Scholes warns England scarred by Liverpool and Manchester rivalry - Exclusive
Published 23:00 01/10/11 By Simon Mullock
The former Manchester United midfielder, who won 66 caps for his country before quitting international football at the age of 29, has revealed how club loyalties take the bite out of the Three Lions.
In a frank and astonishing interview with Sunday Mirror Sport, Scholes admitted that his time with England was scarred by the bitter rivalry that exists between United and Liverpool. And he says the ‘tribal’ nature of the Premier League is a major factor behind the lack of success at international level.
“There is a big rivalry between clubs in this country and it isn’t healthy when you go away on international duty,” said Scholes. “When I was with England, there was always a lot of United and Liverpool players in the squad and it was plainly obvious that some of our lads didn’t like some of their boys and some of their lads didn’t like some of us. Most of our players were Mancunians who are big United fans, while quite a few of the Scouse lads were Liverpool supporters.
“We weren’t just footballers, we actually loved the clubs we played for, and the rivalry was always there.
“As Mancs and Scousers we were always a bit suspicious of each other and you can’t have that kind of thing if you want to be successful as a team at international level.
“You can’t build a team or a spirit when that rivalry is always close to the surface.
“It was always too big to get over.”
Scholes added: “There was also a bit of that mistrust with players from other teams as well – like when Arsenal were our biggest challengers or Chelsea.
“We were challenging each other for the top trophies for most of the season and when it came to England we just didn’t get on like we should have. Then you had other lads who weren’t at top clubs and their motivation was to do well for themselves rather than the team.
“They felt that they had to do something to get a move to a bigger club and as a consequence they didn’t play their natural game. They were always trying to do something a bit special.
“Too often we were a collection of cliques and individuals rather than a team and you won’t win anything like that.
“All the managers I played under found it hard to gel a team together. It was a hard job made impossible by these club loyalties.”
Scholes believes the more cosmopolitan nature of the current England squad can only help Fabio Capello.
But he feels the strength of the Premier League is the reason why the national team has continually under achieved over the years.
Scholes, who has joined the Old Trafford coaching staff after bringing an end to a glittering playing career at the end of last season, said: “I’ve not been around the England squad for a while so I don’t know what it’s like now.
“As an outsider it looks like the lads now get on better than we used to, but the tribal nature of English football is always there.
“It might be different now. Rio Ferdinand is from London, Wayne Rooney is an Everton fan and Michael Carrick is a Geordie.
“It might have simmered down a little bit, but the rivalry between clubs is always there.
“We have the biggest and best league in the world, so I don’t think it’s unrealistic to expect
Read more: http://www.mirrorfootball.co.uk/news/Manchester-United-and-Liverpool-rivalry-scarred-England-says-Paul-Scholes-article806781.html#ixzz1ZZpFtPDB
Sign up for MirrorFootball's Morning Spy newsletter Register here
No comments:
Post a Comment