Jeff Stelling didn’t hold back with telling message after Soccer Saturday sackings

Jeff Stelling seldom finds himself at a loss for words, but the TV icon couldn’t believe the news of Soccer Saturday’s mass sackings.

The Sky Sports superstar was on his way to a recording session in August 2020 when his car blew a tire, and he was told that many of his pals will be let go. He was waiting for a mechanic when word spread that the team would be refreshed as a cost-cutting move, drawing comparisons to Manchester City selling off their prized assets.

The 69-year-old described the encounter as “like an out-of-body experience” when Sky Sports’ head of football, Gary Hughes, revealed their decision to cut ways with the roster of veterans. Stelling said in his new memoirs, Saturday Afternoon Fever, that he and colleague Paul Merson were the only senior statesmen saved from the slaughter.

Phil Thompson, Matt Le Tissier, and Charlie Nicholas all called Stelling to confirm their firing. Hughes phoned Stelling personally to emphasize that those in charge of Sky believed it was the “right time for change,” but the host defended his long-time panelists.

“‘How could this be the appropriate time?’ I blurted out. ‘The season begins in a couple of weeks, and you have fired three of our players. It’s like Manchester City selling [Kevin] De Bruyne, [Ilkay] Gundogan, and [Bernardo] Silva two weeks before the start of the season, their whole midfield and engine room. And we have no one to replace them with.”

“Gary claimed that it was the appropriate moment and that they had individuals who could fill the largest of broadcasting shoes, and started to rattle off a list of names. After each name, I made a snap decision. ‘Not good.’ ‘Terminally uninteresting.’ ‘Does not even like football.’ “Oh, for f***’s sake.” That conveys the whole tone.

“I was saddened, and as Gary listed the names of prospective replacements, I realized I needed to make a decision about my own destiny. Matt Roberts, the Soccer Saturday producer, called. He had just been informed of the bloodletting and was similarly astonished. He was the one who needed to rebuild the team rapidly. “Even Sir Alex Ferguson would have struggled.”

Clinton Morrison, Michael Dawson, and Tim Sherwood progressed from cameo appearances on Soccer Saturday to regular panellists. Sky sought to appeal to a younger audience by hiring a team of younger analysts, but Stelling questioned the strategy from the start.

It would be another three years before the renowned host retired, first announcing his intention to quit in 2022 then signing on for another season. The 29-year veteran stated “many tears had been shed” as he considered his future behind the desk, only to realize it was also time for him to retire.

A phone contact with Sky Sports general director Rob Webster persuaded Stelling to reconsider his decision. However, the departure of Stelling’s pals from the lineup certainly had an impact on the renowned anchor.

“Hand on heart, I cannot remember who was on the panel that day,” writes Stelling of the first Soccer Saturday of the new season, after agreeing to return surrounded by new faces. “I only knew it was not the people I wanted alongside me.”

While Soccer Saturday remains on the program with the outstanding Simon Thomas at the helm, Stelling has already gone on to pastures new. The renowned presenter currently broadcasts a program on talkSPORT and will once again tour UK theaters in 2025.