Clive Tyldesley told in 2018 that he would be replaced as ITV's lead football commentator

Commentator-gate took another turn after it emerged that Clive Tyldesley was told two years ago by ITV director of sport Niall Sloane that he would be replaced as the broadcaster’s lead football commentator.

Telegraph Sport understands that Sloane, a long-standing television executive who has worked in senior positions at the BBC and ITV, told Tyldesley of his plans in a meeting in 2018 to agree the latter’s most recent contract, which is due to expire this summer. Tyldesley is understood to have assumed that the comment from Sloane was just a means of motivating him and did not take it seriously - believing himself to be the best man for the job.

He was forced into a reappraisal of that Feb 2018 meeting when he was told three weeks ago by Sloane that he was being dropped as the lead commentator for ITV on England games. Tyldesley, 65, set social media ablaze this morning when he posted a video on Twitter reacting to ITV’s announcement of his replacement, describing himself as “upset, annoyed and baffled”.

He took over the role from Brian Moore after the latter bowed out at the 1998 World Cup finals and has been at the head of ITV’s dwindling live coverage over the intervening years, most memorably Manchester United’s dramatic victory in the 1999 Champions League final.

His video caused consternation at ITV Sport who told him that this was the plan in 2018 and would have had him in situ as the lead commentator for England’s games at Euro 2020 had it not been postponed by the Covid pandemic. ITV had long been planning to revamp its coverage and felt that a change in its lead commentator was central to that strategy.

The broadcaster has already contracted the former Sky Sports presenter and current Talk Sport commentator Sam Matterface, 42, to start next season in Tyldesley’s role. Matterface also commentates on ITV’s Dancing on Ice. He will begin his new job at the start of next season and continue in his Talk Sport role alongside that.

Tyldesley is understood to have felt that his performances warranted an extension of his role as the lead commentator. Matters came to a head when he was asked by production staff whether he would be in position for the Soccer Aid charity game at Old Trafford which is scheduled for later this year and is an ITV event. It was then the broadcaster made an announcement.

ITV have not broadcast live Champions League games since 2015 and its highlights package contract for the competition has also expired. The main live games it still has are exclusive rights to England tournament qualifiers and the sharing of tournaments with the BBC. ITV will also share live rights for the FA Cup from next season.

Tyldesley will still be contracted to ITV although he is yet to sign a new deal – fixed term contracts are the industry norm among pundits and commentators. He is expected to take his pick of games after Matterface and will be part of tournaments in the future.  It is understood that his outspoken criticism of the network will not affect that. A fall in advertising revenue and a general uncertainty about the future has meant that many media professionals in television and radio – especially freelancers – are facing a challenging future.

In a statement, Sloane thanked Tyldesley for his “superb work” Tyldesley maintained in his Twitter video that he did not know why the decision had been taken.

Tyldesley’s predecessor Moore bowed out after 1998 – a tournament in which he famously asked his co-commentator Kevin Keegan to predict the outcome of David Batty’s penalty against Argentina in England’s quarter-final shoot-out. As Batty approached the ball, Moore prefaced his urgent question with the famous line, “Do you back him to score? Quickly, yes or no?” Keegan predicted that Batty would score. He did not.