Chris Sutton puffs out his cheeks at the question.
As the man who was at one point the most expensive footballer in England, he is one of the few who can relate to the Jekyll and Hyde reaction that has greeted the first steps of Darwin Nunez and Erling Haaland into the Premier League.
A fortnight ago Nunez was under scrutiny after an indifferent pre-season. Haaland was put under the microscope after a lacklustre Community Shield. Fast forward to the opening weekend and both are heralded as having cracked it already.
Sutton knows the feeling: he was a huge success when he moved from Norwich to Blackburn in 1994. But five years later, a £10m move to Chelsea proved disastrous. Back then, it was newspapers and the occasional radio phone-in to navigate.
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“When I went to Blackburn I scored early, that unburdened me in many respects. At Chelsea I didn’t and all you nasty boys from the press ganged up and put the boot in on me!” he tells i.
“But it comes with the territory of being a high-profile signing. I’m glad Twitter didn’t exist in my day. Back then I think I probably would have bitten back. I’d not have lasted five minutes before being booted off it.
“I don’t understand players who are on social media, just on the basis there’s no grey. It’s either black or white, isn’t it? You’re either a superstar or you’re a complete disaster and most people like to put the boot in.
“There are some decent things about social media but if you’re a current player or something I would certainly avoid.”
Not that either, in Sutton’s view, will have much to worry about. Haaland, he believes, is a class act. Nunez offers Liverpool the aerial dominance they perhaps missed when Sadio Mane was leading the line.
The point is more one about the ecosystem around the Premier League these days. It’s one that Sutton enjoys being part of it as one of the most entertaining pundits over radio, TV and in print.
His honesty and humour sets him apart, his rapport with Robbie Savage on BBC Radio 5 Live’s 606 makes that programme.
“With the 606 thing it’s not easy, it’s live and there’s no delay button so you have to think on your feet,” he said.
“There’s always someone out there who is trying to pull your pants down so that’s why you have to try and prep and not get caught out.
“I always imagine if we’re in a pub with my mates – not that I’ve got that many mates – sitting and having a debate, we support different teams and have totally different opinions on football.
“You always get idiots who overstep the mark or do something outrageous. But I love football and I’m in a really privileged position.”
Last season he thinks it was probably Newcastle fans who were most offended by his defence of their previous manager. “I think I upset a few Newcastle fans last season by sticking my neck out on Steve Bruce. But all I was saying was the love for Rafa and dislike of Steve Bruce, perhaps the reality was somewhere in between.” He agrees now that Eddie Howe has done a “remarkable job” and will take them forward.
Sutton was speaking to i after taking part in a new BT Sport documentary “Glory Hunters”, which is a fascinating dive into the world of sports memorabilia, covering the 30 year Premier League anniversary auction.
He provided a shirt from his title win with Blackburn for the programme. “I’m no David Dickinson but I’ve always been interested. I like history, I like nostalgia and I’ve got a lot of the stuff at home,” he said of his involvement.
But he admits seeing Steve Hodge bank £7million for Diego Maradona’s shirt from the 1986 World Cup quarter-final did make him think.
“I used to just chuck my toys out of the pram and just sulk and not ask for someone else’s shirt if we’d lost but thinking back now, perhaps I missed a trick.”
Watch Glory Hunters on Thursday 4 August at 8pm on BT Sport 2 or catch up on btsport.com or the BT Sport app
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