Robbie Savage facts for kids
Savage in 2024
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Robert William Savage | ||
| Date of birth | 18 October 1974 | ||
| Place of birth | Wrexham, Wales | ||
| Height | 6 feet 0 inches (1.82 m) | ||
| Playing position | Midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Macclesfield (head coach) | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Brickfield Rangers | |||
| 1990 | Lex XI | ||
| 1991–1993 | Manchester United | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1993–1994 | Manchester United | 0 | (0) |
| 1994–1997 | Crewe Alexandra | 77 | (10) |
| 1997–2002 | Leicester City | 172 | (8) |
| 2002–2005 | Birmingham City | 82 | (11) |
| 2005–2008 | Blackburn Rovers | 76 | (1) |
| 2008–2011 | Derby County | 124 | (7) |
| 2008 | → Brighton & Hove Albion (loan) | 6 | (0) |
| 2019–2020 | Stockport Town | 1 | (0) |
| Total | 538 | (37) | |
| National team | |||
| 1992 | Wales U18 | 2 | (0) |
| 1995 | Wales U21 | 5 | (1) |
| 1995–2004 | Wales | 39 | (2) |
| Teams managed | |||
| 2024– | Macclesfield | ||
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Robert William Savage (born 18 October 1974) is a Welsh former professional footballer. He played as a midfielder and was known for his energetic style. After retiring from playing, he became a popular football pundit (expert commentator). Today, he is the head coach at Macclesfield.
Robbie Savage started his youth career at Manchester United. He then played for several well-known clubs. These included Crewe Alexandra, Leicester City, Birmingham City, and Blackburn Rovers. He finished his playing career as captain of Derby County. Savage also proudly represented the Wales national team 39 times. Now, you can often hear him as a pundit for the BBC. He also presents 606 on BBC Radio 5 Live and co-presents Early Kick Off on BT Sport.
Contents
Robbie Savage's Football Journey
Starting Out in Football
Robbie Savage was born in Wrexham, Wales. He began his football journey with local teams like Brickfield Rangers and Lex XI. After leaving school, he joined Manchester United as a trainee. He even played as a striker in the team that won the FA Youth Cup in 1992. Although he signed a professional contract, he never played for Manchester United's first team. In 1994, he moved to Crewe Alexandra.
At Crewe, Savage changed his position to midfield. He quickly became a strong young player. He helped Crewe reach the Division Two play-offs twice. This was amazing for a team that had just been promoted. In 1997, Crewe finally won promotion through the play-offs. This was the first time Crewe had reached the second tier of English football. Soon after, Savage asked to leave the club.
Playing for Leicester City
In July 1997, Savage joined Premier League team Leicester City. The transfer fee was £400,000. He played for Leicester for five years. Here, he became known as a reliable and very competitive midfielder. In 1999, Leicester reached the League Cup final against Tottenham Hotspur. During the match, Savage was involved in an incident with Tottenham's Justin Edinburgh. Edinburgh was sent off for raising his arms. Tottenham won the final, but some Spurs fans still remember the incident.
A year later, Savage reached the League Cup final again. This time, Leicester won 2–1 against Tranmere Rovers. It was a great achievement for him and the club.
Time at Birmingham City
When Leicester City was relegated from the Premier League in 2002, Savage moved to Birmingham City. Birmingham had just been promoted to the Premier League. He signed a three-year contract for £1.25 million. In 2003, he won the club's Player of the Year award.
In January 2005, he asked to leave Birmingham. He wanted to be closer to his parents in Wrexham. On 19 January, he joined Blackburn Rovers for £3 million. He had scored 11 goals in 82 league games for Birmingham.
Joining Blackburn Rovers
In his first few months at Blackburn, Savage helped the team stay in the Premier League. They also reached the FA Cup Semi-final. They lost 3–0 to Arsenal at the Millennium Stadium in Wales.
In March 2005, Savage decided to stop playing for the Wales national team. This happened after the new manager, John Toshack, did not pick him for a World Cup qualifying game. Savage and Toshack had disagreements for a while. Savage said he retired because Toshack told him he wasn't good enough for Wales.
In the 2005–06 season, Savage played regularly for Blackburn. He made 42 appearances and scored one goal against his old club, Birmingham. The next season, he scored in Blackburn's UEFA Cup games. However, his season ended early in January due to a broken leg. This injury kept him out for the rest of the season.
During the 2007–08 season, Savage had more knee problems. He needed surgery, which kept him out for six weeks. When other players returned and played well, it became harder for him to get into the starting team. Blackburn fans liked Savage a lot. They gave him a standing ovation when he returned to play against them with Derby.
Playing for Derby County
On 9 January 2008, Savage joined Derby County for £1.5 million. He signed a two-and-a-half-year contract. He said he took a pay cut to join Derby because he wanted to play first-team football. He also turned down a move to Sunderland. He chose the number 44 shirt because his usual number 8 was taken. The numbers 4 and 4 add up to 8.
