Who would have though it, Neville nice about Liverpool…
Gary Neville has surprisingly spoken out in favour of Liverpool and our manager Brendan Rodgers, suggesting that victory in this year’s FA Cup competition could inspire an era of great success at Anfield.
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The former England and Manchester Untied full-back has backed his old rivals to finish this season strongly and in-turn gain the confidence required to enjoy further success in the future.
In quotes taken by the Daily Mirror, he compares our current predicament to that faced by Sir Alex Ferguson’s side almost a decade ago, when they’d gone three years without a major trophy.
He explained why the 2006 League Cup win inspired the likes of Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo to develop into the club’s next wave of stars. Now he believes the same could happen to us.
Neville said: “Trophies bring huge confidence, especially for young players who have never won anything before. Some Liverpool players who stand up on that podium and lift that trophy will feel enormously confident.
“I remember the impact of the 2006 League Cup win [at Manchester United], against Wigan. It was the first trophy at United for Ronaldo and for Rooney – our first trophy for three years. It made us believe.
“That’s what it can do for Liverpool. It can give people huge belief. Sir Alex Ferguson used to say one trophy a year – FA Cup, Premier League or Champions League.
“For Brendan Rodgers, this would be the first one and would build on last year’s second place. It would keep the momentum going and probably be seen as progress.”
Our last trophy came back in 2012 – the League Cup under Kenny Dalglish – and three years on we are just two games away from a new generation’s first piece of major silverware.