Man utd's problems not down to manager anymore - Neville

The former Manchester United defender says: "I  felt they were near last season but now I feel they are as far away as they've ever been from winning the league"

In an explosive podcast, Neville dissects the "nonsense" emanating from Old Trafford following a weekend in which the opposition manager questioned the team's work rate and further points were dropped in the race to qualify for next season's Champions League.

Speaking after Newcastle's third win on the bounce - the 1-0 victory over Aston Villa on Super Sunday - Neville also reflects on the shifting momentum at St James' Park...

Manchester United were terrible chasing the game and chasing a goal against Southampton. They were giving fouls away, they were stopping the game. They were forcing it and crossing from poor areas.

You can't put your finger on one thing when you watch United nowadays. Every day feels like a soap opera. You hear the players want Mauricio Pochettino, then Cristiano Ronaldo's going to leave.

The last few weeks have been terrible in terms of off-the-pitch incidents. On the pitch, I saw Ralph Hasenhuttl's quote after the game which I think is the biggest criticism you can have levelled at you as a sportsperson or an athlete - saying that you don't work hard enough.

He said essentially that not everyone mucks in when the reverse gears are put on. If I was a Manchester United player and had that said about me by a respected opposition manager, that would bite deep.

The reason I don't think it's disrespectful is because it's coming from someone with authority and it's the feeling in the league.

If you speak to anybody about playing Manchester United, it's a case of staying in a game. It's about getting through the first half an hour. If you make sure you defend well, you will work harder than them and you will create chances.

David de Gea will then have to make lots of saves and every team is thinking they can get at United. It's a really poor reflection and it has been all season.

It now gets to a point where you don't feel it's down to the manager anymore. Ole [Gunnar Solskjaer] was getting a lot of criticism at the start of the season and loses his job and it's now being suggested that Ralf Rangnick isn't good enough because he's a sporting director and he's not a coach.