After being ruled out of the FA Cup final with Chelsea (story), Gary Neville immediately underwent surgery to repair the ligament damage in his right ankle.

As team captain, and out of respect for his service, Manchester United wanted to give him every opportunity to get fit for the final at Wembley. When it became apparent that the injury was not progressing, the decision was made to have the surgery and ensure he’d be ready for next season.

Speaking to Sky News, Sir Alex Ferguson had the following comments:

“We operated immediately, and it’s been successful. We’ve cleaned it up and he should be there for the start of the season. It is a blow. When it happened we didn’t think it would be particularly serious.”

“It was ligament damage and we thought in five or six weeks he’d be back, but it just didn’t get any better. We’re confident he’ll be back for the start of the season.”