Soccer Saturday legend Jeff Stelling assaults former employers Sky Sports activities for paying Guardian author Jonathan Liew to ‘spout nonsense’, 12 years after his hit piece on the present he anchored TERMAN WEBSITE

Jeff Stelling blasted former employers Sky Sports activities Information for paying a journalist who criticised his former present Soccer Saturday in a bit written 12 years in the past to look on their programme. 

Stelling was the face of Soccer Saturday for 29 years, Sky Sports activities’ programme that lasts for many of the day and ran viewers via outcomes and goings-on throughout the grounds on matchdays. 

He left on the finish of final time period, however has hit out at his previous employers for having ‘quick reminiscences’ after an look from award-winning Guardian author Jonathan Liew. 

Liew was discussing the plans to scrap FA Cup replays from subsequent season – revealed solely by Mail Sport on Thursday – and claimed that it was a ‘progressive transfer’, one thing which Stelling disagreed with. 

‘That is one thing the highest golf equipment have been pushing for for some time, clearly there are not any replays past the fifth spherical, they’re speaking about scrapping them for rounds three and 4 as effectively,’ stated Liew on Sky Sports activities Information on Thursday evening.

Jonathan Liew (left) argued that the plans to scrap FA Cup replays within the third and fourth rounds was ‘progressive’

Jeff Stelling hit again and claimed {that a} extra ‘progressive’ transfer could be for Sky Sports activities to not pay Liew to look on the channel

Stelling then added that he has ‘an axe to grind’ with Liew after the Guardian journalist wrote a bit criticising Soccer Saturday 12 years in the past, describing Paul Merson as a ‘moron’

‘There’s a large dialogue over what FA Cup replays do for smaller golf equipment who profit from the monetary windfall of taking part in two video games usually on TV in opposition to an even bigger membership and I feel it is false framing of the controversy.

’95 or 98 per cent of decrease league golf equipment who want the cash from an FA Cup replay aren’t going to get it.

‘If this settlement – which is sensible for issues like participant welfare and fixture congestion – results in a barely extra mature dialogue on a monetary settlement for the entire of the pyramid that advantages all of these groups and makes certain all of them pays the payments, fairly than the 2 or three that occur to get a Premier League staff out of the hat, then I feel it is really fairly a progressive transfer.’

Stelling then replied to a clip of the dialogue on X (previously Twitter), claiming: ‘A progressive transfer could be to cease him spouting his nonsense on TV’. 

Stelling then added: ‘In equity I’ve an axe to grind. In 2012 this individual wrote a disgusting piece calling Soccer Saturday sewage and Merse “Moron in Chief”. But now SSN pay him . They’ve quick reminiscences. I don’t.’

In a 2012 article for the Telegraph, Liew described Soccer Saturday as ‘chortling, barrel-scraping, cod-football sewage’, and blasted plenty of the present’s common contributors. 

He known as former Arsenal icon Paul Merson ‘moron-in-chief, the Grand Excessive Moron, the Moron With The Youngster In His Eyes,’ and in contrast Chris Kamara to a personality from the movie Memento who’s ‘unable to kind new reminiscences’.

Liew then ended the piece by claiming anybody that was unable to get tickets for a Soccer Saturday area tour might ‘slice your head open’ and ’empty your brains out onto the pavement’ to realize ‘a lot the identical factor’.

The FA are set to press forward with plans to scrap FA Cup third-round replays from subsequent season 

The plans to scrap replays within the FA Cup comes within the wake of the collapse of the so-called New Deal for Soccer, a brand new £900million monetary settlement which was blocked by 10 Premier League golf equipment at a tense assembly on Monday. 

Televised third and fourth-round replays are value £40,000 and £55,000 respectively to every membership, who additionally obtain an equal 45 per cent share of gate receipts no matter the place the tie is performed. 

The lack of two potential fixtures and the possibility of a giant pay-day at a Premier League is a giant blow for decrease division golf equipment. 

League Two Cambridge United banked over £1million from their fourth-round tie in opposition to Manchester United in 2015 for instance after securing a replay at Outdated Trafford.