GUS POYET’S penchant for speaking out cost him his job at Brighton and AEK Athens.

“There is a reason they nicknamed Poyet ‘Radio’: always on, always talking, especially when it comes to football,” wrote Sid Lowe, in The Guardian.

While the exact reasons for his departure from the Albion in 2013 were never made public, there was speculation that it revolved around him talking openly about his desire to move on moments after the Seagulls had lost a Championship play-off match against arch rivals Crystal Palace.

“I’ve not been in this situation before but I don’t like it,” Poyet said after the game. “It’s changed my view completely about everything I was prepared for, so we’ll see now. I have always said that all the time we keep improving I am going to be at this club and the day we hit the roof, I’m not. Is there something more?

“Right now I don’t know, so I need to make sure I know there is, because if not I am not going to stay forever.”

Poyet was suspended by the club three days later, along with the assistant manager Mauricio Taricco and first-team coach Charlie Oatway, with them only saying they were launching an internal inquiry.

Andy Naylor in the Argus of 17 May 2013 reckoned the suspensions related to “numerous alleged breaches of contracts” pointing out: “Poyet refused to deal with the retained list, announced by the club earlier in the day.

“He told the squad at a meeting at The Amex on Tuesday he would not be involving himself with players’ contracts, because they were not his decisions and he might not be the manager next season.

“Players leaving and staying at the end of their contracts were dealt with instead by chairman Tony Bloom and head of football David Burke.”

At the time, Poyet’s name was being mentioned as a potential successor to David Moyes at Everton, and Martin Jol’s position at Fulham was not thought to be secure.

In the Argus, Naylor wrote: “During his post-match press conference he demanded assurances from Bloom he would have enough money to continue improving the team after their promotion near-miss.

“Those remarks are not, however, thought to be instrumental in the action taken by the club. Poyet’s relationship with Bloom and other senior figures has deteriorated in recent weeks.

“The Uruguayan almost joined Reading in March and his decision to stay only papered over the cracks.”

Naylor observed that Poyet’s previously “wide-ranging powers” had been reined in since the appointment the previous year of chief executive Paul Barber, who was on the board at Spurs when Poyet lost his job as assistant to Juande Ramos.

“It became an open secret within the Amex that Poyet would leave at the end of the season, irrespective of how Albion fared in the play-offs,” he said.

The following month Poyet claimed he was sacked while live on air doing punditry for the BBC although the club maintained he knew full well that he wouldn’t be returning to the job he had been doing for three and a half years.

Announcing his sacking on the club website, a statement read: “This followed his suspension, an investigation, and a subsequent formal disciplinary process. In line with the club’s own procedures, and UK employment law.”

Wind on the clock three years to April 2016 and, after only five months in charge of AEK Athens, Poyet was labelled “immoral” by the Greek club’s owner, Dimitris Melissanidis for telling the Greek media he would be leaving the club at the end of the season. Sounds familiar?

A Reuters report of 20 April 2016 maintained: “Speaking to the media on Tuesday, a day ahead of AEK’s Greek Cup semi-final second leg match against Atromitos, Poyet further angered the club by revealing details of a private meeting he had held with Melissanidis.

“What he did was unacceptable, it was not the appropriate time to unsettle the team just hours before the semi-final,” Melissanidis told reporters.

“AEK has never leaked any information from any of our meetings with him and for him to talk to the press about the contents of our meeting is immoral.”

Local media reported Poyet had been fired and would not be in the dugout for the match against Atromitos.

“AEK was informed of Gus Poyet’s decision that he will not stay with the club after the summer on Tuesday evening,” the club said.

“The important thing for AEK at the moment is the crucial semi-final with Atromitos, all of the other issues will be seen to after the match.”

After losing his job at Sunderland seven months previously, Poyet took over from Traianos Dellas in Athens in October 2015 on a deal until the end of the season, with the option to renew for another two years. Taricco and Oatway joined with him.

At the time of his appointment Poyet said: “I know that I have come to a huge club and I’ve been astonished by the reception that I have received.

“Our goal is to play to win every game, starting with the derby against Panathinaikos on Sunday (it finished 0-0), and maintain contact with the top positions.”

The ‘Yellows’ picked up a string of impressive results under Poyet but speculation about his future was never far away. In December 2015 he was linked to the managerial vacancy at Swansea City (following the departure of Garry Monk), prompting AEK to make a public declaration.

“We have not been approached by Swansea, there is no need for us to be approached and no propositions have been made from Swansea,” said a club spokesman. “Mr Poyet is happy at the club and will be our manager at least until the end of the season.”

AEK ended the regular season in second behind champions Olympiakos, although points were deducted for crowd trouble and they eventually finished third.

On his personal website, Poyet records that he led AEK Athens to the semi-finals of the Greek Cup and they won the three biggest derbies in the country against Panathinaikos, PAOK and Olympiakos over a month and a half. After he left, they went on to win the Greek Cup.

A month after his departure from Athens, Poyet was installed as head coach at Spanish La Liga side Real Betis, from Seville, on a two-year contract.

He subsequently managed in China, France and Chile but returned to Greece in February 2022 as the head coach of the country’s national team.

At one point it looked like he might return to Greece before then. It seemed all had been forgiven when, in September 2019, word had it that Poyet was lined up to return to AEK as the successor to the departed Miguel Cardoso.

However, agonasport.com said: “All of the signs seemed to be pointing towards Poyet returning to AEK as manager, but reports have now revealed that negotiations have reached a dead end. AEK are not willing to match the Uruguayan’s financial demands.”