Gary Neville’s theory that both Manchester clubs’ drop in form this season is a result of overcoaching is ‘ridiculous’, Chris Sutton has told Ian Ladyman on the latest ‘It’s All Kicking Off!’ podcast.
City and United played out a turgid Manchester Derby on Sunday, with some labelling the goalless affair as the worst clash between the two sides in living memory.
During post-match analysis, pundit Gary Neville blamed both sides’ poor seasons on ‘overcoaching’ by managers Ruben Amorim and Pep Guardiola.
Former player and co-host of the Mail’s ‘It’s All Kicking Off!’ podcast Chris Sutton called Neville’s assertion ‘ridiculous’, denying any parallels between the Manchester club’s dip in form this term.
‘I don’t quite know what Gary Neville means by overcoaching’, Sutton said.
‘With Manchester United under Ten Hag, they were under-coached and didn’t have an identity – he took a lot of flak for that. Now apparently under Amorim, they’re overcoached?
Man City and Man United presided over a turgid Manchester Derby on Sunday
Gary Neville blamed both sides’ poor seasons on ‘overcoaching’ by managers Ruben Amorim and Pep Guardiola
‘Manchester City have been the dominant side for years and years. Pep is one of the best coaches out there. City’s problem isn’t that they’re overcoached, it’s just that one too many players are off form and too many are aging.
‘Gundogan, De Bruyne – they just don’t have the legs anymore. Throw Phil Foden into the mix and you realise that City is just having a particularly poor season.
‘Everyone lauds Guardiola for being such a great coach and then suddenly, after one difficult season, he’s micromanaging his players. It’s ridiculous.’
With their weekend draw, City missed their chance to leapfrog Chelsea into fourth position.
United are languishing in the Premier League’s bottom half, sitting five points behind Brentford in 12th.
The Mail’s Football Editor Ian Ladyman agreed with his co-host, describing City as merely a side lacking in energy and United as a team in desperate need of a transfer window.
‘City were awful, unrecognisable, pedestrian, playing without energy, without rhythm – but it’s just a football team playing badly,’ Ladyman declared.
‘It happens. It’s not symptomatic of micromanaging or over-coaching.
‘I see United as a team that is making progress. They’re making small steps in the right direction, but they haven’t got a centre forward. Rasmus Hojlund may as well be 10, bless him.
Ian Ladyman: ‘I see United as a team that is making progress. They’re making small steps in the right direction, but they haven’t got a centre forward’
‘Everything tends to break down in the final third and that is their problem. One that they will look to try and solve this summer.
‘With what Gary Neville said, I don’t think fans of Aston Villa, Crystal Palace, or Fulham, three teams who got very good results on the weekend – I don’t think they would say, Morgan Rogers, Adam Wharton or Alex Iwobi are being micromanaged?
‘Despite playing in a system, I suspect they would say the opposite. They’re not discouraged from playing with freedom.’
Listen to Chris Sutton and Ian Ladyman’s full opinions on Gary Neville’s analysis on ‘It’s All Kicking Off!’ now, wherever you get your podcasts.
