Phil Neville learned brutal lesson after showing up to Manchester United training in a Ferrari

Phil Neville won six Premier League titles with Manchester United, but his teammates never let the success go to his head.

And this was never more the case than when he turned up to training with the Red Devils in a flashy new Ferrari, which prompted his peers to take brutal measures to keep his feet on the ground.

United teams in the early 2000’s were littered with superstars, including Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney and stylish defender Rio Ferdinand, but the younger Neville brother was not exactly the same household name.

And Ferdinand, who played alongside him at Old Trafford between 2002 and 2005, has hilariously recalled the time the former full-back showed up at the club’s training base in the fancy sports car.

Speaking on his podcast, Rio Ferdinand Presents, he revealed that Neville soon lived to regret the decision.

Ferdinand said: “I remember Phil Neville turned up in a Ferrari once.

“Phil Neville. The Neville should not turn up anywhere in a Ferrari, alright? He turned up in a Ferrari once and his car got smashed with balls, like 10, 15, 20 yards away.

“Lads were banging balls at it, kicking balls up in the sky for it to drop on the car. Like: ‘What are you doing?’ That’s just a subtle way of saying: ‘Sell that car, now’.”

Neville’s teammates may even argue that their harsh treatment worked in his favour in the long run.

He left his boyhood club in 2005 with six Premier League winners’ medals, as well as three FA Cup wins and an iconic Champions League triumph in 1999, and went on to enjoy a long career afterwards.

The current Portland Timbers manager hung up his boots in 2013 at the age of 36 after eight years at Everton, and was capped 59 times for England, with his longevity surely down to his professionalism.

And while his teammates’ merciless mocking of his prized purchase may have seemed cruel at the time, they would only have had his best interests at heart.

Maintaining a clear culture was a must in Sir Alex Ferguson‘s all-conquering United teams, which had no nonsense characters such as tough-talking former captain Roy Keane to keep standards high.

Phil’s older brother Gary Neville, who spent his entire career with the Red Devils, once revealed the rigid dressing room structure the legendary manager used to ensure success.

Speaking on the Daily Ketchup Podcast in 2023, he shared: “Sir Alex kept me in the changing room because I think me, Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes were almost like the guardians of the principles and the values of the dressing room, so he knew he didn’t need to be in the changing room because we were in there.

“And we would look after the work ethic, the discipline, making sure everything was spot on.

“We wouldn’t tolerate sort of what would damage our chances of success and careers.”

With club legends constantly overseeing business in one of English football’s greatest ever sides, it is no wonder Gary’s younger brother was unable to slip under the radar after this particular decision.