Gary Lineker mocks Micah Richards over Aston Villa spell on Match of the Day
Gary Lineker has mocked Micah Richards for his four-year spell at Aston Villa, where the defender made just 31 appearances.
It is well-documented that a young Richards burst onto the scene at Manchester City, going on to make 246 appearances and lifting the Premier League trophy on two occasions before switching to Villa Park in 2015.
However, it did not go as planned for the full-back, as he played a total of 31 matches throughout four seasons with Villa, inspiring a classic Lineker joke on Match of the Day.
As he introduced Glenn Murray onto BBC’s Match of the Day as a pundit on Saturday (13 January), Lineker said: “It’s a Saturday night debut for Glenn Murray, alongside Micah Richards.
“Three games and forty-five minutes coming up… A bit like your Aston Villa career, Micah.”
Always up for a laugh
It was an absolute corker from the former England striker, jabbing at Richards’ lack of games after leaving Man City for more opportunities on the pitch. And like always, the pundit took it well.
The full-back-turned-pundit has openly joked about his regret of leaving Etihad Stadium, especially when he thinks back to the wage he was being offered with his new deal.
However, he chose to move away where there were more opportunities to gain valuable minutes on the pitch. But injuries would begin to plague the end of his career, spending extended spells on the sidelines instead of on the pitch.
Nobody wants to see a player’s career spiral like Richards’ did. At the age of 26, when he made the move to the Midlands, he still had so much to offer. But injuries got in the way of what could have been.
But retiring in 2019 now seems to have paid off, with the former Villa defender experiencing the high life as a beloved pundit across the BBC and Sky Sports, while also appearing on CBS Sports’ coverage of the Champions League with Katie Abdo, Thierry Henry and Jamie Carragher.
In other Aston Villa news, Alan Hutton has told Villa News what he’s head about the transfer interest in Ronnie Edwards