Clive Tyldesley was “bitterly disappointed” to be overlooked by ITV for the latter stages of their live World Cup coverage but insists there was no falling out with the channel’s bosses.
The 68-year-old, who was covering his eighth World Cup, returned home before the quarter-finals after being overlooked for ITV ’s two live fixtures. The channel instead chose to give Jon Champion their second last-eight tie, effectively making Tyldesley their third-choice behind the station’s lead commentator Sam Matterface.
One report claimed Tyldesley refused to stay in Doha to provide highlights commentary but, speaking to Mirror Football, he said he had sought permission from ITV chiefs to return home and it was granted without an issue.
“I’m working for them on the FA Cup in the first week of January and I wouldn’t be doing that if there was a great deal of bitterness,” he said.
“Was I bitterly disappointed? You bet I was. But it’s a decision I’ve got to accept and in the grand scheme of things people don’t turn it on for the commentator, they turn it on for the football. I didn’t agree with the decision but I accepted it.
“I was offered a quarter-final to commentate on for highlights. It would have meant me staying on in Qatar for another four or five days to essentially commentate on 10 minutes of television post-midnight. I said I would be happy to do it if they couldn’t cover without me but my preference was to fly home early if possible and they said OK.”
He also said there had been no guarantee of a certain number of live games in Qatar, stressing he has never requested a specific clause in a contract at ITV.
“Some commentators have clauses in their contracts guaranteeing them certain games and quotas. In 26 years with ITV, I've never been offered or asked for such a clause.
"I think commentators, like footballers, should be selected on form so I guess I can't complain if that is all that's happened here. I can be disappointed and naturally I am but I've got to accept a decision made purely on merit and I do."
Tyldesley, who said he is still as determined as ever to improve as a commentator, is keen to move on but believes that ITV, which he emphatically referred to as “we”, have outshone their rivals during the World Cup. He feels he is in a similar position to members of the England squad who did not get much game time during the tournament.
“It’s happened, it’s history,” he added. “Heads of sport are like football managers and they have got to make selections and there will be England footballers who have come back from the tournament without having played or less than they hoped and will be personally disappointed but feel privileged and uplifted to have been part of the team.
“I think ITV have had a really good World Cup, a lot of the news agenda has been made by the likes of Roy Keane and Gary Neville and Graeme Souness.
“We have gifted performers like Laura Woods, Mark Pougatch and Gabriel Clarke who have given us an edge over our opponents. Here’s me talking about we.”
Mirror Football sat down with Clive Tyldesley to reflect on his experiences of a unique World Cup and to look back on some of his fondest memories over the past three decades - from Barcelona in 1999 to his favourite co-commentators - on top of what the future holds for football broadcasting. The full episode will be available on the Mirror Football YouTube channel on Tuesday, December 20.
