Chance to work with Beckham ‘too good to turn down’ – Neville
Phil Neville last night said he had no regrets about swapping the chance to lead Team GB in the Olympics for the opportunity to manage David Beckham’s Major League Soccer franchise in Miami.
Neville turned his back on the Football Association to move to south Florida and help his former Manchester United team-mate following a disappointing first season in MLS, in which Inter Miami won just seven games before losing in the first round of the play-offs.
The FA believed Neville, 44, was ready to take charge of Team GB in Tokyo, even though his three-year reign as England women’s coach, in which the team reached the World Cup semi-finals in 2019, was coming to an end, with Sarina Wiegman set to take charge in September.
Yet once Beckham sacked Diego Alonso as Inter Miami coach this month and made a move for the former England midfielder, Neville had no hesitation about moving on.
“I had a fantastic job and worked with some fantastic people,” he said. “The players were some of the best I have worked with and I was sad to say goodbye to them.
“But sometimes in your career you get opportunities you can’t turn down and when this came up, I sat down with my boss, Sue Campbell, at the FA and I said, ‘This is too good for me to turn down’.
“It’s always something I aspired to; to work in America and work for a great football club. Sue didn’t stand in my way and I have to say a massive thank you to her for allowing me to follow my dream.”
Neville’s appointment on a twoyear deal surprised many in the United States, with Beckham being accused of simply handing a job to his old friend, which the former England captain denied. “It’s got nothing to do with being my friend,” Beckham said. “We are running a serious business here. This is about him being the right man for the job.”
Neville said: “David is my friend and now he is my boss. There will be tough conversations, but we share the same goals. Hopefully, this will be one of the best chapters of our friendship.”
Meanwhile, Manchester United Women manager Casey Stoney has played down the chances of her coaching Team GB at the Games.
“The summer is a big, big period of time for me as a manager, to make sure I have done the recruitment I need and that plans are in place for next season,” the former England captain said. “If we qualify for the Champions League, we are back in slightly earlier [for pre-season] as well.” When asked if the Team GB job was likely to be hers, she said: “No.”