MOTTY BEGINS LONG GOODBYE
MOTD legend to kick off farewell retirement tour
MATCH Of The Day legend John Motson’s retirement farewell will go right to the final whistle.
The legendary commentator will do a tour of 18 Premier League grounds before leaving the BBC show next May.
Motty, who has been the voice for top-flight football since 1971, is hanging up his sheepskin coat after 50 years of broadcasting.
During his long career, he covered 10 World Cups, 29 FA Cup finals and more than 200 England internationals.
The 72-year-old, known for his on-air “Motty-isms”, will start his tour this weekend at Brighton’s Amex stadium.
He said: “I won’t get over the shock that I’m leaving until next year, but now is the time to go. I have no regrets, I’ve been lucky enough to have such a wonderful career.
Performance
“I’ve been asked a lot which is the best game I’ve seen and I always go back to Germany 1 England 5.
“It’s the best England performance I’ve seen, especially as it was against Germany.
“People say I was lucky to do this job, but I put my back into it week in, week out.”
He added: “Before I started doing football I did tennis for six years for the radio and a bit of boxing.
“I’ve a picture of me at home commentating on a match with Muhammad Ali.
“The fight was with Joe Bugner and didn’t last long, two rounds, but I got to say sitting alongside me was Muhammad Ali.”
Since starting out, Motty has watched some of the best players to pull on a pair of boots, including George Best, Paul Gascoigne and Eric Cantona.
He has also seen the game change from the old First Division to the modern-day Premier League.
He added: “The game is unrecognisable from when I started. Everyone wore 1-11 and there were no sponsors or names on shirts. It wasn’t as glitzy. The Premier League changed all that. ”