Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville has opened up about the lasting impact of his infamous 2011 criticism of David Luiz, admitting the Brazilian defender confronted him years later about the damaging remark.
The Infamous PlayStation Comment
During Chelsea's 2011-12 defeat against Liverpool, Neville famously claimed the Brazilian centre-back looked like he was 'controlled by a 10-year-old on a PlayStation'. The cutting observation came during Luiz's difficult early period at Stamford Bridge, where the defender was struggling to adapt to English football after his January 2011 arrival from Benfica.
Neville confessed to The Overlap, presented by Sky Bet, that he initially thought the phrase was clever. 'At the time I thought it was a great phrase, everyone thought it was a great phrase,' he admitted. However, the pundit now recognises the harm such comments can cause professional players.
The Confrontation That Changed Everything
What Neville didn't anticipate was that Luiz would remember the comment years later and eventually reach out. Four or five years after the original remark, the Brazilian sent Neville a direct message that left the pundit stunned.
The confrontation came after Neville made another critical comment about Luiz, though not repeating the PlayStation analogy. Luiz's message simply read: 'Here you are again, my friend.'
Neville reflected: 'It hit me because he said 'here you are again, my friend'. I thought, he's a human being, that's stuck with him.' The exchange prompted Neville to reconsider how pundits deliver criticism and the responsibility that comes with their platform.
Style Clash and Redemption Story
Explaining his original criticism, Neville compared Luiz's unconventional defending style to former Manchester United defender Laurent Blanc. 'We didn't see defenders who would charge forward; it was more of an international, Brazilian, Argentine, Uruguayan style, and sometimes southern European,' he explained.
Despite his rocky start, Luiz returned to Chelsea in 2016 after a stint with Paris Saint-Germain and enjoyed a remarkably successful second spell. He became an integral part of the team that won the Premier League in 2016-17, the FA Cup in 2018, and the Europa League in 2019.
Luiz later secured a £50 million transfer to Arsenal before moving to Flamengo, Fortaleza, and currently playing for Pafos in the Cypriot First Division.
Neville's co-presenter Roy Keane offered some defence for pundits, stating: 'As pundits we have to be careful, but we can't become robots either. We get excited when we watch games.' Keane revealed he had similarly apologised to Harry Maguire after being overly critical of the Manchester United defender.
The episode serves as a reminder of the human impact of punditry and how words spoken in moments of frustration can linger for years in players' minds.
