Nicky Butt is a footballer born on January 21, 1975 in Gorton, Manchester, England. He is nicknamed as “Nicky” and “Butty” in the football circuit. During his stint with Newcastle United, he was described as “journeyman footballer”.
Nicky Butt represented the England national football team at the international level. He was playing for the England under-21 team during the 1994-95 season and has made five appearances. He was called to play for the senior side in 1997 and became a squad regular, providing reliable backup for the central midfield positions. He came up to replace injured teammate Steven Gerrard to play in the starting line-up for England at the 2002 Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cup. Impressed by his performance, the Brazilian legend, Pele honored him as The Best Player in the Tournament. On November 17, 2004, he played for England in a friendly match against Spain. Nicky Butt has made a total of 39 appearances for England.
Nicky Butt started his club career with the youth set-up of the Manchester United Football Club (FC) making his debut for the team in November 1992. By 1993, he became a regular member of the squad and was named the best player by his youth teammates including David Beckham and Ryan Giggs. He continued to offer his best at the field and was elevated from the reserves to the first team of Manchester United in 1994 and remained in the team for the entire 1994-95 season.
In July 2004, Nicky Butt moved to the Newcastle United FC and Bobby Robson, the former manager of Newcastle United, signed him for a transfer fee of £2 million to replace Gary Speed, a Welsh footballer. He was selected to play at the UEFA Cup in the 2004-05 season, but had to stay out of the team due to injury. Nicky Butt was loaned out to Birmingham City and remained with the club for the entire 2005-06 season. In a match against Villarreal CF held at St. James Park stadium, he scored two goals through headers and became the fan’s favorite. During the 2006-07 season, he went on to become a vital member in the first team of Newcastle United and scored the winning goal of the 3-2 victory over Tottenham Hotspur FC on January 14, 2007. Nicky Butt was a crucial player of the team at the 2007-08 Premier League campaign. On December 20, 2007, he extended his Newcastle United contract to the end of next season and later in 2007-08 season, he became the vice captain of the team.
