Gary Neville slams Manchester United chief Ed Woodwards reaction to Brighton defeat
Gary Neville has hit out at Manchester United chief Ed Woodward for his reaction to Sundays Premier League defeat to Brighton.
Goals from Glenn Murray, Shane Duffy and Pascal Gross provided Brighton with a famous win over the Red Devils on the south coast, despite Romelu Lukakus header and Paul Pogbas injury-time penalty.
Immediately after the final whistle, the cameras panned to an angry Woodward in the stands, with Manchester Uniteds executive vice-chairman slumped in his seat.
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Woodward, of course, was the man tasked with bolstering Jose Mourinhos squad this summer. Only three players were signed, however, and Mourinho was disappointed by the outcome.
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Neville says United let Mourinho down in the transfer market and criticised Woodwards reaction to the Brighton defeat.
If Woodward was going to doubt Jose Mourinho, it should have been before he gave him a contract extension, Neville told Sky Sports.
Once youve given him a new contract, he had to buy him new centre-backs. [Harry] Maguire, [Toby] Alderweireld… they wouldnt have made those mistakes yesterday.
They were good options, if it costs £120m, so be it. I look at it from the boards perspective, its been messy.
I dont want to see the Manchester United CEO do that [his reaction in the stand]. He needs to stand up, shake hands with the fellow directors, say you look forward to seeing them later in the season… smile, be big.
It can be interpreted as another show of dissent, theres definitely an angst there.
His job is to deliver profits on and off the pitch. On the pitch… trophies, titles. The club are delivering off the field. But he should put a footballing structure underneath him to deliver the rest.
Speaking after his side fell to defeat at Brighton, Mourinho said basic mistakes cost Manchester United.
In the first half, Eric Bailly conceded a penalty, shortly after an attempted back-pass resulted in a corner from which Brighton scored.
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We were punished by the mistakes we made, Mourinho said. For me thats the story of the game.
We made incredible mistakes in some crucial moments. Mistakes that killed us.
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