Former Manchester United legend, Gary Neville, has taken aim at manager Ruben Amorim for suggesting that media pundits are influencing his players’ performances. Neville described the coach’s remarks as an example of an “excuse mentality”, which he says has no place at a club like Manchester United.

Amorim, who oversaw his team’s 2-0 win over Sunderland at the weekend, had earlier claimed that one of his biggest challenges was that his players often listen to pundits and get affected by what is said about them.

“There is no one in the world who can read everything and listen to everything about people who understand football and not be influenced by that,” Amorim said.

However, Neville didn’t take the statement lightly. Speaking on his Gary Neville Podcast, the former defender said players who can’t handle media criticism don’t belong at Manchester United.

“If pundits are getting in your head, you shouldn’t be playing for the club, simple as that,” Neville fired.

He recalled how his generation faced heavy criticism — including the famous “you can’t win anything with kids” remark from Alan Hansen — but still went on to achieve success through accountability and hard work.

Neville emphasized that blaming others for poor results is a dangerous mindset, insisting that the players and coaches must focus on improving and winning matches, not deflecting responsibility.

“Excuse mentality, shortcuts, blaming other people — it’s the worst thing you can do in life,” he added. “The only way to silence critics is to win football matches, and United haven’t done enough of that.”