Sunderland Inspire Gary Neville to Name 5 of the Toughest Away Grounds He Played At

Gary Neville named the five toughest stadiums he played at during his career, following the opening weekend of Premier League fixtures for the 2025/26 season. The former Manchester United defender’s illustrious 19-year career saw him play at some of the most impressive grounds in England and across Europe.

From Liverpool’s Anfield to the Santiago Bernabeu, the Three Lions international faced numerous elite teams across his 602 appearances for the Red Devils. You would imagine that the Merseyside ground and Arsenal’s Highbury would be right at the top of his list, considering the two English teams often rivalled United for major silverware.

But although Neville has named former Gunner Marc Overmars as his toughest opponent, neither Highbury nor Anfield made his top five worst away days. Instead, he named several stadiums outside the traditional ‘Big Six.’

Neville’s Least Favourite Away Days

Speaking on The Gary Neville Podcast following Manchester United’s 1-0 loss to Arsenal, Neville reflected on Sunderland’s impressive performance against West Ham. The Black Cats were back in the top flight for the first time since 2017 and demolished their opponents 3-0.

The Wearside outfit will be aiming to secure survival this season, despite the odds being against them. But Neville believes that their performance against the Irons showed the toughness that newly promoted teams need to have in order to stay up. Their aggressive style of play reminded him of some of his toughest games in the top flight, with him naming Stoke, Wimbledon, Crystal Palace, West Brom and Southampton as his least favourite stadiums to visit.

“Sunderland [against West Ham] demonstrated a lot of the qualities that I think can keep you in this league,” he said. “If you’re playing for Liverpool, Manchester City and Arsenal, the three best teams in the league, and Sunderland try to play football against you and pass it around the pitch, you’re really happy because you know you’ll win that game.

All of the quintet were particularly difficult teams and stadiums to navigate. From Wimbledon’s ‘Crazy Gang’ to cold, rainy nights at Stoke’s Britannia Stadium where long balls were the norm, each side attempted to intimidate opponents, both on the pitch and from the stands. If Sunderland bring a part of that old steel back to the top flight, then they might just be able to cause a few shocks against the bigger teams.

Neville Backs Sunderland to Beat Drop

The Black Cats’ tactics are why Neville is ultimately predicting them to stay in the Premier League this term. Speaking on Monday Night Football, he and Jamie Carragher were asked for their customary season predictions.

While the Liverpool icon infuriated his fellow pundit with one of his calls and predicted both Sunderland and Burnley to go back down, Neville instead believed that Leeds would join Burnley and Wolves in the bottom three. He reiterated his point that Regis Le Bris’ side showed a physicality which would help them beat the drop.