Gary Neville has always been good for a quote or two and now he has retired and is pursuing a career in the media we are being treated to more insight from the former United captain than ever before.
Teams don’t just become, they are subject to years of working on training grounds as well as actual games. The Barca we see now didn’t just one day pop up and dominate world football it has been a process and the same can be said for all great teams throughout history.
Manchester United have built a number of quality teams over the years like the 1999 treble winning side or the double winning side of 2008 and Gary Neville can see Sir Alex forming another quality side now,
‘People talk about the ’99 team like it just happened that year. But that team evolved over three or four years.
‘This team is evolving now. The 2008 team didn’t just happen, and that was a team that was as good as the ’99 team. Beating Barcelona, beating Chelsea in the final.
‘Look at Yorke and Stam, look at Smalling and Hernandez; Vidic, Evra, Rio, Rooney and Carrick.
‘I think Ashley Young could be an example of that. I think people will be talking about how cheap United got Phil Jones a year from now.
‘Ashley Young is around better players now. No disrespect to those he has worked with before but he will get the ball more often, in better areas, delivered to him better. And he will be playing with better finishers. It will make him better. At the same time United demand more from you as an individual.’
The team as Neville said is evolving, we have seen VDS, O’Shea, Brown, Neville, Scholes and Hargreaves all depart whilst the likes of Young, Jones and De gea have joined the teams ranks. The team got younger and this is likely to continue with a number of talents still to emerge from within our ranks.
As the season goes on both in Europe and domestically we will get an idea of how the team will take shape and I think this will be just as exciting to watch as the title race and another foray into Europe.
