Wednesday 12 September 2018 15:22, UK
Alan Smith provides a memoir of his playing days in 'Heads Up: My Life Story'.
The former Leicester, Arsenal and England footballer describes what it is really like to play the game, as the Sky Sports commentator's new book will be serialised this week.
In our third and final extract, Smith recalls how his punditry of one particular game in 2003 worked to separate his two careers in football.
'Heads Up: My Life Story' by Alan Smith is available to buy now in all good bookshops and online.
The moment you walk away from a club to become an ex-footballer, the circle of trust quickly closes behind. Nothing wrong with that. That's how it should be. Accepting that fact right away avoids an awful lot of angst.
I speak from experience, having fallen out with Arsenal following that infamous ruck at Old Trafford on September 21 2003. I was there to write for The Telegraph, alongside Paul Hayward and Henry Winter, when Sky asked me to fill in for Alan Shearer who, for some reason, had been forced to pull out. Yes, OK, I said. This was the company, after all, paying the bulk of my income.
Though I have never been one of Sky's stars - a safe pair of hands, that has always been me - you hope this kind of reliability goes a long way. As Woody Allen once said, 80 per cent of success is just showing up. So that's what I did, agreed to fill in, even though the extra commitment would add to the pressure by squeezing the time I had to file my Telegraph piece. Yet that was just part of the media game.
Plenty of other ex-sportsmen, cricketers particularly, regularly manage to write their stuff after stints in the studio. It wasn't new to me either. I found that the extra pressure concentrates the mind in a positive way.
That said, ammunition for my column looked in short supply after 80 uneventful minutes of a tetchy contest. Up in the studio, presenter Richard Keys wondered what on earth we were going to talk about. It had been a disappointing spectacle between Manchester United and Arsenal, the two title contenders, neither side managing to hit their stride. A forgettable goalless draw looked the most likely outcome.
Well, it did end up goalless, but it certainly wasn't forgettable after Patrick Vieira and Ruud van Nistelrooy lit the blue touch paper with a little contretemps that ended with Vieira getting sent off following a second yellow card.
With the temperature rising between two sets of players that didn't like each other to begin with, Martin Keown gave away a penalty in the last minute. It looked as if United would nick the points to bring to an end Arsenal's run of being unbeaten all season.
Van Nistelrooy, however, slammed his effort against the bar, much to the delight of a snarling Keown, convinced that the Dutchman had got his team-mate sent off. And when, seconds later, the final whistle blew, all hell broke loose. Keown jumped up in celebration and crashed down on Van Nistelrooy without really trying to make it look accidental. Lauren followed up with a hefty shove in the back. The scuffling continued as Roy Keane led his man away.
Watching from that studio, I was quite shocked by Arsenal's behaviour, especially the way they had ganged up on Van Nistelrooy. I knew the striker was no saint but, to me, he seemed like the innocent party on this occasion.
In the commercial break that immediately followed the match, Keys turned to me and asked if I'd be happy to tackle the argy-bargy, seeing as it would be awkward for our other guest, Steve Bruce, manager of Birmingham City at the time, to get involved. Well, what choice did I have? As a Sky man, I had to step forward and speak my mind, no matter who it upset. And it certainly upset Arsenal when I suggested that my old club had gone too far, had stepped over the line at the final whistle.
The FA, I predicted, were sure to get involved. Standing up at the end, hurriedly unclipping my microphone to make a quick getaway, Keysey congratulated me on being so forthright. That comment worried me slightly. Had I gone too far in the heat of the moment?
Though not outspoken by nature, I always like to be honest when answering questions. On this, I always think of something Vic Wakeling once said about me. As the managing director of Sky Sports, Vic's opinion carried weight. 'He might have a boring voice but he always tells you something'. Chuckling at the first bit, I was chuffed with the punchline. When Vic sadly passed away, I thought of those words.
"The lads didn't think I could come down to the training ground and be all friendly one minute and then have a pop on TV the next. Patrick Vieira, I learned, was particularly adamant."
In the business of punditry, you cannot hedge your bets or constantly sit on the fence. Yes, this was my old club, the one I held so much affection for, but this was also my job. Arsenal weren't paying me now. As a result, similar sentiments were expressed in my Telegraph column, once I'd rushed out of the studio and down to the press box.
As I opened my laptop and took a deep breath, Rob Shepherd, a well-known newspaper journalist sitting alongside, took the trouble to say he disagreed with my comments on telly. 'I'll explain why another time.' Don't bother, Rob. It didn't really matter what anyone else thought. For me, Arsenal were the main villains on that highly fractious afternoon.
In the days that followed, as the dust settled, my position on the matter got praised in some quarters. For someone closely connected with the Gunners to come out so critical of them was viewed as a sign of journalistic integrity. Martin Samuel even went so far as to say in his column that he thought I should win sports writer of the year. Not sure about that, Martin, but thanks for your support.
During a turbulent time, it meant a great deal to get the nod from someone at the peak of his profession. It eased some misgivings that were beginning to creep in. I have never been the sort to thrive on controversy. It instinctively feels foreign, unsuited to my temperament. What's more, the hostility shown by some Arsenal fans, feeling betrayed by my firm stance, was difficult to take.
It did make me wonder how all this would affect my relationship with Arsenal, up until now a very happy one; more specifically, my agreement with the club magazine, which involved popping along to interview a player every month. Well, nobody rang so I thought all was good.
It was only when the weeks passed with no news about my next assignment that I began to suspect something was up. Picking up the phone, I spoke to the magazine editor who had to awkwardly explain that the lads didn't think I could come down to the training ground and be all friendly one minute and then have a pop on TV the next. Patrick Vieira, I learned, was particularly adamant.
As a result, it was best to end the arrangement, he said. Fair comment. I could see the players' point. I hadn't been retired so long that I couldn't put myself in their shoes. Soon after, stories started circulating about me being banned from the training ground - not strictly true but close enough. If that was the price to pay for being honest, then so be it.
I felt further vindicated when Arsene Wenger later issued an unqualified apology for the actions of his players at Old Trafford that day. By that time, however, a line had been drawn. My connection with Arsenal had now moved away from friendly ex-player to impartial commentator.
In hindsight, it was the best thing that could happen. The episode served to separate my two careers, lending welcome credibility to the second one.
'Heads Up: My Life Story' by Alan Smith is available to buy now in all good bookshops and online.
