He regularly stepped into the lion's den at Anfield and Goodison during almost two decades as a player with Manchester United. But there's a cheery sense of trepidation from Gary Neville as he once again prepares to brave performing in front of thousands of supporters in Liverpool.
Having long swapped the pitch for the commentary gantry, Neville this evening will be at the M&S Bank Arena for the first night of The Overlap Live, a four-date tour of his successful YouTube channel. There will, at least, be safety in numbers, with fellow Sky Sports pundits Jamie Carragher and Roy Keane joining him on stage. Kenny Dalglish will be a special guest.
"I'm not sure what reception I'll get!" laughs Neville, speaking to the ECHO. "Carra got a few boos in Manchester when we've been there in the past, so I'm expecting a few!
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"I'm a little bit nervous because when I set off on this journey two years ago now on The Overlap, I always wanted to take it to arenas. And now it's happening, I'm thinking 'Why did I do that? Why do I need this hassle and anxiety in my life?!?'
"There's nothing that replaces football in the life of a player after we've finished, but going out in front of thousands of people gives you that adrenaline rush and a buzz we won't have had in our lives in a few years. Live television can sometimes do that, but the atmosphere will be electric.
"We decided to do four big cities in Liverpool, Manchester, London and Dublin and we've been overwhelmed with how things have gone. Liverpool will be the most difficult one for me, though. But I couldn't be coming into Liverpool at a better time - both football clubs are absolutely terrible! Roy will have my back though!"
Impressionist Darren Farley and musician Jamie Webster complete the line-up, although don't expect the former to start mimicking the host. "Everybody thinks they can do me, but I don't think anyone can because it's that unique an accent," says Neville. "I'm Bury that's been giving myself elocution lessons! But Darren is good and Jamie Webster is a big local hero. It should be a good night."
Neville made 12 appearances at Goodison as a United player compared to 10 at Anfield. And the 47-year-old is in no doubt about which was the more difficult venue.
"Goodison was all right for me, it wasn't terrible and it got even easier when Phil (Neville) gave his passport in across the border and went to Everton!" he says. "It was tough at Anfield and was the hardest place to play. It was football rivalry and humour, but sometimes there was potentially a bit of aggro in the games where it might boil over the top.
"I got a lot of stick and I could hear it, particularly over on the opposite stand to where the benches are (the Sir Kenny Dalglish Stand). Whenever I took a throw-in, I could hear the abuse. But I always thought that was all fair. I'd grown up not liking Liverpool as a football club, they'd grown up not liking United, and we want our teams to win.
"To play at Anfield was a big thing for a young United fan. For the two seasons beforehand, the manager had left me out. Then he played me there for the first time in 1995/96 and we lost 2-0. I remember going out and it was the first time I'd been on the pitch at Anfield when it was full, I'd played there for the reserves previously. 'You'll Never Walk Alone' comes on and the noise and atmosphere does hit you, how difficult it is, the tightness of the ground, it feels like you're suffocating particularly in the first 20 minutes. I always remember you had to get through that period."
Neville won five times at Anfield with United - and three times when playing there for England - and has two distinct memories from his travels down the other end of the East Lancs Road.
"My favourite moment was when John O'Shea scored the winner at the Kop end in the last minute in 2007," he says. "We were down to 10 men and I went absolutely mad. That was my best experience there. My worst one was probably in 1999 when Incey scored late on for Liverpool and put us back to 2-2, we had been 2-0 up earlier. I lost there in the FA Cup when Crouchy scored as well, that was a bad one.
"Liverpool had us at that period because they were so solid and rigid during the Houllier and early Benitez era. It was difficult to play against those teams. There wasn't much football played against us. I remember one time Biscan, Hamann, Gerrard and Riise were in midfield, four tall, solid players. Anfield was a really dour place to go to as a United player at that time and it was awful to play against and difficult to win there. For two or three seasons we lost both home and away."
That rivalry suggests matters could get tasty in the arena this evening. And for Neville, that's in some way the entire point.
"I suppose I have thrived off s***housery for the last 30 years of my life!" he laughs. "I'm not entirely sure why this was as a full-back at United, but I was the one giving out the most aggro. It's the same in my punditry career in a way - you come out with opinions, some unpopular, some popular, sometimes in good humour, sometimes you are tweaking the tail of the tiger to get a reaction. That's what we do.
"It's entertainment at the end of the day. Obviously there are times when football is serious and it'll be like that on Thursday, some humour and some serious talk. I'm looking forward to it."
Gary Neville will be appearing at the M&S Bank Arena on Thursday night alongside fellow Sky Sports pundits Jamie Carragher and Roy Keane in The Overlap Live, a stage version of his YouTube show. Some tickets remain available and can be purchased at cuffeandtaylor.com.
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