Soccer: Butt relying on team ethos

Manchester United’s players have closed ranks around blunder boys Fabien Barthez and Wes Brown.

Barthez and Brown have been criticised for their mistakes which have cost United dear in their last two defeats against Deportivo La Coruna and Bolton.

However, Nicky Butt feels it is unfair to single out individuals and he claims United win as a team and lose as a team.

‘‘They are two big players who take their individual mistakes on the chin and just get on with it,’’ he said.

‘‘But we’re also a team who take defeat together and not just individually.

‘‘We can rise above this and try and perform the way we know we can do.’’

Barthez and Brown’s mistakes have contributed to United’s alarming goals against tally of 21 in their 13 competitive games this season.

Even so, Butt does not think the defence is performing that badly.

He claims it is up to every one in the team to stop the opposition scoring, starting with Olympiakos tonight at Old Trafford.

‘‘A lot has been said about our defence, but I think it’s unfair because we defend as a team,’’ he said.

‘‘We’re taught that in training from the forwards to the midfield we all need to do our bit.

‘‘Personally I think most of the time we have defended well, and it’s just down to silly individual errors.

‘‘Obviously it’s a problem because we keep giving goals away.

‘‘We’re all working on it, and I hope we can get back to what we were like.’’

Despite United’s generosity at the back, they could still qualify for the Champions League second phase tonight.

The Reds, who beat Olympiakos 2-0 in Athens two weeks ago, will progress if they can overcome the Greek champions a second time and Lille fail to defeat Deportivo in La Coruna.

But United assistant manager Jimmy Ryan, who deputised for Sir Alex Ferguson at yesterday’s Champions League press conference, knows a third defeat could have serious implications for the Reds.

United would find themselves bottom of Group G if Olympiakos and Lille win and they would then face a must-win showdown away to the French side.

Ryan said: ‘‘The biggest thing about this game is that if we don’t win then it will no longer be in our own hands.

‘‘We will then have to rely on a combination of other results. Then we would have to go to an away game and win.’’

Butt could start tonight because Reds captain Roy Keane is likely to miss out with his knee injury.

Olympiakos, who have never won away in the Champions League, have more serious injury worries. Ze Elias is out, while goalkeeper Dimitrios Eleftheropoulos and Stylianos Venetidis are doubtful.

Just to compound their problems, Brazilian Giovanni is suspended after he was sent off against Lille last week.

Olympiakos rekindled their qualification hopes by beating Lille, and coach Takis Lemonis knows they must try to take something from the game against United if that win is to count for anything.

‘‘We have come to England with the aim of getting at least a point,’’ he admitted.

‘‘There is no other way forward for us.’’

Manchester United (probable): Barthez, Irwin, Brown, Blanc, G Neville, Giggs, Keane/Butt, Veron, Beckham, Scholes, van Nistelrooy.

Olympiakos (probable): Georgiou/Eleftheropoulos, Kontis, Amanatidis, Anatolakis, Mavrogenidis, Patsatzoglou, Karembeu, Djordjevic, Giannakopoulos, Ofori Quaye, Alexandris.

Referee: Vitor Manuel Melo Pereira (Portugal).