The Englishman was appointed head coach of the La Liga outfit in December 2015, fully replacing Nuno Espirito Santo after Valencia’s poor start to the 2015-16 season.
The appointment of Neville was met with derision and surprise in Spain, due to his lack of experience in coaching.
Under the tutelage of Neville, Los Ches went nine matches without a win, which included a 7-0 loss to Barcelona at the Camp Nou in the first leg of the semi-final of the Copa del Rey.
The 45-year-old revealed he initially turned the offer down but a mixture of ego and his relationship with Valencia owner Peter Lim lured him to take the job.
“Sometimes ‘no’ is a great word, however, sometimes you’ve got to say ‘yes’ and step up,” the former England defender told Sky Sports.
“I’d turned down two Premier League inquiries and two Championship inquiries in the 18 months before.”
“I had no intention to go into management.”
“Although I was working with England and Roy Hodgson, my role was more concentrating on analysis.”
“When Peter Lim, Valencia owner rang me, he didn’t want to bring in a new manager halfway through the season.”
“He knew he wouldn’t get the man he wanted.”
“He wanted somebody that he trusted to navigate him to the end of the season. I said no initially.”
“But then eventually wanted to do it for him, a little bit of arrogance, a little bit of ego.”
“I’d lived through Manchester United for 20 years, I’d gone to Sky and it had gone well and you feel a little bit unbreakable, like you’re in a position where nothing is going to go wrong.”
“When you take something on that you’re not as qualified in as you should be, you get a slap round the face, I got a massive bloody nose.”
