Neville unimpressed by FA

Gary Neville has accused the Football Association of setting a “dangerous precedent” by failing to meet their own deadlines after an appeals hearing upheld his £5,000 (€7,300) fine for improper conduct.

The 31-year-old Manchester United skipper, who was charged after celebrating in front of Liverpool fans at Old Trafford, claims the FA did not respond to his appeal within the 21-day limit.

Neville, a representative for the Professional Footballers’ Association, then attended the appeals commission at Soho Square.

“During the commission, the appeals board and the FA’s own representatives accepted that the FA had failed to meet their own deadlines but decided to carry on with the hearing as normal,” Neville said in The Times.

“As far as I’m concerned, that sets a dangerous precedent. If the FA, who base themselves on transparency and fairness, do not suffer any consequence for failing to abide by their own rules, then I can only assume that players will be treated the same way in future.

“I will expect the FA to be fully understanding when players miss deadlines, whether they are for drugs tests or their own appeals.”