Michael Owen has warned Premier League managers that it would be foolish to ignore elite pundits - sometimes, it's better just to listen.
Ruben Amorim namechecked Gary Neville in his final Manchester United press conference less than 24 hours before he was sacked.
Carragher and Neville have been called out by Salah and Amorim this season
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Carragher and Neville have been called out by Salah and Amorim this seasonCredit: Getty
The Portuguese said: “If people cannot handle the Gary Nevilles and the criticisms of everything, we need to change the club.”
The barb was the latest in an increasingly toxic relationship between Premier League staff and those who analyse the game.
Former United captain Neville helped revolutionise punditry in England upon joining Sky Sports' Monday Night Football team in 2011/12, with Jamie Carragher following after his 2013 retirement.
However, over a decade later, the oversaturated market is now a smorgasbord of inflammatory opinions and punchy analysis.
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Neville was banned from Nottingham Forest's City Ground in May in retaliation for comments he made about Evangelos Marinakis.
Mohamed Salah admitted 'Carragher is going to go for me again' during his bombshell ‘thrown under the bus’ interview, which duly invoked a verbal tirade towards the Egyptian in the week that followed.
Virgil van Dijk also awkwardly confronted Wayne Rooney live on TV days afteraccusing the ex-England captain of 'lazy criticism'.
Amorim, meanwhile, told the likes of Paul Scholes and Nicky Butt that criticism of him was 'being made without having all the information'.
Owen has now claimed a lot of the things that pundits have said are proven right eventually, and it would be foolish not to listen.
“It’s quite interesting, actually,” he said of modern punditry being an issue during an exclusive interview with talkSPORT.com, on behalf of online casino experts. “I do think about this quite a lot.
Michael Owen defends Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher from Ruben Amorim criticism
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Owen claimed it would be foolish not to listen to ex-players who have competed at the highest level
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Owen claimed it would be foolish not to listen to ex-players who have competed at the highest levelCredit: Getty
'Pundits understand the game as much, if not more than a manager'
“It’s a huge topic because pundits, me included, they are paid to have an opinion, and by the very fact that they've played the game, most of them have had an illustrious career,” Owen continued.
“They do understand the game, and, you know what? A lot of the time, they understand it as much, if not more than a manager.
“A lot of these managers have never played a game at the very highest level, and it's a different game.
“If you go and watch a non-league game or you watch an elite Champions League contest, you're talking about a different sport, really, with similar rules.
“If you want to look back at it, actually, a lot of the things that the people have said, pundits have said, are proven right eventually.
Manchester United’s Portuguese head coach Ruben Amorim reacts during the UEFA Europa league football match between Manchester United and Glasgow Rangers at Old Trafford stadium in Manchester, north west England, on January 23, 2025.
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Amorim's time at Old Trafford ended with a record of 25 wins, 15 draws and 23 defeatsCredit: AFP
“One of the things that Jason Wilcox went to see Amorim about was his formation the way they're playing, and his lack of ability or lack of desire to change. People have been screaming that for months and months.
“So these people, Gary Neville, there's Jamie Carragher, there's Roy Keane, there's myself, there's Rio Ferdinand, and Paul Scholes.
“A lot of these former players have been there and seen it all at the very highest level, and they know. The problem is when they speak, they're probably speaking sense, and if it's something that the manager is not doing, then they're going to get a little bit of the hump by it.
“It is an issue that the managers have got to be able to control; you either blank it all out and you just let people say what they say.
“The other option is that you go against it and you disagree with it or whatever.
Keane regularly finds himself going viral for his explosive takes
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Keane regularly finds himself going viral for his explosive takesCredit: Getty
Michael Owen tells Premier League managers that it would be foolish not to listen to pundits
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“Alternatively, you listen to some of these people and actually, not toe the line, but you actually think, you know what? He has been there, seen it and done it. Maybe they might have a point.
“Sometimes it's good to listen. I go on the TV myself, and I work with someone like Glenn Hoddle, and I'm always picking things up.
“There are always new, different things to learn. Pep Guardiola is changing the game every week, let alone every season.
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“You'd be foolish just to think, 'Oh, I'm not going to listen' or whatever. It is a hard thing to do because they are out there.
“They are paid to give an opinion. People do want to listen to their opinion, and how managers cope with that is a really interesting part of their job.”