England v Macedonia
UEFA European Championship
Qualifying Group E
5pm, Surday 7 October 2006
Old Trafford, Manchester
Gary Neville may have won almost every trophy with Manchester United during his illustrious time at Old Trafford – but he says his England career will not be a success unless he can win a major competition for his country.
England v MacedoniaUEFA European ChampionshipQualifying Group E5pm, Surday 7 October 2006Old Trafford, ManchesterGary Neville may have won almost every trophy with Manchester United during his illustrious time at Old Trafford – but he says his England career will not be a success unless he can win a major competition for his country.
Neville was left heartbroken again after England failed to make it past the quarter-finals of the World Cup in Germany this summer.
The experienced defender genuinely felt this was the time England had the talent in the side to lift a trophy for the first time since 1966.
But with England crashing out of the competition on another penalty shoot-out, all eyes have now been focused on Steve McClaren to end that barren spell and bring the glory days back to the England side.
Neville has good reason to look back on his career and be proud of his achievements after winning a Champions League medal, FA Cup trophies and several Premiership title successes.
But despite the endless number of winners’ medals in his trophy cabinet, Neville still has a burning desire to help England win something before he retires from the game.
Neville said: "I will not feel fulfilled as an England player if I don’t win something. I have said that for a number of years.
"Appearances for England are fantastic and it is a great honour to represent your country. The experiences I have had for England have been great.
"But ultimately you are judged on whether you win things and have been successful. Being part of a winning team makes the individual and that is what I want to be with England.
"I will have played a lot of games for my country, but will not have had a successful England career unless I win something. That has been there since day one and I have been brought up knowing the team and winning is the most important thing.
"It is great to hear people say you have played well or won an award for so many caps. But I believe the greatest players are the ones who have played in the winning teams."
Despite the constant hype that surrounds the England team, Neville says he is not affected by all the media pressure and is only focused on helping the Three Lions pick up another victory when they face Macedonia at Old Trafford on Saturday.
Neville is confident that the players have recovered from their World Cup heartache and the time has come for them to silence all their critics and win some major silverware.
Neville added: "The hype doesn’t affect me. The hype surrounding England has been there since 1966.
"I train and play for England and always give the best I can. I will listen to the coaches and take on board what they are saying.
"We have a new manager and some different personnel. We start all over again at the bottom of the ladder. The worst thing about playing for England is when you get knocked out of a tournament and then you have to wait two-years to do it all over again.
"We have got to perform. It is a joke that England have not won anything in the last 40 years or not even competed in the semi-finals or finals on a more regular basis.
"That is what England should be doing. The players have to perform and they have to do their jobs. I do genuinely believe in the players we have got.
"I look around Europe and see them performing in the Champions League. We have got some great individuals but we have to perform as a team and deliver in a tournament."
Neville has nothing but praise for the way the England supporters have got behind the team since the World Cup.
And with another sell-out crowd expected for the game against Macedonia on Saturday, Neville knows the importance of repaying them with a good performance and another victory to keep them top of Group E.
He said: "Of course I understand the fans' frustrations. If I was one of the public I would think exactly the same thing. But as players we have to believe in ourselves and you have to recover and start all over again.
"We can either say we failed to win the World Cup and are never going to be good enough or can try and do something about it. We had an opportunity in the World Cup and didn’t do ourselves justice.
"The English have a way of dealing with things in life. We all suffer disappointments and this was a huge disappointment for our country.
"But we always respond to that and pick ourselves up again – that is the English way.
"The response of our fans has been magnificent since the World Cup. They have got over the disappointment and are ready to go again.
"Every England game should be a sell-out and they will want to watch a good performance and a victory."