Phil Neville to lead Everton exodus to David Moyes's Manchester United

Posted Tuesday, May 28, 2013 by theguardian.com

• Steve Round, Chris Woods and Robbie Cooke will follow
• Neville to replace Rene Meulensteen as first-team coach

Phil Neville, left, made almost 400 appearances for Manchester United before
becoming David Moyes's captain at Everton

David Moyes, the incoming Manchester United manager, is set to appoint Phil Neville, Steve Round, Chris Woods and Robbie Cooke to his backroom staff, with all four taken from his former club Everton.

Neville, who made almost 400 appearances for United before joining Everton in 2005, is expected to replace Rene Meulensteen as first-team coach. The 36-year-old, Moyes's captain at Everton, had expressed interest in taking over as manager at Goodison Park.

With Meulensteen understood to have turned down a different role, four of Sir Alex Ferguson's senior backroom team will have departed the club. The assistant manager, Mike Phelan, Eric Steele, the goalkeeping coach, and Martin Ferguson, Sir Alex's brother, the chief scout, have all left.

Round, who has been Moyes's assistant manager at Everton since 2008, should take Phelan's position. Woods is in line to take over from Steele and Cooke, the chief scout at Everton, is likely to replace Ferguson.

It is unclear if Moyes, who hopes to persuade Wayne Rooney he has a future at United, has been able to speak with the striker. The birth of Rooney's second son and the fact that the forward was joining up with the England squad on Sunday, plus Moyes's plan to take a holiday this week, means time for them to meet has been limited.