Manchester United legend Gary Neville has slammed Premier League clubs for their treatment of local, English talent.

Writing in the Mail on Sunday, Neville declared: "I've always argued that young English players should have to compete with the best talents from Europe and that the cream will rise to the top. I still think that's true. Players like Ryan Giggs, David Beckham and Paul Scholes would have stood out in any environment. But what about players like me? Players like my brother, Phil, or Nicky Butt.

"No one is telling me that Manchester City, Arsenal and Chelsea have not had players in that bracket of talent in the past few years. I'm not even talking about the obvious talents but players with a good level of ability and a great attitude who need nurturing and a pathway to the first team so they can grow into good players who can make big contributions to the national team."