Harvey Neville opens up about playing for his father, Inter Miami coach Phil Neville
The Neville home was an especially happy place on Tuesday after 20-year-old Harvey, son of Inter Miami coach Phil, signed a first-team contract following a season and a half on the reserve team.
By Tuesday morning, it was all business for the father and son at the team training grounds as Inter Miami prepared for the road game Saturday against the New York Red Bulls.
“When Harvey and I are in this building, we act as if we don’t even like each other,” Phil Neville said, smiling. “[Assistant coaches] Jason [Kreis], Mark [Mason], Brett [Uttley] and [Inter Miami II coach] Darren [Powell] do a lot of the talking to Harvey. I distance myself from him because I want him to grow himself… When we go home, I want him to be my son, my best friend. In the club I want him to be a really good right back. That’s the challenge for us both.”
The elder Neville said he has learned to separate his role as father from his role as coach.
“When I’m at work, he’s just another young boy that’s come through our ranks, played MLS 2 and deserved this opportunity no different than [Edison] Azcona, [Ian] Fray, and Noah Allen,” Neville said. “Obviously, at home I’m super proud. He’s worked so hard, sacrificed so much. He’s had to overcome many challenges, and one of those is having me as his manager. He knows he has to do more than everybody else, but this is well-deserved.”
Harvey Neville said he first realized the burden of being a Neville when he signed with Manchester United’s youth academy as a 16-year-old. His father and his uncle, Gary, were legends at the club.
“When I first signed there, that’s when it all started happening,” Harvey said about the pressure of his surname. “Walking down the hallways of the training ground, faces were everywhere (looking at me). It wasn’t the easiest at the start. But in training you prove you’re good enough to be there. It’s like when I came here, I earned this spot, and everyone knows that I deserve to be here.”
The younger Neville spent three years at Valencia’s youth academy in Spain and two and a half years at the Manchester United academy before joining Inter Miami’s reserve team.
“He’s not been given this on a plate,” the elder Neville said. “People who know him and know me know that’s the opposite of what we’re about. He was scouted by other people at the club and had to sit out six months waiting for his green card.
“He’s had that noise all his career. He played for Manchester United, and he had that thrown in his face. He had it worse. He had his father and his uncle thrown in his face. So, he’s got thick skin. He’s very driven. Everything he’s ever achieved in his life he’s had to earn himself.”
Neville adds depth at right back, where DeAndre Yedlin has played nearly every minute of every game. Neville can also play left back and in the midfield.
Asked what fans can expect to see from him, Harvey Neville said he is an on-the-ball player who likes to go forward, likes to cross and has good technical ability. He said he has become a student of Yedlin’s game, watching his every move to learn from the U.S. national team right back.
The younger Neville has spent a lifetime learning the sport from his father, who played the same positions and has been training him privately since he was a little boy.
“Away from here, we’re obviously very close, but when we’re on the field, it’s a totally different relationship,” Harvey Neville said. “He’s just my coach and I’m just one of 28 players. He’s going to be harder on me than anyone else, but I’d rather it be like that because I want to earn my place on the team and work harder than anyone else to do it.”
This story was originally published August 24, 2022 at 3:31 PM.