Neville: ‘Awful’ VDB the victim of harsh Bruno reality
Gary Neville admits he felt sorry for Donny van de Beek after the midfielder was substituted at half-time in Manchester United’s 3-1 win over West Ham.
But the Sky Sports pundit says Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was left with little choice, as United can’t cope without Bruno Fernandes on the pitch.
MAILBOX: Solskjaer shouldn’t get ‘free ride’ after ‘awful’ Man Utd display
Solskjaer wanted to protect the Portuguese talisman with the decisive Champions League game against RB Leipzig next up, followed by the Manchester derby.
But he was forced to introduce him at half-time, along with Marcus Rashford, after an “awful” first half performance from United.
“It’s not one Ole Gunnar Solskjaer would have thought about this morning,” Neville said.
“He would’ve gone to Bruno and said ‘I’m going to leave you for Leipzig, I’m going to leave you for the Manchester debry’ but he would’ve said at half-time ‘I’m sorry I need you we’re not very good without you’.
“And that’s just a fact, without him they’re just not the same team. I feel a bit sorry for Van der Beek. He’s the one who has been sacrificed out of midfield but it could have been any of them, all three of them in the first half were awful.”