Kris Boyd has again slammed Newcastle defender Grant Hanley.
Former Scotland international Kris Boyd has told The Scottish Sun that he feels Grant Hanley’s best ‘isn’t good enough’ after the Newcastle defender struggled for Scotland against England.
Scotland made the short trip south to take on England on Friday evening in a 2018 World Cup qualifier, and were handed a 3-0 defeat as Daniel Sturridge, Adam Lallana and Gary Cahill all scored headers for the Three Lions.
Newcastle United’s Grant Hanley celebrates
The result has piled the pressure on manager Gordon Strachan after just one win the first four games of qualifying, but Scotland did have their chances at Wembley, and just couldn’t take them.
Leigh Griffiths chose to shoot instead of playing Robert Snodgrass in on goal, Snodgrass had a shot saved by Joe Hart, and James Forrest dragged a shot wide when he could – and possibly should – have scored.
However, the best chance of the game fell to Scotland defender Grant Hanley, who was presented with a glorious opportunity to find the net, but headed over the bar when unmarked from a corner.
Scotland’s Grant Hanley looks dejected
Hanley’s miss has been criticised over the last few days, whilst the Newcastle man has also been slammed for his defending – particularly by ex-Scotland striker and current Kilmarnock ace Kris Boyd.
Boyd told The Scottish Sun earlier this month that he’s sick of seeing Hanley making the same mistakes for Scotland, urging Strachan to drop the giant centre back for the England game.
Now, Boyd has told The Scottish Sun that Hanley’s performance was just as bad as he expected, suggesting that his best isn’t good enough, and claimed that the defender really was that bad against England, whilst also noting that his lack of first-team football since leaving Blackburn for Newcastle over the summer could be a factor.
Kris Boyd – Kilmarnock
“We were dire at the back with big Hanley’s performance everything I feared it would be,” said Boyd. “I said it last week in this column, I wrote about how I was sick to the back teeth of seeing him making the same mistakes. Well at Wembley nothing changed.”
“I genuinely hate to slate the big man because he’s doing his best. But frankly, his best isn’t good enough. Is this down to the fact he’s had more minutes with Scotland recently than he has done with Newcastle? You could point the finger at him for all three goals, he was that bad,” he added.
What did you think of Hanley’s performance against England?
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