“I was shocked. I hated it”: Phil Neville exposes Glazers’ move that turned Man United into “circus”

Former Manchester United star Phil Neville has detailed how the Glazers turned the club into a “circus” in the immediate aftermath of Sir Alex Ferguson’s exit.

Fall from grace

It would be a substantial understatement to say that United have fallen from grace over the past decade.

Gone are the days when United swept up major honours and ruled English and European football. Now, the club is a sorry, pitiful shadow of the force that once made it great.

The Red Devils have not won the Premier League since 2013, when the legendary Sir Alex retired from football management.

A carousel of managers and coaching staffs has come and gone, yet none has come remotely close to replicating the success he made the norm at Old Trafford. United are currently enduring one of their worst-ever runs, with the team winless in their last eight games across all competitions.

It would seem only a matter of time until Michael Carrick becomes the most recent casualty of a United conundrum that seemingly possesses no answer. The root of United’s troubles traces back to the Glazers and their parasitic ways, which have now come home to roost with a vengeance.

And now, Phil Neville has disclosed just how swiftly the American businessmen swooped to seize control once Sir Alex was gone.

Neville exposes the Glazers

Neville said on CBS Sports Golazo, “Sir Alex Ferguson left and I was part of the coaching staff with David Moyes. What I witnessed going from being part of the club for the glory years, the years where we were successful, then going back with David Moyes, I witnessed a different type of club.”

“I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I was seeing where the focus wasn’t on the football pitch. I was seeing where the manager didn’t have the final say. I was seeing where the manager couldn’t pick signings.”

“The signings were based purely on how famous they were, how many followers they had, how much sponsorship they could make…”

“I was shocked. I hated it, I really did.”

Neville added, “What I experienced in the 10 months with David Moyes is no different to what Jose Mourinho, Louis van Gaal, Ruben Amorim, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and now Michael Carrick is facing. The club needs sorting from top to bottom.”

The 49-year-old also pinpointed the departure of CEO David Gill as another setback United have never recovered from.

“They had a manager in Sir Alex Ferguson, they had a CEO in David Gill, who was disciplined. The manager was disciplined. They run the club. I know they had the Glazers in at the time – the supporters had never been happier with the Glazers – but they run the club from top to bottom. Whatever they said, it happened.”

“The year after, new CEO, new manager, and all of a sudden I just felt… It just became a circus. It became a real circus where the manager lost control of what was about.”

“You look at the best clubs in Europe, best clubs in world football, who would you say are the best-run clubs? PSG, Brighton, Aston Villa, Arsenal – they’re just a few where from top to bottom there is alignment. I don’t think that happens at Man Utd.”

Carrick and his players are next in action on Saturday when they face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.