"Shut the hell up" - WWE legend defends Goldberg from criticism

WWE Hall of Famer Goldberg made his return on the June 16 edition of RAW to confront the World Heavyweight Champion Gunther. His message set up a match between the two for the title, which was officially announced later for the Saturday Night's Main Event on July 12.

The match has already been billed as the veteran's retirement match and will take place in his hometown of Atlanta, Georgia. As such, there has been some excitement around his final run, but not everybody is on board.

The response to his return has been mixed, with veterans such as Bully Ray even questioning WWE's decision to make his match against Gunther a title bout. However, another WWE legend has come to the former WCW Champion's defense.

Speaking on the Hall of Fame podcast, Booker T came out in support of Goldberg, despite the ongoing criticism. The NXT commentator justified the veteran's presence in the main event spotlight and his walk into a title match upon his return.

"I want to reach out to all the the guys of that era of Goldberg and the guys of that era that are complaining about Goldberg. 'Why does Goldberg get the shot? Why is he in this match? This guy is not.' I wanna reach out to those guys. Because, damn it, the reason why he’s doing it, because it’s the same thing your a** would have did if WWE called you to be in a final match with Gunther in a prime time spot. That’s why,” he said. [55:45-56:25]

The WWE Hall of Famer first tried to confront Gunther at Bad Blood last October, when The Ring General made unsavory remarks to the legend's son, who was also in attendance. While Bully Ray was alright with Da Man taking eight months to go after the Austrian star, he was not satisfied with it being a title match. Ray also said that the WCW legend's return failed to excite him.

However, Booker T stood by his former WCW colleague and had a message for the critics.

"Anybody out there complaining can just shut the hell up. Seriously. Because I know if they would have called me, I would have did it. And I know just about anybody that’s in that position, that’s that’s able to actually walk to that ring, they would have did it too,” he added. [56:28-56:50]

Booker T also sent a message to the young talent, saying anybody unhappy with WWE's decision should hope that one day they are in that position where a company feels they could bring a lot to the table at that age.

Another criticism was whether Da Man was physically fit to compete. Some fans allegedly noticed the former Universal Champion walking with a limp as he made his return to the flagship show.

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Goldberg addressed his criticism ahead of World Title match

The WWE Hall of Famer was quick to respond to his critics, who questioned his conditioning ahead of his marquee retirement match against Gunther.

Speaking to Dan Sileo of JAKIB Sports, the former WWE World Champion brought up Bully Ray's criticism and fired back.

"Everybody’s like 'Oh, Goldberg’s limping to the ring. Goldberg's small! Goldberg’s old!' I am freaking old. What do you want me to do? Show up at 20 years? Turn the clock back? But show me another 58-year-old dude that’s willing to go out and do this," he said. [From 14:53 to 15:11]

Well, despite the divisive reaction on his return, the WCW legend is set for one last showdown in the ring. A final match against the World Heavyweight Champion, in front of his family and friends, might just be the perfect opportunity for him to answer his critics one last time.

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