Neville, Carragher and Souness butt heads in HEATED debate after Liverpool’s 7-0 win vs Man Utd

Gary Neville and Graeme Souness engaged in a heated discussion following Liverpool’s 7-0 demolition of Manchester United on Sunday night at Anfield. 

Souness initiated the discussion, after he claimed the former Man United defender had said off air that he ‘thought Liverpool played badly’, which Neville vehemently denied. 

The disagreement continued with the pair bickering live in the studio, while Jamie Carragher, Roy Keane and Kelly Cates all watched on.  

Neville went on to claim Souness and Carragher were both ‘gloating’ following the win while also claiming that Liverpool’s second-half performance was a ‘freak’. 

Souness hit back, claiming Man United have ‘been getting away’ with results recently and said ‘For me, they’ve [United] got away lightly today, it could have been more than seven. They didn’t turn up.’ 

Gary Neville (right), Jamie Carragher and Graeme Souness butted heads in a heated discussion after Liverpool’s 7-0 victory against Man United on Sunday night

Souness said that Neville had told him ‘off air he thought Liverpool played badly today’

To which Gary Neville said: ‘That’s a nonsense Graeme.’

Liverpool outclassed Erik ten Hag’s side at Anfield today, putting six goals past their Lancashire rivals with Cody Gakpo, Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah all scoring two goals each before Roberto Firmino got the seventh and final for the Reds. 

After the game, the Sky Sports punditry team engaged in a heated debate, the full transcript of which is set out below, in which Neville also calls Carragher ‘James’. 

Post-match commentary 

Souness: ‘Gary said off air he thought Liverpool played badly today.’

Neville: ‘I didn’t say that.’

Souness: ‘What did you say?’

Neville: ‘I think in the first half Manchester United were the better team. In the second half it was bout United’s capitulation.’

Souness: ‘So that was nothing to do with Liverpool playing well?’

Carra: ‘You don’t think Liverpool played well?’

Neville: ‘I don’t think Jurgen Klopp tonight when he analyses that game, the momentum he’ll take but I don’t think he’ll think oh we’re back. I don’t think he’ll fall into that trap. You’ve just said it. I don’t think he’ll get carried away off the back of that at all.’

Cody Gakpo continued his fine run of scoring bagging a brace for the Reds on Sunday 

Souness: ‘We’re not talking abut getting carried away.’

Neville: ‘Look at them gloating.’

Souness: ‘No but you can’t come out with a daft remark like that.’

Neville: ‘I saw Liverpool for five/six years and they put in some of the best performances that I’ve ever seen. They’re still not back anywhere near that.’

Carragher: ‘Did Liverpool play well today?’

Neville: ‘They played alright in the second half no problem, they won the game 7-0.’

Souness: ‘You said they’d not played very well.’

Neville: ‘Well done, congratulations. When you get beaten 7-0, it becomes about how bad the other team are. Manchester United in that second half, Luke Shaw, Varane, Martinez, Dalot, that midfield. They were absolute shamables.’

Gakpo (left) has now scored in three of Liverpool’s last four league games amassing four goals

Souness: ‘You’ve got to give credit to the team that wins 7-0.’

Neville: ‘I’ve given you credit James. You won 7-0. Congratulations.’

Souness: ‘I’ve never heard him call you James before.’

Neville: ‘You got your three points, your 7-0, and that’s fine. But I still think Liverpool in that first half were really vulnerable. That was a shaky Liverpool in that first half.’

Souness: ‘For 25 minutes they were the best team. Man United came back into it for 10-15 minutes, then Liverpool scored, they were the threatening team, the best chance of the half was for Rashford.’

Neville: ‘Liverpool didn’t look like they were going to score in the first 20 minutes. They were huffing and puffing a little bit. Manchester United got on top they had a couple of big moments, they should have scored. I thought United to be fair showed authority.’

Mohamed Salah (right) also got on the score sheet twice with a stunning right footed strike

Souness: ‘Do you think United were the better team in the first half?’

Neville: ‘I do.’

Souness: ‘Not a chance.’

Neville: ‘There was something about that second half that was a freak, to be fair. Jurgen Klopp wouldn’t say that was a 7-0 game, it was just a freak.’

Souness: ‘Yeah, it could have been 10.’

Carra: ‘You keep saying it’s a freak.’

Neville: ‘Oh my god.’

Carra:’I’m being serious.’

Neville: ‘It was a freak.’

Souness: ‘He didn’t see the same game that I did.’

Neville: ‘It was an absolute freak.’

Cates: ‘I know you’re not listening to Carra but what he’s saying is that United under ten Hag have lost 4-0 to Brentford, six against Manchester City, three against Aston Villa.’

