David Moyes: Gary Neville is a driven leader and Valencia won’t faze him

Gary Neville has been appointed Valencia head coach until the end of the season

I DON'T believe for one minute that Gary Neville will be fazed by the challenge he is taking on at Valencia.

 

He is a leader, someone who has been driven throughout his career, and whether it was as a player at Manchester United or with his work at Sky Sports, he has been successful in whatever he has turned his hand to.

Football management is different, of course, and until you taste it properly you don't really know what it is like. But he has all the credentials to do well.

Valencia is a huge club with big crowds, a big stadium and really high expectations. They believe they should be challenging at the top of the table and it won't be easy to deliver what the supporters see as success. Like any manager, Gary will need the players.

 

But it is a fantastic opportunity and an incredible experience when you come up against the best teams such as Barcelona and Real Madrid.

When you are the manager, the responsibility falls on you. It is your work on the training ground, your tactics on stopping Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, your planning all week that has to come off. It can be a lonely life.

It will help that his brother is already there. When you go into a new club, there are a thousand things to do such as organising training times, finalising travel arrangements and that all comes alongside learning about the players you have inherited. You are making decisions every single day.

 

Gary Neville has ended his punditry work with Sky Sports to take up Valencia role

The fact that Phil has been at Valencia for six months means he will be able to give Gary an insight he can trust into all the players. That will help him immerse himself into the club.

Don't forget that at Manchester United he worked with a lot of overseas players, Ronaldo being one, so he will also have gained an idea into the mentality of non-English players.

The other factor is that he knows the owner, Peter Lim, through Salford City and so he will be able to manage up as well as down. There is a connection there which is important.

 

Moving abroad is a big challenge and a big risk, but it can be really rewarding and after going to Real Sociedad I always hoped other British coaches would sample La Liga as well.

There are differences in the culture, what time they eat in Spain for example, but I enjoyed that side of things and I am sure Gary will embrace it all as well.

I have always thought that the best way to become a manager was to earn your stripes and build your career up, but that's not the only way. That's just my view.

Gary has worked under Sir Alex Ferguson at United and alongside Roy Hodgson at England and I am sure over time he will have jotted down lots of ideas. Now he will be able to put them to the test and I really hope he does well.