Was Fergie right to make star 'pull out of England duty'?

Former Manchester United star Nicky Butt this week revealed that Sir Alex Ferguson made him withdraw from England duty during his time at United, and it caused quite a stir.

The ex-England and United midfielder admitted that he could have won more caps for his country had it not been for Fergie, who managed to keep him out of matches.

Butt represented England 39 times between 1997 and 2004 and starred for his country at the 2002 World Cup before going on to be a part of the Euro 2004 squad.

He surprised everyone by revealing in a question and answer session at Soccerex that he could have featured more times for England - while sitting alongside former United team-mates Ryan Giggs and Phil Neville.

The 39-year-old recalled Ferguson telling him: "You've got an England game coming up. You're not going."

It was a startling but not altogether unsurprising revelation, given that the debate over whether national sides should be given priority - or at least equal importance - compared to major clubs has been at the heart of many issues surrounding top level football, particularly in England.

Ferguson, lest we forget, has not always had things all his own way when it comes to controlling his star players around international matches.

The Scot famously attempted to halt Wayne Rooney’s selection for the 2006 World Cup according to claims made in former England boss Sven-Goran Eriksson’s autobiography.

Fergie was said to be ‘screaming down the phone’ in an attempt to dissuade then England manager Eriksson from taking Rooney to the finals in Germany.

Eriksson wrote: "Leif and I met Ferguson and United's doctor at the United training ground.'He cannot play in the World Cup', Ferguson said flatly. The doctor brought out some X-rays that he said showed Rooney's broken bone would not heal in time. "When the doctor finished, Leif looked him in the eye. 'Why do you sit here and lie to me?' Leif asked.

"He was one of Europe's foremost specialists on this kind of injury. I just wish I could have filmed Ferguson's face when Leif explained that Wayne's break would heal in time for the World Cup. "When Leif had finished, I turned to Ferguson. 'Sorry, Alex,' I said. 'I will pick Rooney'."

There are many other accounts of similar moments with Ferguson and England coming head-to-head over top players, but it would be unfair to suggest that the former United boss always got his own way, because that was patently not the case.

However, it is surely understandable that he should have wanted to protect his club's prized assets from injuries and fitness issues considering the investments that had been made in the individuals in question. Both sides inevitably wanted to look after their own interests.

To put Butt's recent comments in the wider context of the debate in recent weeks, they came after QPR and former Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp claimed that players have previously asked him if he would pull them out of England squads.

During his time at Spurs, Redknapp said that players in his squad requested that he withdraw them from England duty - revelations which proved to be very controversial.

Butt's comments about his time at United under Ferguson reignite the debate once more over whether Premier League bosses care about England's prospects and are showing enough respect to the national side.

Ferguson was not the first and he certainly won't be the last to do seemingly everything he possibly could to protect and control his stars when it comes to international duty. Still, it does not stop Butt's revelations from seeming both shocking and frustrating for many.