Legendary Sky Sports presenter Jeff Stelling has revealed he wishes he had resigned from the broadcaster years before he did, following the dismissals of his three best friends on Soccer Saturday.
The sporting anchorman moved to Sky in 1992 just as it was launching its coverage of the newly-established Premier League.
During his spell at the company, Stelling presented key shows including Monday Night Football and the broadcaster's Champions League coverage, making him one of the most recognisable faces on television.
He was best known for his role as host of the station's Saturday results service, which he fronted from its birth in 1994 until 2023 when he handed over the reins to Simon Thomas.
Stelling had initially quit three years prior, in solidarity with sacked fellow pundits Matt Le Tissier, Phil Thompson and Charlie Nicholas but was persuaded to stay on, a decision he told The Telegraph that he regrets.
He said: 'Yes, I do [regret not leaving]. But I'd been cocooned by Sky for so many years. This wonderful, privileged life, I was treated very well, got a good salary. I still enjoyed a lot of it, not maybe as much as I had done, but to step outside was a big move.
'I guess I was afraid of the big wide world. Ultimately, if I'd gone at the same time as them, maybe it might have been the right thing for me.
'That chemistry once constructed was vital. Throw it out, you lose everything. It was very difficult to put three new people into that place and expect them to have the same connection. It doesn't matter how nice they are – and by the way, Clinton Morrison, Boydy [Kris Boyd], Daws [Michael Dawson], they are really good guys – it takes years and years to find that chemistry.'
Stelling is widely credited with making a hit out of the watchalong format with his comic timing and encyclopaedic footballing knowledge.
But he was helped along the way by a popular cast of characters on the show including Frank McLintock, George Best and Rodney Marsh at first, and Paul Merson, Thompson, Nicholas and Le Tissier later on. Chris Kamara provided the laughs from the stadium throughout.
The decision to overhaul Soccer Saturday in 2020 was a sudden one, with the three discarded pundits given little notice about their impending dismissal.
Stelling put his foot down at the time and quit along with his three great mates but was persuaded to stay. The same happened in 2022 when Sky Sports convinced the veteran host to reverse another decision to retire and stay until summer 2023.
By the time he eventually left, his influence had been heavily eroded and the presenter, now fronting talkSPORT's popular breakfast show twice a week, had a host of feature ideas turned down in favour of what he describes as 'talking heads'.
Stelling recently revealed that he, perhaps unsurprisingly, no longer watches the Saturday afternoon results service as he claims he wouldn't like to criticise the show.
He writes in his autobiography Saturday Night Fever: 'In the time since I have left Sky I still hear the cries of "Un-believable Jeff!" from passers-by and black-cab drivers.
'But often it is now accompanied with "It isn't the same anymore, Jeff". That saddens me as that was never my intention when I left Soccer Saturday.
'I won't lie. I no longer watch the show that was my life for almost three decades. Not because I feel any ill-will. Just the opposite. I have many friends working on the programme and I am desperate for it to succeed.
'But if I watched, I know that as an opinionated little so-and-so I would sit and criticise which would benefit no one. Instead, I would rather celebrate nearly thirty years of doing the best job in the world.
'I am lucky that so many people believe there is life in this old dog yet and have offered me projects. Not many people are still learning about and enjoying new roles at my age.'