Neville admits Guardiola could match Alex Ferguson’s status
Man United won the treble in 1999 under Fergie
Manchester United legend Gary Neville has admitted that Pep Guardiola is not far from Alex Ferguson in terms of legacy and could match him should the Spaniard win the treble.
The former Man Utd defender was a part of the famous United squad that won the treble in the 1998/99 season.
“Do I want City to win the treble?” Neville told The Times. “No! No! No, I don’t. Nobody wants City to win the treble if you’re a Manchester United fan.
“But if they do the job in the Premier League and beat Manchester United [in the FA Cup final] and Inter Milan [in the Champions League final] you’d just have to hold your hands up and say, ‘This manager and this group of players have achieved something unique.”
The 48-year-old who considers Ferguson to be the greatest manager of all time, admitted that Pep can match him if he wins the treble.
“Sir Alex Ferguson deserves to be the only manager in history to have done the treble because he’s the greatest but if Pep Guardiola joined him, he’d be a worthy companion, because I think he is equal of what Sir Alex Ferguson achieved,” he said.
When talking about the achievements of two greats, Neville wasn’t shy to admit that Pep has done extraordinary stuff but he also mentioned Ferguson’s journey.
“If you think what he did at Barcelona then Bayern Munich, and what he’d do at City with the treble… I mean, when we talk about greatness.
“We have to mention that Sir Alex Ferguson wasn’t just furnished with great young players and a great kitty to spend at Manchester United — he turned Aberdeen into kings of Europe, beating Real Madrid, and kings of Scotland over Rangers and Celtic. And that in itself is a massive achievement.
“Then to come to Manchester United and break Liverpool’s dominance and do what he did over a period of time… in terms of longevity and consistency, he’s the greatest,” he added.
“But what we’re seeing now from Pep, having been at City for six or seven seasons… I think Pep now sees what Sir Alex did and thinks, ‘Right, I can go on for six, eight, ten years because where is he ever going to get the platform to do what he does like at City?
“So, for me, he would be a worthy companion to Sir Alex and his players would be worthy,” he concluded.
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