Match of the Day pundit Micah Richards has revealed he splashes out A LOT of cash on haircuts, insisting he has to stay ‘sharp’ throughout the football season.
Richards, 34, used to serve as right back for Manchester City and Aston Villa, having also won 13 caps for England between 2006 and 2012.
These days, he’s a sports presenter for the BBC, Sky, and – this week – CBS' Champions’ League coverage, joined by Thierry Henry and Kate Abdo.
In the studio, Richards' hair was compared to French footballer Olivier Giroud, smiling as he posed in a split screen alongside the AC Milan striker.
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“Who has better hair, Olivier Giroud or Micah Richards?” Abdo posed.
The group then honed in on Richards, who was asked how often he gets his hair cut.
“Three times a week,” he replied nonchalantly.
Abdo went on to explain how Richards had flown his own barber out to Qatar last year as he presented for the World Cup games.
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Richards proudly confirmed this, saying: “Of course I did! I’ve got to look fly.”
Of course, getting a fresh trim three times a week isn’t the cheapest of practices, meaning their next question was naturally about how much his barber charges.
"£200 a time,” Richards said.
“When I say the most, like I’ll get a trim tomorrow for the Champions League and I’m working the weekend so I’ll get a trim.
“He did it today. I’ve got to get a sharpen up tomorrow.”
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He said he has to ‘pay’, joking that he should put it ‘through expenses’ instead.
Henry couldn’t comprehend the idea of getting a cut so often, asking his fellow pundit why he did it.
Richards said: “I’ve got to look sharp. When you look good you’re able to perform.”
Henry then quipped: “You said you need to look fly… not like one!”
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Abdo said the studio’s control room had already crunched the numbers for them to work out just how much these thrice-weekly haircuts are setting him back.
“They tell me that if you did the maths on that - £600 a week,” she said.
“Times 52 weeks in a year...”
This would have worked out at a staggering £31,200 a year – but Richards cut in to point out that he only calls on the barber so much during the football season, when he’s obviously on telly on a regular basis.
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“The season’s not 52 weeks, Kate!” he said.
“Let’s do 40.”
Even 40 comes out to £24,000, but while Richards seemed to be mildly shocked, he didn’t seem too bothered by the hefty bill he’s been racking up.
When asked if he felt he should ‘rethink’ his choices, he shook his head and replied: “No, no, no, no, no.”
Richards added: “I look fantastic."
Jess Hardiman