Gary Neville names surprise Premier League club with ‘proper tradition’ he would have liked to join if he’d ever left Man United

Gary Neville has revealed the Premier League club he would have transferred to during his career if he ever left Manchester United.

During his illustrious 19-year career, Neville was a one-club man, only ever turning out for his boyhood club, United.

The former right-back donned the red of United on 602 occasions, rising through the ranks at Old Trafford before eventually becoming captain.

His time in Manchester was littered with gold as he won the Premier League eight times alongside the Champions League twice.

During the latest episode of the Overlap, brought to you by Sky Bet, Neville was asked, by co-host Jamie Carragher, what club he would have signed for if he was forced to leave Man United.

Neville only ever played for United in his club career and made 602 appearances in red

The former defender won the Premier League eight times during his 19 years at the club 

With former Arsenal legend Ian Wright the first to answer, Neville then provided a surprise answer to the question.

‘I’m going to say Arsenal,’ said Neville. ‘Arsenal were the club that I generally had massive respect for.

‘When I went to Highbury and you used to walk in that old entrance with the marble hall, I used to think it’s a club of proper tradition.

‘I used to love the blazers that you used to wear and there is a resemblance in alignment for what United were at that time with the blazers and tradition.’

Neville was not the only one-club man in the building who would have moved to north London if they had to.

Carragher decided to answer the question himself, and if both moves were to have happened, the former Liverpool man would have been bitter rivals with Neville again.

The ex-Reds defender said: ‘I’m going to go for Tottenham and the reason I say Tottenham is because when I was a kid they were the first team I was aware of besides Everton and Liverpool.

‘My first season watching football was 1984-85 and Everton and Tottenham were going for the league.

Jamie Carragher would have wanted to be rivals with Neville again by playting at Tottenham

Meanwhile, Ian Wright struggled to select a side he would have wanted to leave Arsenal for

‘I always remember this as a kid – and it wouldn’t happen now with phones – as soon as the Everton game would finish, there was always a betting shop that if I lose you in the ground, to your dad, go to the betting shop.

‘I always remember even as a kid, I was only seven or eight, it was “how have Tottenham got on?”. That was the first thing in the back of my mind.’

Wright, however, struggled to pick a team despite flirting with the idea of signing for one of Arsenal’s biggest rivals.

The former Gunners striker said: ‘If you’re saying I had to be forced because my brother was a massive Liverpool fan, I had an uncle that was a massive United fan.’

Carragher then asked: ‘Liverpool came for you didn’t they?’ And Wright replied: ‘Yeah, there were murmurs of Liverpool with Kenny [Dalglish] and there were murmurs after 90’ with Man United.

‘Just to have that link was always nice but it’s a tough one. Playing against that United side and they’d won so much, I was jealous of them.

‘I don’t know, I don’t want to go that way.’ Neville then quickly responded: ‘Just so you could score at Old Trafford Wrighty?’ Before the trio burst out laughing.

Gary Neville was speaking on the Overlap, brought to you by Sky Bet.