talkSPORT listener recalls time Martin O'Neill slammed him at Wycombe trial and denied him a professional contract
A talkSPORT listener has revealed the time he was 'absolutely beaten' by Martin O'Neill during a trial at Wycombe in a wild story.
Richard, a Tottenham fan, had called the station to offer his verdict on what Angel PostecoglouThe London team had to do a lot to win the north London derby on Sunday.
He felt that Tottenham have played quality football at the start of this season, but have not been able to convert their opportunities.
Richard believed the first 20 minutes would be crucial and urged Tottenham to start strongly otherwise the match could turn out of balance. Arsenalin favor of.
In a bizarre turn of events, Richard made the wild revelation that he took on a team led by O'Neill when he was just a teenager.
A self-confessed and skilful but laziness-prone winger, Richard played in an FA Youth Cup game for Aldershot when O'Neill was in charge at Wycombe and scored a self-proclaimed world-class goal.
This prompted O'Neill, who was in his first management position with the Chairboys, to give him a call.
“I don’t know how you got my number, Martin,” Richard said. “But you called me at home.”
“My brother yells, 'Richard, Martin O'Neill 'He's on the phone!' This is a true story. And I obviously thought someone was making fun of me. I pick up the phone and dare I say it, Martin O'Neill is on the phone. He says, 'I want you to come and do a trial with me at Wycombe.'”
However, Richard's trial did not go as planned.
In a reserve match at Roots Hall in Southend, Richard failed to impress O'Neill, who was evidently less than impressed.
“You hit me so hard because I was absolutely useless,” Richard said.
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Martin O'Neill's managerial career in numbers
Wycombe Wanders (1990-1995): W140 D63 L59 (53.4% win rate)
Norwich City (1995-1995): 9 wins, 7 draws, 4 losses (45% win rate)
Leicester City (1995-2000): W85 D68 L70 (38.1% win rate)
Celtic (2000-2005): 213 wins, 29 draws, 40 losses (75.5% win percentage)
Aston Villa (2006-2010): 80 wins, 60 draws, 50 losses (42.11% win rate)
Sunderland (2011-2013): 21 wins, 20 draws, 25 losses (31.8%)
Republic of Ireland (2013–2018): W19 D20 L16 (win rate 34.5%)
Nottingham Forest (2019-2019): 8 wins, 3 draws, 8 losses (42.1% win rate)
O'Neill had a good laugh about it and defended his straightforward manner of speaking.
“Richard, that's absolutely brilliant,” O'Neill said.
“It didn't matter if you were a tester or not, I'm afraid I had to tell you the truth.”
Richard later offered more details about the failed trial and even claimed that he was on the verge of a professional settlement.
“I had my test, I don't think I touched the ball in 45 minutes,” Richard said.
“I stood there like a fool. Honestly, you said to me, 'Richard, all you had to do was act and I would have given you a contract.' You hit me in a positive way.”
Despite O'Neill's criticism, Richard has since used it to help the next generation.
Richard, now a coach, also runs a football club and believes O'Neill's beatings gave him an insight into how to talk to youngsters to improve their game.
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It is perhaps no surprise that Richard has learned a lot from O'Neill, given that the Northern Irishman has managed almost 1,000 games in his career.
The 72-year-old enjoyed plenty of success at various stops, including three Scottish Premier League titles during his time at Celtic.
He is currently Chairman of the League Directors' Association, succeeding Howard Wilkinson.
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