Inside emotional Robbie Savage's proudest night as son Charlie makes Wales debut
Under gently weeping skies, Robbie Savage shed a tear and his mum, Val, admitted she cried, too.
On a special night out for three generations of the clan, Savage's son Charlie made a dream Wales debut with an assist and 97 per cent pass completion in the 4-0 rout of Gibraltar.
The man of the match was still in his playing kit, and gave his shirt to younger brother Freddie, as the family convened for a celebratory post-match debrief in the Centenary Club at Wrexham.
In his father's home town, where he used to stand on the old Kop at the Racecourse Ground, the boy Savage sprayed passes across the pitch like a subway graffiti artist on the rampage with an aerosol.
“This is the proudest day of my life,” said the 20-year-old Reading midfielder. “I've been through some tough times for various reasons at different clubs recently, and to have my family here makes all the sacrifice and the hard times worth it.
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“I'm so proud that he's my dad, for everything he achieved in the game, but I also want to be my own player. My dad has always instilled in me to work hard and the rest will take care of itself.”
Charlie Savage shone for Wales in their win over Gibraltar (Football Association of Wales)Young Savage's performance against outclassed Gibraltar, ranked No.198 in the world, was not the first time he has found himself between a Rock and a hard place this season.
Reluctantly, he left Manchester United – for whom he made his debut in the Champions League last season – in search of regular first-team football instead of risking his talent withering on the vine in the under-21 squad.
In orange boots as conspicuous as his old man's Alpine corps white puffer jacket up in the stand, Savage's range of passing with a left foot sweeter than a dessert trolley certainly caught the eye.
Robbie Savage watched on as a extremely proud parent (Julian Hamilton/Daily Mirror)Wales manager Rob Page immediately promoted him into the squad for Sunday's crucial Euro 2024 qualifier against Croatia in Cardiff.
Emotional father and Mirror columnist Robbie, who won 39 caps for the Dragons, revealed: “His pride in the red shirt of Wales speaks for itself because he was born in England and his mother was born in Scotland, so he could have played for either of them.
“He's got a left foot like a wand and he's an elegant player on the ball, but he needs to win more duels and Reading is a great place for him to work on that physical side of his game.
“But you can't write scripts like the one he's writing for himself – first his dad's on the air when he makes his first United appearance in the Champions League, and now he's got a Wales cap in front of his nana, who has hardly been out of the house for three years since Covid.
“It was written in the stars for it to happen here. I was stood behind the goal as a 10-year-old boy when Mark Hughes scored that incredible bicycle kick against Spain in 1985 and I didn't think it could get any better – but this tops it.”
Looking down, from the celestial directors' box, was Charlie's grandfather Colin, who died from Pick's disease, a form of Alzheimer's, in 2012 aged 63.
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Last word goes to Charlie's 75-year-old grandmother Val, also a Mirror columnist who still lives in Wrexham and broke out of home confinement to join the Savages' Big Night Out.
“I was so proud that I cried,” she said. “Colin would have loved it. And I didn't need any TV commentator to tell me how well Charlie was playing because Our Robert was sat next to me all night like John Motson reincarnated.”
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