This Friday, Kartik Krishnaiyer, host of the EPL Talk Podcast, will be interviewing a legend in football, Mel Charles.
His name may be unfamiliar to many of you Stateside, so here’s some background on the Welsh legend. Mel Charles (pictured above in a 1958 World Cup match when he blocked Pele from reaching the ball) is best known as the brother of Leeds and Juventus legend John Charles.
Mel was a legend too. He made 60 appearances for Arsenal, scoring 28 goals between 1959 and 1962. Unfortunately at Arsenal, injuries plagued his time there. So with club football, the club he’s best known for playing at was Swansea Town where he made 233 appearances between 1952-1959. After Arsenal, Charles went on to play at Cardiff and Port Vale, among other clubs.
In his international career, Charles played for Wales in the 1958 World Cup — the only World Cup that Wales has ever qualified for. Impressively the Welsh made it through to the quarter-finals before losing to Brazil thanks to a goal by Pele. Altogether, Charles made 31 appearances for Wales and scored six goals.
In addition to being the brother of John Charles, Mel comes from a fascinating football family. One of his relatives is Toby Charles, the host of Soccer Made In Germany. Also, Mel’s son Jeremy was a legend at Swansea City where he helped John Toshack take the Swans from the old Fourth Division to the old First Division. Jeremy Charles went on to also play at Oxford United and Queens Park Rangers.
For those of you not familiar with the EPL Talk Podcast, we often ask for readers and listeners to post suggested questions for our guests so we can ask them on-air. All you have to do is click the comments link below and post your question before 11pm ET on Thursday night, August 27. Thanks in advance for your intelligent questions.
Don’t miss a single episode of the EPL Talk Podcast, the only Premier League interview show on the Internet. Automatically get each new episode by subscribing via iTunes or subscribing to the RSS feed. Or you can search through the archives here.
loading...
{ 10 comments… read them below or add one }
Apart from you brother, John, which 3 Wales players that you have seen do you consider to have been the best?
loading...
Did he realize how great a player Pele would become when he looked across the pitch at the then 17 year old Brazillian?
loading...
Is it true that the Welsh national dish, Welsh rare-bit, is essentially cheese on toast?
loading...
I remember seeing you scoring 4 in a game v N.Ireland in Cardiff, April 1962 the game was switched from the Vetch because it was waterlogged! but I believe your best position was centre-half (you were voted the best centre-half at the 1958 World cup) so Mel who was the toughest centre-forward you faced?
loading...
Do you think if your brother John hadn’t been injured for the quarter final against Brazil, you would have actually gone on to win that game (and then possibly even win the world cup?!) Also, it seems to me that since that game Brazil have had great respect for Welsh football- respect that doesn’t exist in England – do you agree?
loading...
Thanks lads. Keep the questions coming. Many of the above suggested questions are far better than the usual fluff that traditional media asks.
Cheers,
The Gaffer
loading...
The interview with Mel Charles has been rescheduled for Monday morning, so you still have time to post more questions between now and Sunday 11pm ET.
Cheers,
The Gaffer
loading...
What was the most memorable game you played in with your brother John, I know you both played in our famous win against Enland 2-1 in 1955. You also played with John at Cardiff City were there any games that stick out for you at City.
loading...
Hi, I have just co-written Mel’s autobiography IN THE SHADOW OF A GIANT, published by John Blake and released in the UK last month. It was a privilege working with Mel, who is a gentleman and a wonderful character to this day. If anyone wishes further information about the book or Mel’s career, please feel free to contact me at melshadowofagiant@yahoo.co.uk
Good luck with the podcast, Colin Leslie
loading...
The interview is now live on iTunes and here: http://www.epltalk.com/epl-talk-podcast-mel-charles/10748
Thanks everyone for submitting your questions, many of which were asked on-air.
Cheers,
The Gaffer
loading...