Vote: Andy Gray, Love Him or Hate Him?

By: Laurie | July 2nd, 2008

My co-blogger Chris hates (detests, despises, loathes, wants to take out in a dark alley) Sky Sports and (recently) ESPN commentator Andy Gray.

The final straw came in the Spain-Italy game on ESPN, when Gray wished Spanish player Cesc Fabregas “good luck” before his penalty. (Chris’s comments: “Did he really just say that? Aren’t commentators supposed to at least try to hide their biases?”)

Me, though? I kind of like the guy. At least he’s not boring, and he knows his stuff. And Sports Illustrated’s Grant Wahl agrees with me.

Opinionated, egotistical, knowledgeable and unashamedly biased. Commentary delivered with a Scottish accent so thick you could cut it with a butter knife. This former Scotland international and Sky Sports commentator makes ESPN’s former lead “character,” Tommy Smyth, seem shy and retiring.

But he’s not for everybody. Curious what you think. Andy Gray: Thumbs up, or thumbs down?

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Category: World Football

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McTalian

FUCK ANDY GRAY AND THE IDIOT IN IMMIGRATION WHO LET THIS SHIT-SPEWING COCK-SWALLOWER GET WORKING PAPERS IN THE UNITED STATES! I HOPE HE'S NEVER IN FRONT OF A MICROPHONE HERE AGAIN!
It's one thing to not like a team and to call the match in bias against them. But he was downright insulting in the Spain-Italy match. Well, Andy, you played for Scotland, so intoxication-fueled bitterness and snide remarks from the sideline is about all we can expect, isn't it?
Omaha Bhoy

I didn't think the Cesc thing was too big a deal and I don't even like Cesc. Folks who thought that was a big deal probably didn't listen to Grey's explanation of how he knew him.

Grey seemed a little lost regarding the offsides call on RVN's goal and he may harp almost too much about the diving and other dramatics on the pitch but it all seems entirely honest.

The only English-speaking announcer I like better is Hudson for entertainment value (but he also knows his stuff).
matt

derek rae did alot of the commentary in the states during the euros.
mathew

i still find derek rae to be the best announcer amongst the bunch. his analysis, game predictions, and humor are always spot on. it's a shame that we in the states couldn't hear his commentary for the euros.
Inky

Over There, Gray is viewed as a joke. He's kind of the John Madden of English football, with equal parts praise and hate heaped on him.

But I found him refreshing during the Euros. His criticism of the officials during certain matches was dead on the money. When's the last time you heard an American announcer say an official made a horrible decision? When was the last time an American announcer said a player made a "stupid, stupid, stupid" play as Gray said during one match?
Matt

@Eliza-An Irishman and a Scot always commenting on England surprises you?

A former Hun, but his commentary isn't bad. I've never heard him call a Celtic-Rangers game so I might disagree if I ever did but for now my vote goes to "A Little Bit of Both".
Nick

He is/was miles better than all previous folks ESPN has gone with over the years. And a billion times better than all at FSC.
derek

If only we could clone Martin Tyler. That guy is the voice of football to me. Andy Gray also has an eight foot boner for Torres. He was practically in tears when Torres scored in the final. But he was far and away the best commentator on US TV. Sure he made some mistakes and he may have been biased against Italy in particular (perhaps because the 'play for a draw' mentality against Spain produced a dire game to watch), but he is a massive step in the right direction as far as football commentary on US TV goes.
Squirrelpants

A horrible, horrible man. I had to switch the Euro 2008 final over to the spanish-language audio channel because Gray made me want to punch my TV with his idiotic commentary. I definitely got more insightful commentary from the commentators I couldn't understand than this joke.
Bruno Romani

regarding commentators in american channels, all i can say is that my toilette produces better commentary.
Shane

Hate him. His bias in the Italy v. Spain game was totally out of line with him outright rooting for Spain especially near the end of the game. Wishing both Guiza and Cazorla luck on their penalties. Also he called Guiza's penalty miss a bad pk but called Di Natale's miss a great save by Casillas when both pks were virtually identical.
Grant Garlock

The guy is awesome. If MLS invested in getting commentators like him, the league would be bearable to watch with the sound on. Give Wynalda and Foudy the sack!
Elisa

I agree with Nolan. Smith is so frickin annoying. Both he and Gray made alot of references to England. Why? But Gray is tolerable when England is not around and a vast improvement to what we have. Derek Rae and Andy Gray - good team.
sheps

Wait... Chris is complaining about someone showing bias?!! Please!!!! Did you read your own liveblogs?
june16_1976

Andy Gray is miles ahead of Tommy Smyth. Andy Gray at least doesn't constantly repeat the same cliches. I like Julie Foudy though, they ought to bring her out of the analysis booth and start her commenting on the games.

