Aston Villa drop legal threat against Carragher after apology

Summarised from 7 outlets · Updated 2 Nov, 14:05 · Archive

Aston Villa have withdrawn their threat of legal action against Jamie Carragher after he apologised for comments about the club.

Aston Villa have withdrawn their threat of legal action against Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher after he apologised for comments made on the Stick to Football podcast last week.

Carragher had suggested that Aston Villa manager Unai Emery should consider taking the Manchester United job if the club's manager Michael Carrick were to be sacked. On the podcast, Carragher stated: 'Surely he (Emery) would want that opportunity to manage a giant again.' He explained that there is 'a chain in football' in which bigger clubs take players and managers from smaller ones, stating that 'Aston Villa will never be Man United'.

When faced with criticism from Villa supporters, Carragher told them to 'shut the f*** up'. The comments sparked a strong reaction from the club, with chairman Nassef Sawiris posting a statement on Friday evening declaring that 'Aston Villa will initiate legal action against Jamie Carragher for his unacceptable insults about the Club and its fans'. The statement added: 'Aston Villa will not allow anyone to stop our ascension in English and European football.'

Carragher responded swiftly with an apology posted on social media on Saturday. 'I'd like to apologise to Aston Villa, the owners and their fans,' he wrote. 'My language this week was clumsy and wrong. I can assure Villa fans it was tongue in cheek but I can understand it's not come across that way, so apologies.'

Following the apology, Aston Villa have now dropped any threat of legal action. All outlets confirm that the club will take no further action against the pundit. The Daily Mail reports that Carragher made his comments on 'The Overlap podcast', though other outlets identify it as 'Stick to Football'.

Villa return to football action on Tuesday when they face Barcelona in the Champions League at the Nou Camp.

How it is being reported

• Aston Villa drop threat of legal action against Jamie Carragher after apologyU-turn follows apology from Sky Sports pundit Carragher had been critical of club expectations Aston Villa have dropped their threat of legal action against Jamie Carragher following an apology from the Sky Sports pundit. Villa announced on Friday that they would be taking legal action against Carragher for “unacceptable insults about the club and its fans” on the Stick to Football podcast. The former Liverpool defender had told Villa supporters to “shut the fuck up” after being criticised for suggesting Unai Emery should consider taking the Manchester United job if Michael Carrick is…The Guardian · 2 Nov, 15:40
• Aston Villa drop Carragher legal action threat after pundit’s apology for X-rated rantAston Villa have dropped their threat to sue Jamie Carragher for “unacceptable insults” to the club and fans after the TV pundit apologised for his remarks. Carragher infuriated Villa chiefs last week by saying the club’s supporters should “shut the f*** up” and recognise that their manager, Unai Emery, might be tempted by the prospect [...]City AM · 2 Nov, 14:56
• Aston Villa drop legal action threat against Jamie Carragher after Sky Sports pundit's apology for telling fans to 'shut the f*** up'On Friday, Aston Villa shared a statement on club channels carrying the name of co-owner Nassef Sawiris which vowed to initiate legal action against Carragher for 'unacceptable insults'.Daily Mail Sport · 2 Nov, 13:48
• Aston Villa make legal action decision after Jamie Carragher apologyPundit had told Villa supporters to "shut the f*** up"Evening Standard · 2 Nov, 13:25
• Aston Villa ‘withdraw threat of legal action’ against Jamie CarragherVilla threatened Carragher with legal action after he suggested manager Unai Emery should consider taking the Manchester United jobIndependent Sport · 2 Nov, 13:08
• Villa drop legal action threat against CarragherAston Villa will not move forward with any legal action towards Jamie Carragher.BBC News · 2 Nov, 11:49
• Aston Villa U-turn on Jamie Carragher legal threat after pundit's grovelling apologyAston Villa have signalled their intent to take legal action against Jamie Carragher following comments he made last week - but have since retracted that after his apologyMirror Sport · 2 Nov, 11:22

In this story: Jamie Carragher · Aston Villa · Unai Emery · Manchester United · Nassef Sawiris · Michael Carrick

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem · Corrections log