Morgan and McCarthy reignite 17-year feud over Wolves' rotated XI that aided Man Utd title

Piers Morgan and Mick McCarthy brought a 17-year-old argument back to life on Morgan’s Sports Uncensored show, with the former Republic of Ireland manager calling his host a “w*” as the pair relitigated one of the more contentious team-selection decisions of the 2009-10 Premier League season.

The flashpoint was a midweek fixture in December 2009. McCarthy, then managing a Wolves side freshly promoted to the top flight, chose to rest 10 outfield players for a trip to Old Trafford — a game Wolves lost 3-0. His reasoning was straightforward: Wolves had beaten Tottenham 1-0 three days earlier and faced Burnley immediately afterwards, a match they won 2-0. By the end of the season, Wolves avoided relegation by eight points, and McCarthy argued the squad management banked the club £100m by keeping them in the Premier League.

Morgan, an Arsenal supporter, saw it differently. At the time, Arsenal and Manchester United were locked in a title race, and the three points gifted to United — combined with Arsenal being held by Burnley — felt, to Morgan, like a decisive intervention. He had publicly called for McCarthy to be sacked.

“My job is to win games,” McCarthy told Morgan on the show. “I have a squad of 22. If I’m a manager, it’s my right to manage that team how I see fit and get results.”

Morgan pushed back: “By dropping 10 players, you let United walk all over you, which had a direct impact on my team’s chances of winning the league. I thought that was an appalling abrogation of your duty as a manager to entertain the fans with the best available team.”

McCarthy was unmoved, pointing out that Arsenal “weren’t good enough to win the title” regardless, and that Sir Alex Ferguson won it again. “You blame me, which is real bad on your part,” he said.

The exchange did eventually find a moment of honesty. When Morgan asked whether McCarthy would feel differently if a rival had fielded a weakened side against one of his own teams, McCarthy conceded: “I’m going to moan like a b***h, like you do!” Both men acknowledged they were being hypocritical, though neither appeared ready to fully concede the original argument.