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'Bull****' - Gary Neville on claims Antonio Conte wanted to sell Nemanja Matic to Man Utd
GARY NEVILLE has called claims Chelsea boss Antonio Conte wanted to sell Nemanja Matic as "bull****".
Ray Wilkins blasts Chelsea for selling Matic to Man United
Matic sealed a £40million move to Manchester United in July and showed his class on his debut with a commanding man of the match display in the 4-0 win over West Ham.
But question marks remain over why Chelsea would allow a key player to leave the club, especially to a rival.
And in response to a story which claims Conte didn't want Matic, Neville tweeted: "Bull****".
In a follow up tweet Neville added: "He [Conte] told me last Wednesday it was a great loss."
Nemanja Matic was excellent for Manchester United on his debut
Bullshit that... https://t.co/7GM6QwywVb
— Gary Neville (@GNev2) August 14, 2017
At the launch of the Premier League season, Conte was asked about the Serbian midfielder and said: "Matic knows very well what I think about him.
"The importance for me about this player, who is a really good player, a top player, very important for our team, but sometimes you must accept this crazy transfer market.
"And sometimes you must accept different decisions.
"But he is a great loss for us."
Speaking after the win over West Ham yesterday, Jose Mourinho admitted he was surprised United had the opportunity to sign Matic.
"I didn't disturb him, I didn't disturb Chelsea," said ex-Blues boss Mourinho.
"It looked like something was happening because his agent told me we can have him, that we just had to pay."