By Tyne-Talk
March 29 2009

Newcastle United Midfielder Nicky Butt is the second player to openly criticise the club this week, days after Danny Guthrie told the press that the players need to take responsibility for their lack of points. Butt has told the News Of The World "We think we are too good to be working as hard as a Hull or a Bolton." The former Manchester United star openly admitted to thinking that the side have sat back and hoped for the best.

He said;

"I am a player. I am part of why we are where we are. It's p****d me off. We have 20- odd lads who are p****d off. We will all have different reasons as to why it has gone wrong.

It's definitely in our heads. We think we're too good to be working as hard as a Hull or a Bolton. We have to work as hard as them and then our ability will kick in.

Maybe we think we don't need to do that, that we're too good. We think: 'We've got Michael Owen, we've got Oba Martins, we've got Gutierrez, we've got Damien Duff - we've got all these great players, so we don't need to work as hard. But the fact is we do.

I'm part of it. We're all in it together. We're going out for games and we have the thing in our head that we are much better than him, the person we're playing against.

We think, 'I'm a much better player and I can take it easy today.' Everyone is part of that and we have to get rid of it.

It's not work ethic, to be fair. They are all good lads who work hard in training and give their all. It's something inside your head. I'm no different. You think, 'I'm playing against this lad today, and I'm better.' You might think once or twice a season, 'I can take it a bit easy today' - but you can't.

Sooner or later you have to look at yourself in the mirror. You have to say, 'Hold on, mate. It's not his fault. It's me who's not performing.'

We all have to do that and try to turn it around for the last eight games. I hope the players are coming round to that way of thinking."

Butt then compared the standards to those at Manchester United;

"Taking it easy wasn't allowed at Manchester United. You have so many players fighting for your position. This season we've had injuries and maybe even if you don't train well you still play.

At the top clubs, if you're not training well in the week, the coaches will see that and someone else will play. If you've got people threatening to take your position, players as good as you, you know that if you take your foot off the gas for a fraction, you'll be out of the team.

We've the potential to be a big club but we're not. We're going backwards and I came here to challenge for the top four. Everyone is Newcastle daft up here. Even the girls and the grannies go around in black and white shirts. That makes it different.

If we get the structure of the club right, we can get there. But it will take years and no one wants to hear that. You need to get the academy running right, you need to get players coming through the club who bleed it, players whose grandparents loved the club.

I feel for this club now. I feel for Newcastle. I love the place, I love the attitude of the people around it. It's just football, football, football. Our position hurts me because this place means something to me. We have to keep the club in The Premier League."

Butt: Maybe We Think We Are Too Good - We Aren't

Discussion started by TyneTalk (IP Logged), 29/03/2009 12:55

TyneTalk
29/03/2009 12:55

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UserH
29/03/2009 18:21

How dare you?

Butt.. our midfield is not as good as we think, and you are yesterday news. The reason for you to no longer play in a big club like Manchester United ain't your love to this club (you are not Alan Shearer), it is just because you are not up to it. Get over it.

We don't need from you Butt. Oh yes we do, quit please!

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annie
29/03/2009 18:50

I think he's right and has the right to give his opinion.
He say's how much he loves the club.


He's talking about himself as much as the team, they do have to scrap now, fight for every ball, give their all.

Let's hope they do.

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lostmekeys
30/03/2009 00:29

its a team game, and its hard for someone in butts position to shine when he is surrounded by rubbish, however good he is. you cant win a game from there, but you can look bad when a game is lost. think about it, why would the ball be coming at nicky butt every twenty seconds, if we had anyone who could hold the ball? if we anyone who could construct an attack? if we had anyone who took responsibility outside of their own twenty square metres? he isnt as good as he was, but he's an awful lot better then some people try to make out. he's also an absolute certainty for our best 11 at the moment, whoever is or isnt fit, whoever is manager.

yours sincerely,
scratched record.
xxx

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OnTheLevee
30/03/2009 06:14

I find it rather ironic that the player who plays only due to our lack of quality in CM insists that he thinks he's 'too good'.

LM,
The reason the ball is coming to Butt every 20 seconds is because when he gets it he plays an aimless 30 yard pass to noone and is then forced to defend when, shockingly, we lose possession because of it. I will concede that Butt is not an attacking midfielder and shouldn't be expected to create chances, however that being the case, he should then play short simple passes in an effort to keep possession so somebody else can drive the attack.

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lostmekeys
30/03/2009 11:20

he's one of the players who got us unto this mess, yes. i'm not making out that he shouldnt get some of the blame, but he gets more than his share on this board for some reason. along with just about every player we have, he has had a poor season and his reputation has suffered because of it. have any of our players NOT suffered this loss of reputation this season though?
when any of our midfield players get the ball they struggle to make a simple pass because the players around him all too often go missing. watch out for it, nzogbia was brilliant at nipping behind an opponent to avoid being available for a pass, and lots of our players do it. its what butt himself was getting at in the article, we need players who show for the ball, who work at being in space to receive the pass at the time we have won the ball. watch out for players hiding in this way, its happening every week at the minute. in my opinion nicky butt doesnt do it, so rather than hiding and avoiding the blame, he is sticking his neck out in a losing cause

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tunyc
30/03/2009 22:02

Some truth to both of your positions: Butt is generally surrounded by a shower of s.hite in midfield, and it's hard to shine when that's the case...on the other hand, he keeps trying to play final balls, which isn't his game. At his age and experience level, I find it absurd that he seems to be pressing more than anyone else in the squad. Seems like I'm always yelling at the screen when he has the ball: "JUST KEEP POSSESSION!!"

Also, note how he diplomatically places responsibility with the club when he criticizes the squad size by bringing up the competition for spots that was the norm at Manchester United (and still is, I might add...).

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