-Credit:2023 James Gill – Danehouse
Micah Richards does not let the so-called ‘golden rule of punditry’ stop him from criticising his former team-mates on TV.
The ex-Manchester City captain moved into punditry in 2019 after injuries forced him to retire from football at the age of only 31. Having walked away from the game at such an early age, many of Richards’ former team-mates are still in the Premier League today, which can sometimes put him in an awkward position as a pundit.
Ex-players often talk about the so-called ‘golden rule’ of punditry, which states that those in the studio should hold back from criticising individuals they used to play with. But Richards did not become one of the top pundits on Sky Sports, CBS and the BBC by sitting on the fence and saying nothing but nice things.
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In an exclusive interview with Manchester Evening News, while promoting the new season of Sky’s hit sports show ‘A League of Their Own’, Richards made it clear that he does not follow the ‘golden rule’. But there is something he does do to ensure his friends that are still in dressing rooms today do not feel like they have been completely stabbed in the back.
Many seasons ago, Manchester United ace and Richards’ ex-England team-mate Ashley Young was on the receiving end of a considered critique from Richards. At the time, Young, who still plays for Everton today, had recently been converted from a winger into a full-back and was struggling to get to grips with the position.
After Young had a difficult afternoon, Richards was asked to offer his thoughts on his former team-mate’s display. Looking back on that day, Richards said: “I remember, a few years ago, Ashley Young had an absolute stinker of a game, but I am good mates with him. He had sort of gone into the full-back role when he had played in midfield or even as a striker or a No.10.
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“So I sort of felt for him playing as a full-back, especially when you are not as agile as you used to be, or maybe you’re not quite as quick and you’ve lost a yard of pace. What I did was I put myself in that position.
“When I was criticising, I was saying stuff like, ‘and I have made that mistake too’, or, ‘I’d have not done this or not done that’. It’s a way of criticising people without making it personal.
Young struggled as a full-back at first -Credit:Photo by James Williamson – AMA/Getty Images
“We all make mistakes and so many people basically speak like they have never made a mistake in football, when we make mistakes every single week.
“So it is difficult when it is someone who you know, but you have to do your job at the end of the day, because that’s what you are paid for, it’s your opinion.”
Micah Richards will be on the 19th season of A League of Their Own -Credit:Sky UK Limited ©
Young would go on to find his feet as a full-back at United, becoming a versatile defender and, for the first half of the 2019/20 campaign, the club captain. A matter of months later, he sealed a 2020 January transfer window move to Inter Milan, where he spent 18 months, before returning to Aston Villa in the summer.
He is now a regular starter at Everton, where he has now reunited with former United manager David Moyes.
Season 19 of A League of Their Own is on Sky Max and Sky Showcase every Thursday from 9pm.