End of an era as Johnny Giles announces his retirement from punditry
The legendary Johnny Giles has this evening announced his retirement from punditry.
Giles has graced Irish screens and airways for many decades and has long been heralded as one of the most respected analysts in the land.
The former Leeds United star was the face of RTE's soccer punditry from the 1980's until his retirement from television work in 2016. He has formed part of Newstalk's soccer coverage for over two decades, and spoke on Off the Ball this evening about his career breaking down the best players in the game.
"I was really lucky. I fell into the television. Eamon [Dunphy] helped me a lot in that," Giles said on radio this evening.
"When you're doing the job I was trying to do, you have to watch all the matches. You can't make it up as you go along.
"I think it got to the stage where I was getting a bit stale trying to watch as many matches as I could and it became hard work.
"Football has never been hard work to me, I have always loved it but there are so matches.
"Even in the summer now, you see the teams over in America [for the Club World Cup].
"I have had a good run of it. I am 84, nearly 85.
"I have enjoyed it. I loved playing. I fell into to the television, I had no intention of doing that when I was actually playing the football.
"No complaints whatsoever."
A legend of Irish soccer, Giles is regarded as one of the best players that this country has ever produced. He enjoyed a glittering playing career for the likes of Manchester United and Leeds, and on the International scene, he played 59 times for Ireland, operating as a player manager for the last six years of his time with the Boys in Green.
After retiring from football, Giles took on the role of pundit with RTE and was synonymous with the Irish soccer team for many decades.
Alongside Eamon Dunphy, Liam Brady and host Bill O'Herlihy, Giles was a key cog in the golden era of Irish punditry, an era that even now is very fondly remembered.
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