YOU MAY NOT always agree with Graeme Souness, but what you will consistently get is an honest opinion.
Sports coverage, particularly across the water, is often accused of being over sanitised.
Yet the Liverpool legend, whether he is on Irish or British TV, certainly won’t hold back in his analysis. Once a ferocious, tough-tackling midfielder, those who knew him as a player and manager suggest Souness has softened with age as he’s moved away from the pressure cooker of life in the game towards the more relaxed environment of a TV studio.
But there are still shades of the fiery, perfectionist he was during his height as a player. Last season, he walked off set during an ad break amid Sky’s coverage of Liverpool-Brighton, owing to his frustration at repeatedly being cut off, but later apologied for the incident.
Souness has received plenty of acclaim for his no-nonsense style though. In 2016, Simon Burnton of The Guardian wrote that he was “still sounding fresher and more relevant than the many voices of his generation who have been and continue to be gently ushered towards the exit, a fate that remains in the very long-term future for Souness”.
Brutally honest pundits, however, are not always especially popular among fans. Following the announcement that he was leaving RTÉ, veteran analyst Eamon Dunphy, in his column for the Irish Daily Star, accused the station of losing “its nerve” and living “in fear of keyboard warriors on Twitter or Facebook”.
Gary Neville recently spoke of how he was questioned by the Sky hierarchy, after calling an Arsenal fan with a ‘Wenger Out’ banner an “idiot”.
Does Souness ever feel that social media has an undue influence and is impacting how pundits and the people who run TV stations behave?
“I’m not interested in that,” he says. “Maybe I should be, but I’m not. I think I’m entitled to an opinion, I’ve played for a long time, I’ve been successful, I’m not asking for people to agree with me, but I’m entitled to an opinion. The likes of someone who tweets something, they’re entitled to an opinion. If you don’t like what I say, don’t fucking watch me.”
At 65, Souness is only eight years younger than his former RTÉ colleague Dunphy. The ex-Newcastle manager says it was “a bit of a shock” when making his first tentative steps into the world of Irish TV punditry owing to the stark honesty of the discussion.
The Edinburgh native hasn’t managed a club since leaving Newcastle in 2006 and says he doesn’t miss being in the dressing room.
“I enjoy it,” he adds of punditry. “It suits where I am now. I still get my buzz out of football, occasionally go to games and that’s the kind of buzz I want. I don’t want the coalface.”
Nowadays, it seems, TV experts are under more scrutiny than ever. Souness and Gary Neville were recently criticised by Eric Bailly following the harsh words aimed at the defender after Man United’s disappointing Premier League loss to Brighton. Similarly, Paul Pogba’s agent, Mino Raiola, took aim at Paul Scholes as a result of the ex-Man United star’s criticism of the World Cup winner.
“I think there’s more of a spotlight,” Souness says. “I think people are prepared to point out mistakes more and weaknesses.”
Yet while acknowledging that the job has changed to a degree, you get the sense that Souness feels there is too much gravity attached to this side of the game, with the analysts merely the footballing equivalent to the starter of a main course.
The biggest thing that makes it a good show, an average show or whatever, is the game itself. If it’s a good game and there’s lots happening, it’s very easy to talk about. If not, [the presenter] Tommy Martin’s under pressure, what I’m basically saying is it’s not our fault if it’s a shit game. I think we’re as good as anyone out there.
“When you’re scratching for things to talk about, you can always find things, but… When it’s [for example] a Madrid game with Atletico [in the Super Cup], that game was very easy — lots of goals, incidents, Costa getting in a fight with Ramos, those things the supporters and punters want to hear about. So as long as it’s a good game, it’s always a very easy job to do — for me it is. We’re just talking football and your take on certain things.”
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Sounds is a good pundit. People are in serious denial, he’s dead right about Pogba.
@Daniel Donovan: Souness*
@Daniel Donovan: can’t be a good pundit when you’re so blatantly biased.
@Tadhg: Don’t mind Daniel I here’s he’s a double agent
@powerfix: *hear . Time for a phone upgrade me thinks
Souness, Keane, Neville proper tv panel, say it like it is, stick Dunphy in there as well. Are you saying that would’nt be great viewing?
Bit hard to ignore ya when your on sky’s coverage every week.
People mix “being honest” with also being a good pundit.
This man lets his emotions get in the way of everything he says and rarely actually makes tactical analysis. But it has to be said he’s entertaining and compliments the likes of Neville well, but I wouldn’t take too much heed of anything he says.
@Brian: well put
Experienced player doesn’t always make a great Pundit , with the exception of Carragher and Neville most of the non managerial managers are rubbish, then you have the failed managers who think they know what there talking about. Then there’s the biased ones who can’t see further then the end of there nose if they can get it out for the hosts a** for long enough to see it that is .
@thatsnotme: Failed manager ??? What do you class as a failed manager . One that won trophies in Scotland back when Scottish football was reasonably competitive and attracted some really good players or one that picked up an fa cup in England. Or one thst won a league cup with Blackburn or one that won a couple of trophies in Turkey. Enlighten us as to what you class as failed manager..
Best way to describe you is as a sky sports news football fan, the type that thinks football was invented in 1992 and is only played in England.
@thatsnotme: I suppose it’s a bit like some commentators on here who get upset if anyone says anything bad about their team but is obsessed about doing the same about another team.
@Mick Power: I know Mick I didn’t want to say it but I think pg38 might be one of those
@Mick Power: I didn’t mention any names in my comment but he seems to have taken it like that
@thatsnotme: could be wrong but I think I saw two names mentioned.
@pg38: did I mention Sourness by name NO !
@thatsnotme: I take it that’s a typo
@thatsnotme: No but it was quite obvious you were reffering to him but listen it’s cool thst you think football only started in 1992 and is only played in England. No need for the aggro man, the capital letters say it all.
Tip on back to Pokemon go there
SOUNESS,…When he applied for a job at SKY
INTERVIEWER….”Your CV is impressive but could you tell me something Negative about yourself”
SOUNESS…”Well,I’m Brutally Honest”!
INTERVIEWER…”I don’t see that as a Negative”!
SOUNESS…..”I really don’t give a F**k what you think” !!!
Remember Souness in his pomp with Liverpool, tough player, ran the show from midfield, very similiar to Keane at Utd.Very hard to seperate those two; but would give Keane the nod just about. We don’t see that type of player since they took the tackle out of the game. Pity.
Always worth listening to, and this is coming from a Celtic man…
Odd, United fans don’t seem to like him.
Maybe because he’s not blowing smoke up Old Trafford’s collective…