Former Manchester United midfielder Nicky Butt has urged Kobbie Mainoo to refuse to play in England's World Cup third-place decider against France on Saturday, calling the match a 'nonsense game' and a 'pointless jumped-up friendly'. Mainoo, 21, has not played a single minute for England during the tournament, remaining on the bench for all seven matches under manager Thomas Tuchel.
Butt's criticism of Tuchel and the third-place match
Butt, speaking exclusively to Paddy Power, expressed frustration with Tuchel's treatment of Mainoo. 'I do not know what is going on there, there's something not quite right with it,' Butt said. 'Now they're going to play the bomb squad in the stupid third-place game. I'd just refuse to play if I was Kobbie Mainoo. I'd say I was injured. It's a nonsense game, especially when you've been treated like that. He's not played a minute of football, now to go and start this pointless jumped-up friendly and potentially get injured for the whole season… no.'
Mainoo's season and World Cup role
Mainoo finished the second half of last season as one of Manchester United's standout performers under Michael Carrick, earning a place in Tuchel's England squad. However, he has been overlooked throughout the World Cup. Tuchel is expected to make several changes for the third-place game against France, which kicks off at 10pm BST on Saturday, and Mainoo is in line for his first appearance.
Butt calls for Tuchel's dismissal
Butt also believes the Football Association should sack Tuchel and replace him with either Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe or Mauricio Pochettino, who led the United States to the World Cup last-16. 'There's no way he [Tuchel] can stay on. Not a cat in hell's chance after that,' Butt said. 'If he stays on, John McDermott [the FA's technical director] needs to be sacked as well. There's no way you can keep him now. He's not a Sir Bobby Robson or Kevin Keegan, someone that the nation loves. You're talking about a manager that's come in and played negative football, crazy negative football, in the semi-final against a beatable Argentina team. And it shouldn't really matter, but people will go against him because he's German as well, so he's going to have a nightmare.'
Potential replacements and Guardiola speculation
Butt dismissed Pep Guardiola as an immediate option, saying, 'If we were nine months down the line, I'd definitely be going for Pep Guardiola. But Pep can't leave Man City a month ago, saying he needs a rest from football, and then go straight back in. He can't do that.' Instead, he backed Howe and Pochettino. 'Eddie Howe would be brilliant. I'd love him to go in, it'd be great. Mauricio Pochettino's got an unbelievable relationship with John McDermott and he picks it. When McDermott was the academy manager at Tottenham, Pochettino was the manager, and they had a really, really good relationship. I was in and around it with the Manchester United academy, we would do training camps there so I've seen it first hand. I wouldn't be surprised if that happened and I wouldn't be against it at all. He's a very, very good manager. A likeable person, plays good football everywhere he goes. But we all said the same about Tuchel, yet when they go into that England dynamic, they just change, it's crazy. I can't put my finger on why.'
