Gary Neville admits ‘I got it wrong’ and apologises over Rashford criticism

MANCHESTER UNITED icon Gary Neville has apologized for his criticism of Marcus Rashford and Casemiro in the wake of their trip to the US last week.

The duo spent the international break in the United States after missing a call-up to their respective national teams.

Rashford was seen on Friday during the NBA game between the New York Knicks and the Brooklyn Nets at Madison Square Garden.

Meanwhile, Casemiro flew to Orlando to enjoy a family vacation at Disney World and a Magic game at Kia Center.

However, both players received backlash, with ex-United defender Neville leading the criticism.

Speaking on the Stick to Football podcast, the expert explained: “The professionalism, taking care of your body and making sure you are well prepared for the next training session are crucial for every decision you make during the season.

“He's on a mental break, he needs to get away and rest with friends. Then you talk about the choice of location, how far are you flying, what is the time difference, is that going to cause a jet lag problem?” , is that going to cause a stiffness problem if you're on a flight for 12 hours?

“This is more about Casemiro than Rashford, but if I'm 30 years old and I take care of my body, and he has won five Champions Leagues and is an incredible player, but if he was away for ten days with Brazil, then we would do that.” saying he would have a hard time this weekend because he was away.

“They have chosen that international breakthrough. If you are talking about the small details of being as professional as possible and being as prepared as possible for a training on Monday evening, then that is not the best choice of location.”

But in a recent interview with new Man Utd boss Ruben Amorim for Sky Sports, he partially walked back some of his criticism.

Neville said: “I made a comment this week about Casemiro and Marcus Rashford traveling to America on their few days off.

“I only thought as a Manchester United player when I played here.

“You've got a few days off, the club is 13th in the league, the manager has just been sacked, it's a challenging part of the season and the new manager is about to attack.

“And that focus and preparation and every little detail are very important, and I said I don't think I would have chosen that trip to go to America because of the time difference. I was wrong: they went to New York instead Portland, so I apologize for that.

“But there is still a time difference of five to six hours. They are on planes, Casemiro is thirty years old.”

Amorim insisted it was not his decision to allow the duo to travel during the break.

He even went so far as to suggest that he would have banned them from flying.

Amorim explained: “I think the main question here is that we as a club have to set the standards and manage that.

“It's my decision whether they get five days [off]three days or three days of rest, you can't fly.

“This is something that we as a club have to decide. For me? Yes, certainly [he would have banned them].

'We can't do this to the players. She [United] told them they could get five days off so they could fly anywhere, because no one at the club says you can't fly.”

Amorim's reign at Man Utd officially begins this weekend when the Red Devils take on Ipswich at Portman Road.

The former Sporting Lisbon manager is determined to turn things around at Old Trafford, where United currently sit 13th in the Premier League.

He said: “Call me naive. But I truly believe I am the right man at the right time.

'I could be wrong, but the world will still turn [and] the sun will rise again, I don't worry about that.

'I really believe I am the right man for this job.

“In two years you will understand if I am the right man to be in this process.

“In two years you can understand whether you want to continue on this path or whether you want to change.

“I know that when you play for Manchester United you have to win games, so I won't tell you that I need a lot of time.”