Gary Neville ‘sad’ for Everton fans after what he saw them do in win v Liverpool
Gary Neville admits it is “quite sad” Everton will soon move away from Goodison Park after what he witnessed in the win over Liverpool.
The Sky Sports pundit and commentator was in attendance for Wednesday’s (24 April) impressive 2-0 Merseyside derby victory.
Neville has been at Goodison numerous times over the past three decades as a Manchester United player and a pundit and says the ground will be missed once gone.
“I first came to this stadium 30 years ago and I’ve see it at its best,” he said on the Gary Neville Podcast, via YouTube [25 April].
“I once got sent off here, Paul Scholes as well in a game [United] lost, and the atmosphere was incredible. We had a good record here, but when you lost the atmosphere was special.
“This gantry is the only one left in the league that shakes when this crowd behind us goes crazy. The fact we’re not going to be in this ground witnessing this type of atmosphere is quite sad.
“That’s what I felt towards the last part of the game inside this great old ground. Obviously it does need modernising and they do need to move to a new ground – we know how it works – but this is one of the last great grounds in the Premier League. It was at its absolute best tonight.”
When are Everton leaving Goodison Park?
The new ground at Bramley Moore Dock is set to be complete by December this year, but Everton will hold off from moving in until the start of the 2025-26 campaign.
There will be various test events prior to that, including friendlies no doubt, but Goodison still has another 13 months or so left to go yet.
As Neville implies, supporters must make the most of every last magical moment, which is very much a category the win over Liverpool falls into.
While there still may be another year to go, it will be hard for Goodison Park to produce a night as memorable as the one we witnessed last night as Liverpool’s title hopes were ripped to shreds.
As upsetting as it will be to leave the long-term home, the new ground looks very impressive and will only be a good thing for the club. For now, let us just enjoy Goodison will we can.
In other Everton news, the Toffees are in line for a further eight-figure 777 Partners payment this month.
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