A CHAOTIC week in terms of Covid, football and politics peaked on Wednesday as more information was uncovered about the alleged Christmas Party at Downing Street last December — and Gary Neville had something to say about it.

It is unsurprising that a footballer who shared a dressing room with the likes of Sir Alex Ferguson understands that, although the game was a business and a livelihood for him, he was also part of a mass working-class spectator sport with its own distinct culture. 

Neville spoke with intelligence and didn’t hold back when he called out the Prime Minister in a video posted to Twitter.

“The distraction tactic is now a predictable one. We’ve seen it for the last two years,” he said of the PM’s “plan B” press conference on Wednesday.

“This guy lacks integrity, he lies to us constantly — the mistruths that come out of Number 10 are just constant.

“And not only that, he is the worst kind of leader. Someone who then expects his team to go under with him, and come out and lie for him.

“His ministers and his MPs are constantly forced to do that and enough is enough,” he added. “It’s not even about a party or a social gathering on December 18, or a secret Santa and cheese and wine.

“It’s about actually having a guy at the top of our country who believes he can just take us all for a ride and laugh at us. And he does it time, after time, after time. This cannot be let go.

“Now is the time to get this guy out of Number 10 and start bringing some standards back into politics.”

When it comes to leadership Neville knows a thing or two, having been part of hugely successful teams at club and country level.

And as he says, this isn’t just about a Christmas party — it is about integrity and trust. After all, these are things that most football fans admire about the players that represent their clubs.

It isn’t just about breaking rules in high places, it is about illustrating this government’s approach to Covid and to working-class people across Britain. It has done too little, too late, and abandoned the most vulnerable.

As if one Gary wasn’t enough, Gary Lineker has also been notably vocal about this government’s failings (he has repeatedly attacked its refugee “reforms,” and in recent days its conduct around the Christmas party).

Neville and Lineker have been consistent for some time, especially online — using the technology of the fans to give a platform to these issues and standing up for those with no voice. Not talking down to fans, but to them, in their own language. 

Make no mistake, as the struggle against racism has proven, having such discussions in this arena is vital.

I’m sick of reading comments on social media aimed at Marcus Rashford, for example, saying: “Do your talking on the pitch.” Why, in this day and age, can’t a footballer also be a political activist? 

Not just footballers — Lewis Hamilton deserves a mention, taking a stand this week for the LGBTQ+ community in the Middle East at the F1’s Saudi Grand Prix. I’m sure there are countless others doing the same.

The fact that they are among the most celebrated sportspeople of their respective eras means they can speak with authority about working-class culture. And despite their riches, they are working class in origin. Neville and Lineker have spent their lives playing in front of workers on the terraces, visiting communities and hospitals as part of their charity work, signing books and speaking in schools.

They have a voice and have earned an audience. This isn’t about celebrity culture — they are clearly speaking beyond their contracts as concerned individuals. But their collective reach is huge, which is something to be welcomed.

Let no-one underestimate that the terraces are an important arena in the battle of ideas. Taking the knee, the struggle against racism, and all forms of discrimination is one of the most important battles, but not the only one.

Talking about poverty, food poverty, and cuts to universal credit are all part of the wider picture. The two Garys are helping to raise such issues on terraces  — all the more important in a sphere where the left often has a subdued presence.