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A leading Sky Sports pundit admitted how he was upset to learn his son wanted to quit playing football, despite appearing to be excelling within a Premier League club’s academy
Clinton Morrison has explained a “gutting” feeling he felt after learning his son no longer wanted to pursue becoming a footballer. The Sky Sports pundit and former Premier League striker enjoyed an illustrious playing career of his own with the likes of Crystal Palace and Birmingham before moving into broadcasting.
While he felt as though his son, Shay, would follow in his footsteps, given he was excelling with Nottingham Forest in his teenage years, it evidently wasn’t meant to be.
The 46-year-old, who was capped by the Republic of Ireland 36 times, told Mirror Football via Freebets earlier this year: “He was in the academy. It’s gutting, to be fair. He was flying at Nottingham Forest. Then one day he came home at 14 or 15 and said, ‘Dad, I don’t enjoy football.’
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“You can’t be a pushy parent and say, ‘I want you to be a footballer.’ It’s not in him to be a footballer, he doesn’t enjoy it. He probably went because he was young and he probably thought that’s what I wanted him to do. But when you get to that age, it’s kind of difficult.”
Fast forward to the modern day, and Shay has since gone on to study at university. But Morrison still has high hopes his other son, Kian, may make it to the professional level of football. He explained: “My youngest, Kian, is good though, he’s got a great chance of being a professional.
“He’s not at a club at the moment because he wants to go and enjoy himself and play with his friends. But he’s got a good chance. But yeah, my oldest, Shay, he decided it wasn’t for him.
“He is now at uni and he is doing well. You have got to be a father, you can’t be pushy. Shay played as a striker, Kian plays as a centre-half.
“I’d say my youngest is in the mould of John Stones. If he can have half the career that John Stones had, I’ll take that. He doesn’t like to kick it, he just likes to play out from the back and defend. So we’ve got a chance here.”
After enjoying stints with the likes of Coventry City, Sheffield Wednesday and Exeter, Morrison hung up his boots in 2017 before dipping his toes into the world of coaching with Mickleover Sports.
However, since September 2020, he has worked as a pundit for Sky Sports on their revamped Soccer Saturday show, while also providing matchday commentary for BBC Radio 5 Live.
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