By Phil Cartwright BBC Sport

Robbie Savage is currently captain of Championship club Derby County

Robbie Savage, the man nicknamed Mr Marmite by the national newspaper for which he writes a weekly column, is undoubtedly one of the most colourful and passionate characters in modern football.

In a career of almost 600 games, which began playing alongside David Beckham as part of 'Fergie's Fledglings' at Manchester United and is approaching an end at Championship club Derby County, he has never been too far away from the headlines.

Whether it was winning the League Cup with Leicester City in 2000 or getting Tottenham defender Justin Edinburgh sent off in the previous year's final, scoring stunning goals for Blackburn in the Uefa Cup or being fined for using referee Graham Poll's lavatory, Savage's career has been eventful, to say the least.

At 35, there are not too many years left for him on the pitch.

But off it, one of Wrexham's finest exports in forging an impressive career for himself as a broadcaster.

He has just returned from the World Cup in South Africa, where he has been working as a summariser for BBC Radio 5 live, and will co-present 606 with Mark Chapman on the same station every Saturday evening during the forthcoming football season.

The former Crewe, Leicester, Birmingham and Blackburn midfielder took a break from pre-season training on Tuesday to talk to BBC Radio Stoke about his life, his football career and his hopes for the future.

And perhaps typical of the man, he is setting his sights very high.

"I want to be the next Gary Lineker," said Savage. "I think he's a fantastic presenter.

"I'm fortunate to be in a position where I'll be presenting 606 next year, which will be great, but I just want to do as well as I can in any chosen field that I do.

"I'm not the most gifted or talented person in anything I've done, but what I've done is do everything I can with enthusiasm and a big heart.

"People have given me the opportunity and I want to repay them."

Savage has gone on record in the past to say he would like to take charge of his hometown club one day, but despite taking his coaching badges, he is non-committal about the prospect of becoming a manager once his playing days are over.

"I see [Derby manager] Nigel Clough every day and he comes to work with a smile on his face, he absolutely loves it," he continued.

"I'm a character and I think the players would love me if I was a manager. It's something that's crossed my mind.

"The horrible thing is that I've got one or two years left as a footballer and that's hard to believe, so I've got to look to the future."

And the future is looking very bright for a man who may never have had a football career at all.

Savage was involved in a serious car crash at the age of 19, as he contemplated telling his parents about his release from Manchester United, leaving him without any feeling in his left arm for several days.

Savage talked to BBC Radio Stoke's Rob Adcock about his life and career

After three successful years at Crewe, he turned down the offer of a £250-a-week contract in 1997 because he felt he could get a better deal elsewhere.

Big money moves to Leicester, Birmingham and Blackburn followed, although the breakdown of a proposed move to Everton remains one of his biggest regrets.

Savage has been no stranger to the hatred of opposition supporters as a player, but he believes his new role as a broadcaster is making people see him in a different light.

"The thing I'm finding hard to accept is that throughout my football career I've been hated, and actually with this radio stuff, people quite like me," he added.

"If it ever comes to the point where people say you should change the way you are, I would finish it, because I am me. I do things because I love doing them.

"I know how I'll be remembered," admits Savage. "If you get 12 people around a table in a pub, six will think I'm great and six will think I'm the biggest obscenity you've ever met in your life. I'm glad of that."

Some people love him. Some people hate him. But for his enthusiasm, his belief and for what he has achieved on and off the pitch, you have to respect him.

You can download the Football Roundup podcast and hear the full interview with Robbie Savage on the BBC Radio Stoke website - bbc.co.uk/stoke

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