Nicky Butt says two ‘unbelievable’ Man Utd players were actually terrible in training

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Nicky Butt has named two former Manchester United players who were ‘unbelievable forwards’ despite being ‘shocking’ in training.

Manchester United have produced over 250 players from the academy for the first team, including Nicky Butt.

Butt came through the ranks as a key member of the Class of ’92 and spent 12 years in the first team before joining Newcastle, Birmingham City and Hong Kong’s South China.

The former midfielder also spent nine years coaching at United and became head of first team development before stepping down in March 2021.

Butt played a key role in developing players like Marcus Rashford and Scott McTominay, although he has yet to return to coaching after his second stint at United.

The former England international took plenty of experience from his years in the game, coming through at United and playing alongside world-class players.

Nicky Butt reflects on training with Mark Hughes and Brian McClair

Nowadays, United fans can hear from Butt on a weekly podcast.

Along with former United ace Paul Scholes and comedian Paddy McGuinness, Butt records The Food, The Bad & The Football podcast with special guests. Recent guests include former United defender Steve Bruce and One Direction member Niall Horan.

On recent episodes, Butt has praised Jose Mourinho, and Scholes raved about Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as a player.

This week’s guest was former Liverpool striker Robbie Fowler, who spoke about his career and views on the 2025/26 Premier League title race.

Speaking on the podcast, Butt revealed two players from his early days at United who were ‘unbelievable’ that didn’t carry the same excellence into training.

“Mark Hughes and Brian McClair they were two unbelievable forwards, but they were shocking in training, they couldn’t be a**** to do anything,” Butt said.

“They’d just walk around, but in a game, wow… Top, top players.”

Mark Hughes will be remembered as one of United’s greatest forwards after two spells at Old Trafford. The ex-Wales international made 459 appearances for the club, scoring 161 goals and registering 19 assists.

On the other hand, Brian McClair spent 11 years at United playing under Sir Alex Ferguson. He became the first player since George Best to score 20 league goals in a single season for United, doing so in his first season (1987/88).

What is Mark Hughes doing now?

From the heights of playing for United, Barcelona and Bayern Munich, Hughes finds himself managing National League side Carlisle United.

Hughes has managed several clubs following a five-year stint in charge of the Wales national team between 1999 and 2004.

After hanging up the boots as a player in 2002, Hughes took charge of Blackburn Rovers for four years before managing Man City, Fulham, QPR, Stoke City, Southampton and Bradford City.