England women's football teamReputation of new England women’s boss takes a hit after a career of monotonous success
In 2014, more than 440 viewers complained to the BBC that Phil Neville was too boring. His voice on commentary, they said, was turning them off the World Cup. Neville, controversially appointed as manager of the England women’s football team this week, must have wished a monotonous tone remained the severest criticism of him.
Despite spending more than half his life in the public eye, first as one of Manchester United’s famed “class of 92” alongside older brother Gary and David Beckham, and later as Everton captain, Neville has largely managed to steer clear of controversy. But a series of sexist tweets, coupled with the conviction of many within the women’s game that he is underqualified to manage a national team in the ascendancy, has left the former defender scrambling to rescue his reputation.
The tweets, posted several years ago and presumably an ill-advised attempt at humour, will forever haunt the 41-year-old, particularly one sent on 1 July 2011: “Relax I’m back chilled – just battered the wife!!! Feel better now!!!” he wrote. Another read: “Morning men couple of hours cricket be4 work sets me up nicely for the day!” When asked why he failed to mention women, Neville replied: “When I said morning men I thought the women would of been busy preparing breakfast/getting kids ready/making the beds – sorry morning women!”
A popular and respected figure in footballing and sports media circles, many rushed to Neville’s defence, insisting his comments did not reflect a man they knew as fiercely loyal and kind.
But less than 24 hours after his appointment – which the FA announced on the men’s team Twitter feed, rather than the women’s – Neville issued a statement: “Following comments made a number of years ago I would like to clarify that they were not and are not a true and genuine reflection of either my character or beliefs and would like to apologise.”
For many, the tweets did not present as much cause for consternation as his appointment in the first place – Neville has little to no experience of the women’s game and previously displayed scant interest in it. England are ranked number one in Europe and third in the world while their age group teams are blessed with talented youngsters.
“People are rightfully pointing out that if you were asking the men’s side to employ someone they would never go for a woman, let alone a woman who has never been a head coach and has no experience in the men’s game,” said Kieran Theivam, a women’s football writer.
The Football Association has been beset by controversy in both the men’s and women’s game in recent years. Last September, Neville’s predecessor, Mark Sampson, was sacked after the full detail of inappropriate relationships he had with female players in a previous job became known. Earlier in the summer, the Guardian revealed Sampson was accused of making racial remarks towards leading player Eni Aluko, for which the FA later apologised.
“This was supposed to be an appointment which brought a lot of positivity after the cloud that Mark Sampson left under,” said Theivam. “I would say a woman would have been preferred and there were very capable female coaches out there and for one reason or another they either did not apply for it, dropped out of the running or were not interviewed at all. There were certainly more suitable candidates than Phil Neville.”
Neville was born in Bury, Greater Manchester, into a family obsessed with sport. His father, Neville Neville, was a league cricketer in Lancashire, and his mother played netball to a good level. Gary was already kicking a ball around by the time Phil arrived, and their sister, Tracey, became a netball international. As a player, Neville learned his trade at Manchester United under the celebrated academy coach Eric Harrison and alongside Gary, Beckham and Ryan Giggs.
He spent the majority of his career playing under Sir Alex Ferguson, widely accepted to be the greatest manager in the history of the English game. Neville’s first appearance for United was against Wrexham in 1995 and he became a defensive stalwart in their best teams in the late 90s and early noughties, winning six Premier League titles, three FA Cups and one Champions League. In 2005 he moved to Everton, where he spent eight years until his retirement in 2013. He represented England on 59 occasions, although his international career was blighted by a penalty he conceded against Romania that sent England out of Euro 2000. “I got publicly abused afterwards and found it really difficult,” he said in a documentary film, The Class of 92. “My wife came home from work and the gates were on fire with an England flag on top of it.”
Of all the character references for Neville this week, his wife Julie’s Instagram post stood out: “In response to some of things I’ve been reading about my husband, I would like to point out that Phil is the most honest, kind, generous, gentle and hardworking man I have ever met.”
It is no more than she has said before, when reflecting on the challenges they faced as new parents. They already had a 17-month-old son, Harvey, when a pregnant Julie woke one day to discover her waters had broken at 28 weeks. Neville was playing abroad for Manchester United at the time but Ferguson allowed him to fly home and he spent the next fortnight sleeping beside his wife on a camp bed in hospital. Isabella was born 10 weeks premature and her parents were told she had 24 hours to live.
“It changed our lives completely,” Neville said in 2010. Even with his world turned upside down, Neville’s much-vaunted work ethic meant he would still turn up for training every day, lagging behind the rest of the squad due to exhaustion. “It’s not my style to take time off,” he has said. “I’m quite old-fashioned. I don’t miss work.”
For the first 18 months of Isabella’s life they endured the agony of watching her miss developmental milestones without knowing quite what was wrong, until she was diagnosed with cerebral palsy due to suffering a stroke in the womb. The couple are now involved with several charities which support children with the condition.
There seems little doubt that Neville will work tirelessly in pursuit of success with the women’s team. Ferguson wrote in his autobiography: “He was one of those players to whom you could say: ‘Phil, I want you to run up that hill, then come back and cut down that tree.’ And he would say: ‘Right, boss, where’s the chainsaw?’” After he finished playing, Neville gained his UEFA B coaching licence and worked as an assistant for David Moyes during a turbulent time at Manchester United.
In 2015, the Nevilles moved from Manchester to Valencia, Spain, after Harvey was offered a place at a football academy nearby. Neville worked there as an assistant coach but has only taken charge of one football match, as caretaker manager of Salford City, the non-league club he co-owns.
Neville and the FA will hope the debate around his appointment has dissipated by March when he takes charge of his first games, facing three of the world’s top six teams in the She Believes Cup in the US. “If he comes through those games with positive performances and good results that’s what people will be talking about,” said Theivam, “If he doesn’t he will be the coach who had no experience of the women’s game, had no head coaching experience at all, who made silly jokes on social media and can’t get results for the national team.”
Potted profile
Born 21 January 1977 in Bury, Greater Manchester.
Career A defender for Manchester United and Everton, he made 505 top-flight appearances and represented England 59 times. He retired in 2013 and has worked as a pundit and co-commentator for the BBC and Sky Sports. He has a UEFA B coaching licence and was part of the backroom staff at Manchester United and Valencia. Non-league club Salford City is co-owned by Neville and four other former United players.
High point Winning the treble – Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League – with Manchester United in the 1998-99 season.
Low point Conceding a penalty in Euro 2000, which sent England out of the tournament.
He says “I was playing for the club I love playing for against the club I used to love playing for. It was like Christmas Day at home when your dad says it doesn’t get much better than this with all your family around you. It was one of the happiest moments of my career.” – on playing for Everton against Manchester United.
They say “I remember sitting with Phil for a chinwag and ranting about a team-mate of mine who I found annoying. When I’d finished I expected Phil to reciprocate. But there was not a word. ‘What an absolute prick!’ I thought, after pouring my heart out. Later I concluded his approach was an exemplary way to carry yourself through a career in football.” – David James, former England goalkeeper.
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