Gary Neville has been charged by the Football Association for his taunting of away supporters at the Manchester United v Liverpool game on Sunday. Neville claimed in his newspaper column that he “laughed” when people condemned his actions, actions which could have resulted in serious crowd control problems at the ground, and prompted the local police force to write a letter of complaint to both the FA and United.
According to the official FA website, Neville has two weeks to consider the charge and to make a response if any. The site says: “Manchester United defender Gary Neville has been charged with improper conduct. The charge relates to Neville’s celebrations following Manchester United’s goal in the 90th minute of the Premiership match against Liverpool at Old Trafford on Sunday 22 January. Neville has until 10 February to respond to the charge.”
The FA may also be investigating more trouble at Old Trafford last night. United won their semi-final against Blackburn Rovers, managed by former player Mark Hughes, but there are allegations of a bust-up in the tunnel between Rovers and United players in what seemed to be another demonstration of the ugly side of the game.