Gary Neville has admitted the Valencia job ‘was too much for me’ but still has some fond memories of his time with the LaLiga club.
The former England and Manchester United defender was a shock appointment at the Mestalla in December 2015, his first managerial role in football.
He was fired on March 30, 2016 having won 10, drawn seven and lost 11 of his 28 matches at the helm.
The Sky Sports pundit hasn’t taken another managerial post since and still feels he let Valencia owner Peter Lim down.
‘I learned a lot on a personal level. I’ve always spoken very openly and frankly about my time in Valencia,’ Neville said in an interview with Marca.
Gary Neville has admitted the Valencia job ‘was too much’ following his unsuccessful stint in charge at the Mestalla in 2015-16
Gary took the job with brother Phil as his assistant but they struggled to make it work
Neville still feels like he let Valencia owner and his own business partner Peter Lim down
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‘I feel like I let Peter and the fans down. The Valencian fans are some of the most passionate you can meet.
‘When I walked around the city, people supported me and wished me well.
‘Obviously, I lost too many matches, but I really enjoyed me time there. I loved the people and the city.
‘I felt like I let Peter down – he trusted me a lot and invested a lot of money in the club, and I wanted to do well for him, but also for football.
‘I moved there with my family and really committed to the challenge. I wanted to succeed during the five months I was supposed to be there, but I just couldn’t get the results for the team and in the end it was too much for me.’
Asked what went wrong, Neville replied: ‘I was a young English coach, I didn’t speak the language, I arrived at a difficult time and the truth is that it was too much for me.
‘I couldn’t be more positive about Valencia and I’m very sorry for not being able to offer them the results they wanted.
Neville won just 10 of 28 matches at the helm during his four-month stint at Valencia
‘I am a football man, I love football and it was a shame that I couldn’t succeed.’
It hasn’t stopped Singaporean businessman Lim investing in League Two club Salford City, where Neville owns a 10 per cent stake.
Valencia fans protested against Lim’s ownership at their recent LaLiga match against Atletico Madrid, waving signs that read ‘Lim go home’.
The club finished 16th in the table last season, avoiding relegation by just two points.
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