Phil Neville is not drawing a line under Luke Shaw’s time as a Manchester United player just yet.
But the former United man has insisted that he would have been embarrassed if he had faced the kind of public criticism that Jose Mourinho levelled at Shaw last weekend.
It seemed like the Red Devils boss had issued the strongest indicator yet that Shaw was set for a summer exit, as he revealed just how far down the pecking order the 21-year-old is at Old Trafford.
These comments do not bode well for Shaw at #MUFC https://t.co/syJWJxvIDX
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) April 3, 2017
A lack of commitment seems to be one of the primary reasons that Shaw has been unable to train his way into Mourinho’s good books while the Portuguese is not the first manager to express concerns about the England international’s fitness levels.
We’ve discovered that no fewer than four managers have had their doubts about Shaw in the past.
Phil Neville spoke about Shaw’s situation on Monday, insisting he would not have reacted well if his focus was questioned by a manager back when he was a player.
“Having played at Manchester United, I think I’d be embarrassed as a player if those accusations were levelled at me in terms of training performances,” Neville told Sky Sports News HQ.
“To play football at Manchester United you need to train at 110 per cent, you need to be determined and focused; the fundamentals of a professional footballer.
“He should be Man United’s left-back; no question with the ability he’s got. Something must be going fundamentally wrong. Ashley Young played left-back on Saturday and, if I was Luke Shaw, I would be thinking ‘I should be playing ahead of Young at left-back’, regardless of how good Young is.”
He carried on.
“As a young person in life sometimes you need a kick up the backside and I just wonder whether it’s a tactic from Jose to give him a bit of a jolt to say ‘look, it’s now or never Luke, you’re wasting the opportunity that’s in front of you, other players are ahead of you, you’re fit, training every day, and your attitude needs to be right’.
“It could be just what Luke Shaw needs. Jose has probably got to the point where he probably feels it’s not the last through of the dice but a kick up the backside.
“If you speak to Manchester United and England fans, they’d say Shaw should be England’s No 1 left-back and Manchester United’s No 1 left-back. He should be a Manchester United full-back over the next 10 years.
“He has got a chance. You’d hope to think he does. I think Jose said it a month ago. You just wonder whether these strong comments are the final effort from Jose to shake Luke into form and realisation.”
