Neville slams Man United after a 1-1 draw at Fulham, calling 15 second-half minutes the worst he has seen since childhood

On Sunday, 20 September 2026 at Craven Cottage in London, former Manchester United defender and Sky Sports co-commentator Gary Neville delivered a blistering verdict after Manchester United’s 1-1 Premier League draw with Fulham, in remarks that now sit under every headline in which Neville slams Man United.

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Gary Neville, who spent his whole senior playing career at Old Trafford, was working the match as United fell behind in the 63rd minute.

Lisandro Martinez turned the ball into his own net after Senne Lammens had parried Calvin Bassey’s shot, a sequence Gary Neville called “a real mess”.

The visitors escaped with a point only when Matheus Cunha’s effort, deflected off David Affengruber, beat Bernd Leno in the 89th minute.

“I’ve watched Manchester United since the age of five and that’s the worst 15 minutes I’ve ever seen,” Gary Neville said. “Absolutely pathetic. I’ve never seen such a lack of effort. What must [Michael] Carrick be thinking?” Later Gary Neville said United had “walked for 15 minutes”, compared both sides to “mannequins”, and argued that head coach Michael Carrick “has got to stop defending them”.

Matheus Cunha, who scored the equaliser, did not hide from the same passage of play. “At the beginning of the second half they put in more energy than us,” Matheus Cunha told Sky Sports. “We cannot accept this.”

Michael Carrick rejected the idea that fitness or energy was the problem, pointing to the finish. “The way we finished the game, actually, it didn’t look like that,” Michael Carrick said. “We finished the game really strong actually, and kept pushing. I don’t think that’s an issue, no.” Michael Carrick added that United had wanted more points, understood the frustration, and praised supporters who “stuck with the boys”.

The draw followed a Manchester derby defeat and a midweek collapse against Brighton after United had led by two goals.

Manchester United now have five points from five league matches and sit 12th, winless in three Premier League games and bound for the international break in the bottom half. Fulham, under Álvaro Arbeloa, were denied a first league win of the season.

A frantic first half had produced 26 shots and no goals, a Premier League record for a scoreless opening period since detailed shot data began. Chance after chance still left the afternoon defined by a sloppy own goal and a fortunate late deflection.

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Gary Neville’s attack was aimed less at the scoreline than at effort. That is why the line in which Neville slams Man United will travel farther than the point itself.