Robbie Savage kissed the Blackburn badge in front of the fans of his former club, Birmingham, a few months after making the move. Savage spent three years in the Midlands before leaving them for Blackburn, claiming he wanted to be closer to his parents in Wrexham…

“My head has been in turmoil in the past four or five weeks,” he said. “I just want to be close to my family. I want to do the best I can for my family. You could not ask for a better group of lads to play with and the fans have been very good to me but it is hard living away from your family. I’ve had a few chats with the manager and, hopefully, it will be resolved soon.”

However, staying at Birmingham would have meant he was closer to his family by a few miles, much to his embarrassment.

“We fully sympathise with Robbie if he needs to be nearer his family home,” said Birmingham owner David Sullivan. “We have offered a chauffeur-driven car to take him to Wrexham any time he wants. But it’s quite amusing to hear Birmingham is closer to Wrexham than Blackburn. Perhaps the answer is for Robbie to move somewhere between Birmingham and Wrexham and spend an hour commuting to training.”

He left for Derby three years later.