Butt ‘excited’ by South China option

FORMER Newcastle and Manchester United midfielder Nicky Butt could be set to come out of retirement after accepting an offer to train with Hong Kong side South China.

Butt will arrive in the territory later this month and will feature in South China’s league game against TSW Pegasus before deciding whether to remain with the club until the end of the season.

“I wanted some time out of the game to concentrate on my next step either in or out of football. However, I feel fit and when South China FC approached me to join them for a week’s training and a game, the prospect excited me,” said the 35-year-old former England international.

Meanwhile Alan Shearer says he believes England have made no progress under Fabio Capello.

The former England striker insists there is no clear thinking or consistency in team selection.

Shearer said: “Fabio has been here two and a half years now and I’m not sure we’ve gone forward in that time.

“If every England player was fit I’m not sure he would actually know what system he wanted to play or what team he wanted to play.

“If you look at before we went into the World Cup our qualifying campaign was a huge success but it seems that we have gone slightly backwards from that.

“I’m not sure what system we’d play or what XI we would play if everyone was fit. I don’t know if the manager would either.”

Shearer, however, believes Newcastle’s Andy Carroll, who made his England debut on Wednesday, is here to stay.

He said: “I’ve been hugely impressed with the way he has been on the football pitch. We have got to give the guy a chance. He has scored goals, the future is very bright for him. He’s big, he’s strong, he’s horrible to play against and if he could control his lifestyle he could be a regular for a long time.”