I’m godfather to Neil Ruddock’s kids but still tried to throttle him on the pitch – anything goes in the Premier League
ALAN SHEARER is a godparent to the kids of his long-time pal Neil Ruddock – but that didn’t stop the duo from trying to kick lumps out of one another.
Shearer and Ruddock struck up a friendship when they played at Blackburn Rovers and Liverpool respectively, with the duo being neighbours.
That led to the pair – who lived a stone’s throw away from each other – naming one another as the godparents of their kids.
One would think being close pals would stop them from going at it when they were on the pitch.
That, however, couldn’t have been any further from the case.
After being asked by Gabby Logan if it was “weird” playing against someone he knows following a joint pre-match interview between former Italy team-mates Jorginho and Angelo Ogbonna ahead of Arsenal‘s clash with West Ham, Shearer said: “When you go through different clubs, you make friends at those different clubs.”
“And inevitably, at some stage, you’re going to come back and you’re gonna play against them.
“I’m godparent to Neil Ruddock’s kids and vice-versa.
“And when I was at Blackburn and he was at Liverpool, he we used to live about 100 yards from each other.
“But then you get on to the pitch, and we all know Neil, he couldn’t wait to stand on me.
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“He’s (Thierry Henry) right. We got up and there is a picture of us virtually trying to throttle each other.”
The hostilities with Ruddock, however, would end after the final whistle – which was followed up by a few drinks at the pub.
Amazon Prime pundit Shearer continued: “But then two hours later, we’re at the bar having a pint and having a laugh and a joke about it.”
Some international or former team-mates opt not to speak to their pals ahead of matches to remain focused on getting the three points.
That wasn’t the case for Shearer, who said: “I had no problem speaking to friends before the game.
“Whether you text them, whether you see them in the tunnel.
“But once you get on to that green grass, anything goes.”