Alex Neil feels he has been unfairly painted as the 'villain' for leaving Sunderland to take over at Stoke City - but insists he bears neither the club nor its fans any ill-will. Neil led the Black Cats to promotion from League One last season and was regarded as a hero on Wearside, but that only made the manner of his exit at the end of August all the more difficult for supporters to take.
The Scot says 'a lot of untrue things' have been said about him since his departure, however he is not one to dwell on the past. Neil made his first return to the Stadium of Light this weekend and while he was booed by the home fans throughout, he had the last laugh with his Potters side inflicting a humbling 5-1 defeat on his former club.
Asked after the match about his reasons for leaving, Neil said: "I don't want to get into that because, as a manager, there are so many decisions you have to make and you have to protect the integrity of the club - and you have a duty to protect the club and not divulge certain things. What's done is done and I'm not going to get into he-said, she-said, all that.