Salah (left) broke Robbie Fowler’s record being Liverpool’s all-time leading goal scorer

Souness: ‘They’re all freak results as well.’

Cates: ‘Is there a concern that that’s something they could slip back into?’

Neville: ‘What they’ve done in the last three months is build that trust to a point where you don’t think they’re going to do that anymore. That to me feels like a massive step our of their character. We’ve called these players resilient in the last few months, we’ve called these players streetwise, tough, compact, together spirited, compact. 

‘None of us expected that today. You’re all shocked, apparently, 10 minutes ago, so I’m using the same words. That’s just a freak to me what’s happened in the second half. Six goals in a second half, they fell apart. They’ve just been called unprofessional by their manager, we [gestures to Keane] played in that dressing room for 15 years and we never once were labelled unprofessional, so they’ve got to own that. They’ve got to have that living on them that the manager thinks they’re unprofessional today. 

‘To be fair, the last few months they’ve not been unprofessional, they’ve given their all in every single game. I’m hoping it’s a blip, and that they finish this season with a couple of trophies and in the top four. That will be a great season, and that’s where they need to concentrate now. That will be a great season. Finish strong, top four, League Cup in the bag and maybe a go at the FA Cup and Europa League, that is a successful season for Manchester United and then in the summer he can have another transfer window.’

It was a difficult night for Erik ten Hag (middle) who’s side were left licking their wounds

Souness: ‘They were going well. And when you’re going well and you get a punch on the nose and you lose a game, it’s sometimes a good thing it kicks you on for whatever games you have left. What that result has done today, there is not a worse result for Manchester United, if there’s one team Manchester United don’t want to lose to, heavily, deservedly soon, no freak result, it was coming to Liverpool and getting turned over like this, in a manner which is embarrassing for Man Untied. This has been a really bad day for Man United, and it’s no freak result, Liverpool could have scored more than seven. For me, they’ve got away lightly today, it could have been more than 7. They didn’t turn up. 

Neville: ‘That’s a nonsense Graeme.’

Souness: ‘That’s my opinion! Your opinion is that Liverpool didn’t play well today.’

Neville: They beat Barcelona who were top of the Spanish league, and they beat them really well over two games.’

Souness: ‘They beat them really well?’

This is Man United’s biggest loss since they were also beaten 7-0 by Wolves in December 1931

Neville: ‘They’re playing every three days, even the game thy lost at Arsenal they played well. I watch Manchester United a lot more than you do, and that’s a nonsense.’

Souness: ‘This is the worst possible result for Manchester United. Its more than just a punch on the nose for them. Its been humiliating for them.’

Neville: ‘The reason it’s a freak is because it’s not happened for about 80 or 100 years.’

Souness: ‘You’ve lost six already! Is that a freak as well? Any time United lose It’s a freak?’

Neville: ‘We lost 5-0 at Newcastle, we lost 6-3 at Southampton, it happens sometimes.’

Souness: ‘It happens once a year to top teams. They lost six. They’ve been embarrassed. It’s a recurring situation with this group of players.’

Neville: ‘We lost six and five in one week and we still won the league, it can happen. It does happen. I think this was a disgraceful result but its been out of character for this group and this manager over the last few months.’

Souness: ‘They got beat six by City, what is it you don’t understand about facts? They concede four against Brentford, they conceded seven today, it must just be that these teams are lucky.’

Despite winning the Carabao Cup last week, the loss will be a huge blow to Man United 

Keane: ‘You said we won the league, Gary. This team won’t be winning the league.’

Neville: ‘They won’t win the league, Ten Hag needs a couple of transfer windows. We’d written half this team off in the past two years, Rashford, Dalot, Wan-Bissaka- Shaw, Varane, Fred, they’re all still playing, those players. 

‘And he’s achieving unbelievable things with those players. He deserves a little bir more back from the players than what he’s got today, but that second half was out of character compared to what we’ve seen in the past few months. They’d lost one game in 25. That is not the norm for those players in the last two or three months.’

Carra: ‘It is the norm for those players in the past two or three years.’

Souness: ‘It’s the norm this season.’

Neville: ‘Since Erik ten Hag got a grip of them two or three months ago, Ronaldo left, that group of players have been tight, they’ve been spirited, they’ve gone every single week and they’ve been fighting evrry match. I’ve seen it with my own eyes. That second half, since he sorted the dressing room out, is a freak.’

Souness: ‘It’s not a freak!’

Cates: ‘You’ve talked yourself out of your good mood, we’re going to go round in circles.’