(contactmusic.com) - British pop star Robbie Williams has been forced to publicly apologise to his former manager Nigel Martin-Smith. Martin-Smith - who managed boy band Take That, of which Williams was a member until he quit the group in 1995 - took legal action against the 33-year-old singer over solo song The 90s, in which Williams accused him of stealing money from the band at the height of its fame in the 1990s. Besides the public apology, Williams is expected to pay Martin-Smith substantial damages - thought to be up to $1 million (GBP500,000) - and cover his legal costs. He says, "Robbie has agreed to make a public apology and will pay damages. That will be the end of the matter." Martin-Smith insists he would have waived damages if Williams had agreed to his request for a face-to-face meeting - but this was turned down by the pop star. Last year (06), Williams had to re-record the song, which appeared on his 2006 album Rudebox, after Martin-Smith filed the lawsuit against the singer over lyrics on The 90s.