Gary Neville's decorated career overlapped with many greats of the modern game, but there is one in particular who the former England right back considers to be the most inspirational footballer he has ever played with.
Speaking on Monday Night Football, Neville named his former Manchester United captain Roy Keane as the player that inspired him the most. He said:
"Roy Keane, without a shadow, is the most inspirational football player that I ever played with, because he wasn't only the best player on the pitch most weeks, which obviously is a fantastic thing if you can be the captain because then everyone else will sort of follow your lead, but just the influence that he had in terms of his standards, the fact that he made everybody else feel 10 foot tall."
Keane captained Manchester United between 1997 and 2005, lifting four Premier League titles and a UEFA Champions League trophy in that time.
Neville's United Captaincy Struggles
Gary Neville Roy Keane
The right back struggled to fill the void left by Keane's departure
When Keane departed the club, Gary Neville took over the captain's armband, but found that the Irishman's shoes were impossible to fill.
He said: "I took over the captaincy from Roy, but I never wanted to because, ultimately, he was the best captain you could ever have. I could never even think to be a captain like Roy Keane was. You had to be more collaborative whereas Roy had complete control over the dressing room."
However, Neville - one of Manchester United's greatest ever players - still enjoyed a successful spell as United captain. He lifted two Premier League titles and a UEFA Champions League trophy in six seasons wearing the armband.
Keane and Neville's Criticism of Bruno Fernandes
Red Devils legend have questioned the United skipper
Bruno Fernandes celebrates scoring his penalty against Brighton
Keane has recently been critical of current Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes, with manager Ruben Amorim publicly defending his captain after the pundit's comments.
Both Keane and Neville have previously called for a change in the captaincy. In an appearance on Sky Sports, Keane said: "The first thing I’d do is change the captain. Bruno Fernandes is not captain material. He’s moaning all the time. He’s the complete opposite to what a captain should be for me."
Neville - who one journalist branded as United's worst ever captain - has been critical of Fernandes' attitude on several occasions, including after a heavy defeat to Liverpool. He said: “You give the ball away at Anfield, you try to get it back. You don’t flap your arms around. I’ve had enough of him whinging. He whinges at everybody. He’s got to put a captain’s performance in there, and that wasn’t a captain’s performance.”
It's been a difficult time to be Manchester United captain with Nemanja Vidic being the last skipper to lift the Premier League trophy in a Manchester United shirt in 2013. Since then, Wayne Rooney, Antonio Valencia, Ashley Young and Harry Maguire have served as captain of the club, with United typically struggling to replicate the success enjoyed under Keane and Neville's captaincies.
Keane, Neville and Fernandes
Ranking Every Manchester United Captain in Premier League History
Bruno Fernandes ranks as one of Man United's worst captains in Premier League history, whilst Gary Neville sits near the top.