Gary Neville has appeared to blame the Islamist terror attack at the Manchester Synagogue on “middle aged white men putting up Union Jack flags”.
In the video posted on his social media account, the former Manchester United and England full back now turned pundit
“I was driving to Salford City, going down Littleton Road seeing probably 50-60 Union Jack flags,”
Then on the way back I went down the parallel road, which is Bury New Road, which has got the Jewish community right at its heart and they’re out on the streets, defiant, not hiding or in fear.
“I just kept thinking as I was driving home last night that we’re all being turned on each other and the division that’s being created is absolutely disgusting. Mainly created by angry middle-aged white men who know exactly what they’re doing.
“Funnily enough on one of my development sites last week there was a Union Jack flag put up and I took it down instantly.
“Some people might be watching this and thinking: ‘Gary you’re not really patriotic.’ I’ve played for my country 85 times, I love my country, I love Manchester and I love England, but I’ve been building in this city for 15-20 years and there’s no one put a Union Jack flag up in the last 15-20 years so why do you need to put one up now? Because quite clearly it’s sending a message to everybody that there is something you don’t like.
“The Union Jack flag used in a negative fashion is not right and I’m a proud supporter of England, of Great Britain, of our country and will champion it anywhere in the world as one of the greatest places to live, but I think we need to check ourselves, check ourselves and start to think about bringing ourselves back to a neutral point because we’re being pulled right and left and we don’t need to be pulled right and left at all.”
