Gary Neville turns on Arsenal's French set-piece specialist

Gary Neville, a former Manchester United defender who is now a consultant, strongly criticized the behavior of Frenchman Nicolas Jover, Arsenal's set-piece specialist, accusing him of putting himself forward too much during matches.

Arsenal once again demonstrated their science on set pieces on Wednesday during their victory against Tottenham (2-1) in the Premier League with an own goal from Dominic Solanke receiving a corner. But the praise surrounding the success of the Gunners in these situations (the most prolific team in Europe since the 2023-2024 season) exasperates some, including Gary Neville. The former Manchester United right-back, now a recognized consultant on English TV channels, has Nicolas Jover, the Frenchman in charge of these profitable set-piece tactics, in his sights.

“He exaggerates his importance”

He deplores his behavior on the sidelines, particularly when he shouted his instructions to the players last weekend against Manchester United in the FA Cup. “I called him the most annoying man in Football. You know what? I'm consolidating my position, I'm persisting even more,” he said in the podcast Stick to Football. “It offends me every week. I'll say it very calmly, I think he exaggerates its importance.”

“If a goalkeeper makes a good save, I don’t see the goalkeeper coach on the sideline,” he continues. “I don't see other coaches coming up and taking the glory. The manager is on the front line, he can't communicate 50 meters away with players who know what they're doing. I think he exaggerates his importance, I sincerely mean it.”

According to him, the Frenchman's activity on the sidelines could even start to tire the players. “I see brilliant goalkeeping coaches and coaches working on other aspects of the game, I don’t see them pointing fingers at each other and exaggerating their importance,” insists the former England international. “That's how I feel. I understand he's important and he's doing a great job, but I honestly think he needs to rest a little bit. I think the players will also start looking at him and think: 'wait a minute, come on'.”

Jamie Carragher, a former Liverpool defender who is also a consultant, validates his point of view. “I found it a bit harsh, but I can’t really disagree,” he smiled.