Charlton shouldn’t feel like pressure – it should be a dream.”
Jamie Carragher: “The eyes on Manchester United are more than anybody else. There are more voices now, and it’s easy to say, ‘just get on with it,’ but it’s different today – and they’re not as good as you [previous United teams].”
Roy Keane: “Players fail at Manchester United because of the expectation, the pressure, the badge, and the history. You either embrace it or you go under. Over the last 20-30 years, some players who might not have been top talents have rolled their sleeves up and gone on to play hundreds of games because they could handle it. At United, you’re expected to win every week. Carrick has to embrace that, not be hostage to the past, and make sure players do the hard work – getting back, working for the team, and dealing with the little things.”
The panel on Liam Rosenior’s appointment at Chelsea…
Ian Wright:“Chelsea, with everything that’s gone on the past few years, this could work out well. Rosenior knows the players, the coaching staff, and the club upstairs. He’s got a great opportunity to hit the ground running. Chelsea are doing something very different – if it works, it’ll be praised; if not, the lack of experience will be criticised.”
Gary Neville:“They’ve got the youngest squad in the league, young ownership, and a young sporting department. At some point, they needed someone with real experience to guide them. Compare that to Mourinho, Wenger, Ferguson, or Guardiola and Klopp – managers who’ve thrived in the Champions League and at the top of the Premier League.”
Jamie Carragher: “My first thought every time a new manager comes in is: can this manager win the league? That’s what a manager at a club like Chelsea is appointed to do. Rosenior and Carrick might become those figures, but they’re not there yet.”
Macclesfield manager, John Rooney on setting the tone against Crystal Palace, Mark Guehi’s pre match comments and the importance of a cup run…
John Rooney: “The most pleasing part for me was the first 20 minutes of the second half, the way they dealt with it. If you watch the game from kick off, the captain goes up for it and they both cut their heads open. I think that set the tempo for the game and probably gave them a shock.”
John Rooney: “It was actually when they did the coin toss. Mark Guehi said, ‘I don’t know if I fancy this pitch,’ and for us, that probably gave it out. They’re probably not used to it, but listen, if there’s any advantage you can take against a Premier League team, you grab it with both hands.”
John Rooney: “We spoke early in the season about climbing the league table and having a good FA Cup run. This is probably the most competitive league we’ve been in, and I think these two games probably could be the budget for the season. It’s huge for the club. We don’t really play on TV much at this level, and the last two games we’ve been on TV. We’ll probably be on again next round, and that’s massive for the club.”
Stick to Football is brought to you by Arne Clothing – to watch the full podcast episode with Gary Neville, Jamie Carragher, Roy Keane, Ian Wright, and Jill Scott visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7PTTqRaULyM