Gray & Foudy for WC2010!
Corey

About the Silva headbutt and playing the ball out for injured players comment.

He was quite because there was nothing in it. That was not a head butt, these days the slightest contact is deemed a red card offense, no wonder soccer players are called pussies. If its Diego Simeone going down after Beckham stuck his leg out at him, or a Silva "headbutt", the gamesmenship in football is hated by everyone, but referees promote it by rewarding it. And Torres never went down injured, he went down because he fell, he fixed his pads and socks and took a breather, he was tired. There was never a reason to play the ball out, and they didnt, Torres didnt call for it.
ben

So... when do we get to tar and feather Tommy Smyth?
Rami

Chris, you're right. Ray Hudson is the best.

I liked Andy Gray before but I liked him even more during the tournament because I kept thinking of how much better he was than Eric Wynalda. Anything is better than Eric Wynalda! He practically ruined my world cup in 06. Didn't help that Tunisia didn't get out of the group stages. But I'm blaming Wynalda.
dp

I love everything about him, except when he calls Liverpool games--he is strongly pro-Bitters and loathes everything Liverpool, save Gerrard who for some reason he has an eight-foot boner for and has made one of the great calls for in recent times (Olympiakos goal: OOOOH YA BEAUUUUUUTTTAAAAYY!) Keep him--Tommy Smyth tends towards irrelevancies, and Marcelo Balboa--shudder
Kelly

Hate him!
You go to far when you say you want a team to crash out.
Nolan

He is tolerable when England isn't around.
Brian

I've never loved him in Premier League games, but I completely came around during his Euro 2008 stint on ESPN. It was a more relaxed setting for him---no pressure, no England, no big four---and for the first time I had a sense that his love of the game was genuine and deep (which is rare, to my mind, among sportscasters). I was actually kind of moved after the final when he started talking about how much he envied the players this moment. No way could Tommy Smyth have pulled that off (and let's not even mention John Harkes or Eric Wynalda).

I even think his blustery side helped some American soccer newbies get into the tournament. He would actually call players out on faking injuries and looking for cards, and his disgust made it clear that "real fans" don't necessarily see the theater-of-pain stuff as an acceptable part of the game.
adam

Hate him
Throughout the tournament hes been vociferous against players trying to stop the play by staying down when tackled...but when Torres tried to stop play in the final by laying down and eventually just pulling up his socks Andy was extremely quiet. He was vocal against Rosetti for the entire match whenever a soft call went the Germans way, but when the Silva headbutt was caught on cam..he said something to the tune that it was a good thing that the ref didnt catch it because it would have been a straight red.. i couldnt believe me ears..

Give me JOHN HELM over these clowns anyday.
Chris

Love Andy. But he's no Ray Hudson.
Momo

It was actually Cazorla whom Andy wished good luck not Cesc Fabregas. And it was not bias at all, he was just talking about how unexperienced this player was, and how tough it was on young players to keep their calm befor the penalty. So before he took the p.k Andy just said: "Good luck son". That's all there is to it. Now there were moments I felt Andy should have kept it down a little, especially when he argues about free-kicks given or fouls called by the ref. I think he was a bit harsh on the refs and sounded more like a player himself, which in fact he was..maybe that explains it all. But overall I like Andy Gray, and I think he knows a lot about the game, and he's funny too :)
jd

He's miles better than anyone else we have working in the US (FSC and ESPN). Smyth's "auld onion bag" routine has lost some of it's (ahem!)charm.
Hawk

Tommy Smyth is super annoying.
He is also an idiot and is very repetitive.
Corey

I love him, he is way better then Tommy Smyth. His bias for Spain was obvious, but who cares? Spain played good football and that shoould be championed. And isnt the current climate of PR friendly non-sense that has made its way into the commentators box just sickening anyways? No one is neutral in a game, so why hide it?