Ian Wright has revealed why he decided to leave Match of the Day following his emotional final appearance.
The Arsenal legend made his final showing on the famous BBC highlights show on the final day of the Premier League season, after announcing in December that he would step back from his punditry role.
He made his debut on the show when he was a player in 1997, before becoming a regular pundit five years later following his retirement.
The 60-year-old has opened up on his emotional final episode, and revealed why he decided to leave the show after more than two decades.
Speaking on the Stick to Football podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet, Wright said: 'It’s time. I had a dear friend who said that sometimes you’ve got to know when to step back, change, rest, have a break, and say no, it’s just time.
'The way I am now, because I have to get back to London [after filming] it’s like 3:30am in the morning – it’s a long day. I leave at 8am in the morning and get back at midnight.
'I don’t want to stay over in Manchester. I used to but there are personal reasons why I always want to get back home (after filming).
'Especially, when you’re on Match of the Day, you’re live and I’ve had a massive problem before with people knowing where you are, so I always want to get back home to the misses and the girls.
'It just takes me two to three days after that to get ready and there are other things I’m doing which I just haven’t got the energy for sometimes.
'I’m getting older, I just want to make sure I use the time well and efficiently for myself and at the moment, Match of the Day is the one that if something had to go, it had to be that.'
Wright's final appearance on the show coincided with the end of the Premier League season and the
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