Gary Neville has explained that it wasn't Juan Sebastian Veron's fault that he failed to live up expectations at Manchester United.
Veron arrived at United in a £38million move from Lazio in 2001, a year after leading the Rome side to their second ever Serie A title win and claiming the Copa Italia in the process.
The marauding Argentine was regarded as one of the best midfielders in the world after winning plenty of trophies in Italy but never managed to recapture his magnificent form at Old Trafford.
Veron did show flashes of his excellence in his 82 appearances for the club and was a part of a Premier League winning team, but was sold for half the price after just two years to rivals Chelsea.
Yet Neville has explained that it was no fault of Veron's that he didn't fully succeed at United and insisted the team just didn't suit his qualities.
"Juan Sebastian Veron was an amazing player. In my opinion, it didn’t happen for him, because I think we had the best midfield English football has ever produced, and I think will ever produce," the former United captain told Sky Sports.
"Giggs, Keane, Scholes, Becks. I think these four players are the best Manchester United have ever had. They were on another planet.
"The manager was trying to add strength in depth, to see life beyond these players. They were trying to marry that midfield four with Veron. Scholes got moved forward one, or to the left if Giggs was injured. That disrupted the quartet, and we were a 4-4-2 team, so we ended up with a different system.
"The midfield four played in what I would call a methodical way. They played a disciplined role, and it was a classic 4-4-2. The way Veron played, coming out of Italy, he moved into different positions and was fluid, trying to get the ball from the left back, et cetera.
"He was almost the first player who broke the code. The code had to break at some point. Veron came in with that interchanging mindset, but into a team that was set into its patterns.
"It was nothing to do with him as a player or individual, because he was brilliant."
