The CBS Sports pundits had a bit of fun at Micah Richards’ expense, prohibiting him from mentioning French club Brest before their Champions League match against Barcelona.
Despite raising eyebrows among English speakers with their name, Brest have made their first season in the Champions League something to talk about, clinching three victories in their initial five matches. The team, formally known as Stade Brestois 29, encountered their first defeat when visiting Spain on Tuesday, falling 3-0 to a commanding Barcelona, with Robert Lewandowski bagging a brace and Dani Olmo also scoring.
As the punditry team, featuring Richards alongside Jamie Carragher and Thierry Henry, prepared to go live with host Kate Scott, Richards was told he was being put on mute for consistently finding amusement in the club’s name. After having previously chuckled on air when mentioning Brest, Scott requested he refrain from commenting while she, Carragher, and Henry analysed the upcoming game.
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“We do feel that you have consistently proven that you can’t stay professional in these segments where we’re talking about Brest, so production would like to ask if you’re comfortable staying silent,” Scott stated. To which Richards optimistically responded, “Come on Kate, I can do this,” and questioned, “You can’t trust me?”
But Scott shut down his hopes, replying, “No, we can’t,” pointing out past experiences left them wary. She rounded off the banter by asking, “Experience has taught us not to trust you. So, after four games, who here likes Brest?” prompting both Carragher and Henry to raise their hands without hesitation, reports the Mirror.
(Image: CBS Sports)
Carragher said with a smirk, “I like the shape of them,” leaving Richards struggling to contain his laughter. Scott went on, “You look at the setup that the manager has got – do you think he’s going with a front two tonight?”
Henry guessed, “Yeah, two big – a big pair up front who will try to…” and Carragher jumped in “work off each other” With curiosity, Scott asked him, “I’m interested to know how much you like to watch them, would you pay to watch them?”
“I have done,” the ex-Reds defender Carragher quipped, causing an eruption of giggles from both Henry and Richards. Adding his thoughts, Henry mentioned, “One thing you have to say is that you don’t have to be big, you can be small to compete.”
(Image: DeFodi Images via Getty Images)
Poking fun at the situation, Scott queried, “Do you think Brest could get exposed tonight? ” which Carragher playfully responded: “I hope so!” In disbelief, Richards glanced at the crew and exclaimed, “What is this? What is this? Nonsense! HR? Wow!”
Continuing the banter, Scott asked with a nudge, “What do you think, Micah? Do you think Barcelona could come a bit quickly for Brest tonight?” leading Carragher to admit, “Oh, I think we might have crossed the line.”
Trying to brush it off humorously, Richards said: “You’re trying to get me sacked! I’m taking the fifth [amendment].”
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Though they engaged in serious discourse about Brest’s performance in Europe, Scott couldn’t resist a final quip: “Daydreaming about Brest, I’m sure you can all relate,” she teased, only for a bewildered Richards to plea once more: “What is going on here?”
The game was no laughing matter for Brest, who found themselves trailing 1-0 within the first 10 minutes after Robert Lewandowski successfully converted a penalty. The Polish striker had been clumsily fouled by goalkeeper Marco Bizot and stepped up to score his 100th Champions League goal.