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28th Jun 2016

Joey Barton tears apart ‘the Gary Neville myth’ following England humiliation

He actually makes some very valid points

Robert Redmond

Joey Barton took aim at the “Neville myth” following England’s exit from Euro 2016.

While he could just as easily criticised England’s inability to adequately pass the ball, the muddled ‘tactics’ of Roy Hodgson or the cinder block that Wayne Rooney calls a right foot, the new Rangers midfielder laid part of the blame for England’s loss to Iceland at the feet of Gary Neville.

Barton, in a series of tweets following the 2-1 defeat, cited Neville as an example of a culture that rewards reputation rather than ability, a culture that he seems to believe has cost the English team.

He even goes on to say that the former Manchester United defender shouldn’t have been appointed England coach.

neville

As far as the former Manchester City man is concerned, there is no correlation between being a good player, or a good football pundit, and being an effective coach.

And we know that he is not alone in his frustration with England’s reliance on reputation, just like the fans now calling on Wayne Rooney to remove himself from the England set up.

We get the sense Barton has been waiting for a while to get this off his chest.