Gary Neville suggests Man United players have their ‘PR and social media teams working’ to blame Solskjaer

London, Monday

Gary Neville has accused Manchester United’s players of kicking the PR machine into gear in order to shift blame onto beleaguered manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer after the 5-0 defeat by Liverpool.

Scrutiny is rapidly intensifying on Solskjaer’s position as manager at Old Trafford after the humbling at the hands of their fierce rivals but Neville insisted on Sunday that the Norwegian should have the rest of the season at the club.

And now, responding to reports  in ESPN that Solskjaer’s support in the dressing room is crumbling, Neville hit out.

Standing scared

‘Here we go! The players PR and Social Media Teams working hard!’ Neville wrote in response to the story.

When the reporter who wrote the piece added that the blame for United’s malaise goes right to the very top of the club, Neville added: ‘Nail on head!’.

The ESPN report in question says United’s players are unhappy with Solskjaer’s supposed favouritsm of certain players and his reluctance to hand opportunities to  the likes of Donny van de Beek, Jesse Lingard and Nemanja Matic. 

It adds that senior players are dismayed by Solskjaer failing to help Marcus Rashford and Mason Greenwood develop a greater level of cohesion on the pitch.

Neville has been accused of failing to criticise Solskjaer to the extent he has other struggling United managers because he used to play alongside him at the club.

‘If you would have said 22 years ago that United fans would be turning on me for supporting the guy who won “Us" the Champions League I would have said no way!

But it’s 2021 folks! In the “ Johnson Era“ anything goes,’ Neville said - alluding to how Prime Minister Boris Johnson is perceived as overseeing a culture of knee-jerk reactions.

Neville also retweeted a comment from the Middlesbrough and Norway player Jan Aage Fjortoft, now a pundit, who said: ‘The process around a manager not winning enough games we all know. 

‘But let’s not forget all the Manchester United players who now are standing scared behind their mummy’s skirt afraid to be revealed…’.

Antonio Conte is the name linked with replacing Solskjaer should the axe fall on the United boss. Conte won the Premier League with Chelsea and in his last job, lifted the Serie A title with Inter Milan.

    - Daily Mail

But in his assessment of United’s issues on Sky Sports on Sunday evening, Neville was dismissive of Conte being the remedy to the club’s woes.

‘In any other club, he’s in massive trouble tonight. In any other part of United’s recent history, he would have been in trouble,’ Neville said.

‘But because of what happened with (Louis) Van Gaal and (Jose) Mourinho, it’s not going to happen.

‘Mourinho was the best manager in the world when he came to United. The best manager in the world! And he didn’t do it here. (Antonio) Conte is available and I wouldn’t bring him in to Manchester United. I wouldn’t.

‘I don’t think he’s a fit. I might be wrong, they might bring him here tomorrow and I’d get behind him but I don’t think he’s a fit.

We’ve seen a coach with a specific style like Louis van Gaal and it didn’t work here.

‘I’m not saying there isn’t a manager who can come to United and do well and one day if Ole isn’t here I hope that happens but today, I personally feel it would be wrong to sack Solskjaer today.’