Gary Neville has shared some funny stories about his time at
Manchester United , including how he always wore white underwear on match days because of a superstition. Neville was with United's first team for 19 years and was the captain for six of those years. He played more than 600 times for the Red Devils. The full-back became an important cog in the United when they were winning a hatful of trophies under Sir Alex Ferguson . Neville won eight
Premier League titles, three FA Cups, three League Cups, and two Champions Leagues. Some people might think United was just a great team with a great manager, but Neville thinks his special routines before matches helped too. "I used to wear the same coloured underpants for every game during my career. White. Just because it was something I did. Same Tubigrip, same tape, the physios knew it," Neville said on the
Football,
music and Me podcast with Geoff Shreeves. "I used to put the same underpants on, go to the same toilet to read the programme, even though I didn't always need to toilet. Same seat on the coach next to Becks. I never shifted, there were things I did that were part of my routine."
David Beckham and Gary Neville (Image: Chris Brunskill Ltd/Getty Images) Even though Neville followed these superstitions all through his career, some of the coaches at United thought they were funny, like reserve boss Jim Ryan who made jokes about them. "Jim Ryan once said to me 'it's really interesting that the whole success of Manchester United depends on the colour of your underpants'. He would take the p*** out of my, but he actually had a point," Neville added. "Then he said to me 'but on an individual level, all those hours that you've worked all your life, thousands, hundreds of thousands of hours, all that practice that you've put in, and you're putting even a little bit of importance on the colour of your underpants'." Neville retired from his career as a player in January 2011, with Ferguson paying an emotional tribute to his most trusted lieutenant. The Scot praised Neville's work ethic, with the right-back having gone all the way from the academy to legend status. "Gary is an example to any young professional, hard-working, loyal and intelligent. His impact on the club in general has been huge," Ferguson said when Neville announced his retirement. "His presence in the dressing room and leadership qualities have been an asset to me as a manager. As a young boy he had the will and determination to succeed as a footballer and that character remained with him throughout his career."