http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009/oct/22/gary-neville-manchester-united-liverpool..
Over the last few years Gary Neville has laid bare his dislike
of Liverpool, he
has been fined by the Football Association for deliberately goading
their supporters and was lucky to escape injury when a group of
vengeful Liverpudlians spotted him in his car after a game at Old
Trafford – and tried to overturn it.
Neville even inspires a tribute chant to celebrate the fact that
"he hates Scousers", but the Manchester
United captain was in a diplomatic mood as he looked ahead to
the clubs renewing hostilities at Anfield on Sunday, and the
potential damage a fifth successive defeat for Liverpool could do
to their title hopes.
"Liverpool haven't had the best start to the season but even if
we beat them it would be too early to write off their championship
challenge," Neville said. "We cannot knock them out of the title
race; that is not an interest of ours. There are only nine games
gone so it is far too early to talk about that.
"We've still got 29 games to go. We say this every year at our
club because we have the experience of going through it. You can't
make any predictions at all until January or February. Any team in
the top four is capable of winning six or seven games on the run
and they'll be back up there again."
This did not sound like the man who once declared to a United
fanzine: "I can't stand Liverpool, I can't stand Liverpool people,
I can't stand anything to do with them."
Never one to hold back with his opinions, Neville was so
flagrantly anti-Liverpool that his father, Neville Neville,
interrupted one of his rants a few years ago to switch off an
interviewer's tape-recorder, apparently fearful that his son was
talking himself into trouble. Neville Jr is said to have responded:
"But I do hate them, Dad."
Neville, however, now wants to clarify his position. "I've never
said I don't respect Liverpool," he says. "You have to respect a
team that have been as successful as they have and have the history
and tradition they have. But I'm a United fan and the rivalry is
well documented. United fans want United to win and Liverpool to
lose, and it's the same the other way.
"There are a variety of reasons why this fixture is so important
– the cities are very close yet have different cultures, both clubs
have enjoyed great periods at different times in the past 40 years,
and now we're level on the number of championships won.
"It's always been a really great game to play in. We never want
to lose, but it's the same for both teams. Liverpool has been the
biggest game of the season for a long time, going back 30 years or
more. Our rivalry with Liverpool is bigger than with Manchester
City. They are the best games to play in, but also the hardest to
lose."
United suffered that experience twice last season, including a
4–1 thrashing at home in April, but a victory for Sir Alex
Ferguson's side would put them 10 points clear of Rafael Benítez's
team. "I wouldn't say we're looking for revenge," Neville said.
"When the top teams play against each other, it seems to go through
cycles that teams have good results and bad results. We know that
anything can happen in these kind of games, so the main thing is
not losing.
"These games are always a one-off. They can go either way
against Liverpool. The fact they lost at home in the Champions
League and we won away won't really matter. They'll be in front of
their own fans and we have to be on the top of our game to make
sure we do well. It is always the same. The most important thing at
the end of the season is winning the league, and we're delighted
that we won it last season. We'd rather lose both games again and
win the league than beat Liverpool and not win the league."
As for the reception that awaits him, Neville still knows he
will also be a popular target for the crowd, even if most of the
hostility is directed towards Michael Owen this year on the back of
the former Liverpool player joining their arch-rivals.
Owen has already accepted that he will be given a tough time and
Neville, too, knows it is par for the course. "I don't get a great
reception at Anfield, I must say," he said. "I'm not their
favourite son. No United players get a good reception at Anfield,
but it's the same for their players at our ground, and it is to be
expected.
"The atmosphere at Anfield is great, and it's the same when they
come to Old Trafford. The first thing to try and do away from home
is silence the crowd because the fans are passionate."