Former Manchester United and England defender Gary Neville has hit back at criticism aimed at Raheem Sterling on social media. The 23-year old has been under fire even before the World Cup started, with many questioning his choice of tattoos and his performances week in-week out. Neville, however, believes all the negative comments Sterling has received over the past few weeks have been unfair and “disgusting”. The Manchester City star missed a one-on-one chance to score for England against Sweden in the quarter-final clash, but was an attacking threat throughout for Gareth Southgate‘s team. Yet, he wasn’t spared on Twitter and some fans were very critical of his value to the team. “The actual treatment at half-time of him across social media was absolutely disgusting, and isn’t representative of the performance he put in,” Neville told ITV. “To run in-behind [Andreas] Granqvist all that time, he kept getting in and getting in. OK, we didn’t have the cherry on the cake, the goal, where all of a sudden you’re a hero, but it was a brilliant performance.” Meanwhile, David Beckham too agreed with Neville’s thoughts, saying: “Haven’t seen this but whatever it is it’s wrong,” Beckham wrote in an Instagram story. “We are in the semi final of a World Cup. Every player deserves to be applauded. We as a country are united and behind the team.” Know more about Sport360 Application<doc-sep>Former England defender Gary Neville hits out at the criticism Raheem Sterling faced on social media on Saturday afternoon. Former England defender Gary Neville has hit out at the criticism Raheem Sterling received on social media on Saturday afternoon. Sterling missed a golden chance to send England two goals ahead in the latter stages of the first half of their quarter-final with Sweden at the 2018 World Cup. The Three Lions still went on to record a 2-0 win - booking their spot in the semi-finals as a result - but Sterling was heavily criticised for his first-half performance against the Swedes in Samara. Neville has leapt to the defence of the Manchester City attacker, insisting that he put in "a brilliant performance" in the last-eight clash. Neville told ITV: "The actual treatment at half time of [Sterling] across social media was absolutely disgusting, and isn't representative of the performance he put in. "To run in-behind [Andreas] Granqvist all that time, he kept getting in and getting in. OK, we didn't have the cherry on the cake, the goal, where all of a sudden you're a hero, but it was a brilliant performance." England will face either Croatia or Russia in the semi-finals of the World Cup on Wednesday night.<doc-sep>Once you have subscribed we will use the email you provided to send you the newsletter. You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link at the bottom of the newsletter email. Raheem Sterling finds himself in a rather awkward position. He's experiencing the high of reaching a World Cup semi-final with his country. But while fans are lavishing praise on the likes of Jordan Pickford and Harry Maguire, Sterling has received a great deal of criticism. The Manchester City forward is yet to score at the tournament and missed a great chance before half-time in the 2-0 win over Sweden. Sterling received the worst rating on the BBC’s Player Rater, which allows fans to give each player a score out of 10. The 23-year-old was graded 5.23 out of 10. Gary Neville leapt to Sterling’s defence by insisting the criticism of him was simply unfair. Beckham's Instagram post "The actual treatment at half-time of [Sterling] across social media was absolutely disgusting, and isn't representative of the performance he put in,” Neville said on ITV. David Beckham, Neville’s former teammate for Manchester United and England, has also had his say. Beckham posted a screenshot of the Neville article and added the message: “Haven't seen this but whatever it is it’s wrong. "We are in the semi-final of a World Cup. Every player deserves to be applauded. “We as a country are united behind the team..." Spot on, Becks. Thankfully for England, Gareth Southgate has managed his squad perfectly and he won’t allow the dressing room to be affected by negative headlines. Harry Kane spoke about the ‘band of brothers’ feeling inside the camp and the players will come to Sterling’s support. Not that he really needs any. While he doesn’t have a goal to speak of, the former Liverpool player has been impressive in Russia. The role he plays - to drag defenders out of position and create openings for others, while creating chances himself - is vitally important to the success of Southgate’s team. The panic he creates in opposing defences isn’t obvious on TV but several journalists who have watched England’s matches live have been quick to highlight Sterling’s importance. What do you make of Sterling's performances at the World Cup? Should he start against Croatia? Let us know in the comments section below! News Now - Sport News<doc-sep>Get the FREE Mirror Football newsletter by email with the day's key headlines and transfer news Invalid Email Something went wrong, please try again later. Sign up Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice Gary Neville has hit out at the "disgusting" trolls targeting Raheem Sterling. The England international was once again subject to social media abuse during the half time break in the Three Lions' World Cup quarter-final victory over Sweden. Sterling performed well in the 2-0 win, causing Sweden all sorts of problems with his forceful running. He did miss a great opportunity to score, but justified his continued inclusion ahead of Marcus Rashford. Speaking out about the abuse sent Sterling's way, Neville said on ITV: "The actual treatment at half-time of [Sterling] across social media was absolutely disgusting, and isn't representative of the performance he put in. (Image: ITV) (Image: PA) "To run in-behind Granqvist all that time, he kept getting in and getting in. OK, we didn't have the cherry on the cake, the goal, where all of a sudden you're a hero, but it was a brilliant performance." Sterling paid tribute to the England's supporters who cheered the team on in Samara and the millions doing so back home after the game. He said on Twitter: "Today, I want to thank all that have and continue to support England as a team, this has helped us achieve what can only be described as a dream!!! To reach the semi finals of a world cup........ WOW! We go again." England take on Croatia in Moscow on Wednesday for a place in the World Cup final against either France or Belgium.<doc-sep>
The former Three Lions international is not happy with how the Manchester City forward has been treated by supporters and parts of the media Gary Neville has hit out at the criticism of England attacker Raheem Sterling, calling it "absolutely disgusting". The Manchester City winger has come under fire by pundits and supporters, even before the World Cup started, when his choice of tattoos were questioned by British tabloids. Former Manchester United and England defender Neville feels that the criticism is unwarranted and believes that some of the comments he saw on Twitter at half-time during England's 2-0 win over Sweden were completely uncalled for. Sterling missed a one-on-one chance to score for the Three Lions, but despite being one of England's greatest attacking threats in the game, fans singled him out on social media, which upset Neville. "The actual treatment at half-time of him across social media was absolutely disgusting, and isn't representative of the performance he put in," Neville told ITV. "To run in-behind [Andreas] Granqvist all that time, he kept getting in and getting in. OK, we didn't have the cherry on the cake, the goal, where all of a sudden you're a hero, but it was a brilliant performance." Criticism of Sterling has continued from many pundits, with former Wales international Vinnie Jones the latest to attack the Premier League winner's performances. “I know there’s been a lot of criticism for Sterling," Jones told talkSPORT. “He is getting in all the right positions, but sometimes you look at Sterling and you think, if he didn’t have that pace he’d be playing for Exeter or someone." However, Sterling has also received support from David Beckham, who joined Neville in defending the 23-year-old. Article continues below Beckham admitted he didn't see the negative social media comments about Sterling, but agreed with his former United team-mate that the criticism was not justified. "Haven't seen this but whatever it is it's wrong," Beckham wrote on Instagram. "We are in the semi final of a World Cup. Every player deserves to be applauded. We as a country are united and behind the team."