He became the new Derby captain after the previous captain left. He led the team in his first match, which was a 1–0 home loss.
In July 2008, there were rumors that Savage might leave Derby. He missed all the pre-season matches. The Derby manager often left Savage out of the team. Savage was also replaced as captain.
After not playing much, Savage went on loan to Brighton for a month in October. He wanted to stay match fit. He later said he tried to get a loan move to Leicester City. However, the Leicester manager said no.
When a new manager, Nigel Clough, arrived at Derby, Savage started playing regularly again. He became the first-choice central midfielder. He scored his first goal for Derby in a 2–1 loss in February 2009.
Savage extended his contract with Derby until the end of the 2010–11 season. He was also named captain of Derby County again. He said he felt more ready for the captaincy this time. Derby had a tough season but Savage played in almost all their games. He scored two goals and won the club's Player of the Year award.
In the 2010–11 season, Savage continued to play for Derby. He made his 100th appearance for the club. On 11 March 2010, Savage even played in goal for Derby for 45 minutes when the goalkeeper got injured. He let in two goals during that time.
On 16 October 2010, Savage played his 600th career match. He scored a penalty in injury time to seal a 3–0 win. In January 2011, Savage announced he would leave Derby at the end of the season. He wanted to focus on his growing media career. He eventually decided to retire from football completely at the end of the season. In his last two games, fans gave him a round of applause and a standing ovation.
Brief Return with Stockport Town
On 24 November 2019, Savage came out of retirement briefly. He joined Stockport Town in the North West Counties Football League. He played one match as a substitute in a 3–2 victory. This was his only appearance for the club.
Playing for Wales
Robbie Savage played for Wales at under-18 and under-21 levels. He made his senior international debut in 1995 against Albania. He earned 39 caps for Wales and scored two goals. Both goals were in World Cup qualifying matches against Turkey and Norway.
He retired from international football in September 2005. He said he wanted to focus on his club career. However, many believe it was due to disagreements with Wales manager John Toshack. Savage famously said, "John Toshack said it was my way or the highway – well I'm on the M56."
Early in his international career, he had a funny moment with former Wales manager Bobby Gould. Savage jokingly threw a replica of Paolo Maldini's shirt into a bin before a match against Italy. He was briefly dropped from the squad but was back the next day.
Life as a Broadcaster
Even while playing, Savage sometimes worked as a pundit. After 2009, he started working in the media more often. He worked as a pundit during the 2010 FIFA World Cup. He then joined the presenting team for BBC Radio 5 Live's 6-0-6 show. In May 2011, he won a "Rising Star Award" for his radio work.
From 2009 to 2013, Savage was a pundit on ESPN. He later moved to TNT Sports.
After retiring from football in May 2011, Savage wanted to do more in broadcasting. In September 2011, he took part in Strictly Come Dancing. He danced with professional partner Ola Jordan. During one show, he did a dramatic knee-slide and broke his nose! Savage and Jordan were eliminated in the quarter-final, finishing sixth.
In October 2012, Savage helped BBC Radio 5 Live try to set a new Guinness World Record. It was for the 'most players in a continuous 5-a-side exhibition match'. This event raised money for BBC Children in Need. Savage also has a podcast with cricketer Andrew Flintoff called Flintoff, Savage & The Ping Pong Guy.
Becoming a Coach
Robbie Savage's involvement with Stockport Town led him to help create a new football club. This was Macclesfield F.C. in October 2020. Macclesfield's owner appointed Savage to the board, and he later became the director of football.
On 17 June 2024, Robbie Savage was appointed the head coach at Macclesfield. This marked a new chapter in his football career.
Robbie Savage's Personal Life
Robbie Savage was born in Wrexham on 18 October 1974. He went to school in Gwersyllt. After school, he started his apprenticeship at Manchester United.
Robbie and his wife Sarah have two sons. One of his sons, Charlie, also joined Manchester United's youth academy. In April 2021, Charlie signed his first professional contract with the club. On 8 December 2021, Robbie Savage was commentating for BT Sport. He got to commentate on the match where his son Charlie made his senior Manchester United debut. Charlie came on as a substitute in a UEFA Champions League game.
Robbie Savage's father had a type of dementia called Pick's disease. He passed away in 2012. Robbie Savage is now an ambassador for the Alzheimer's Society. This charity helps people with dementia and supports research.
Savage has said he would have liked to finish his playing career at his hometown club, Wrexham. He also said his biggest regret was not signing for Everton in 2005.
He has written two books: Savage! (2011) and I'll Tell You What... (2015). In October 2014, he received an honorary award from Wrexham's Glyndŵr University for his contributions to sport.
Images for kids
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Savage playing for Leicester City in 1997–98.
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Savage playing for Derby against West Ham United in the 2007–08 season.
See also
In Spanish: Robbie Savage para niños
