1st November – Paul Dickov

Paul Dickov might not be the first Manchester City striker that comes to mind but he might just be one of the most important in their history.

Featuring in three different divisions for the club and scoring some important goals for the club means he should be remembered fondly by the fans. Alongside his workrate and determination he was always well liked by his teams fans and not so much by opposition players.

Dickov started his career at Arsenal, but struggled to force his way into the first team regularly, with the likes of Ian Wright in front of him in the pecking order. However, his record wasn’t too bad as he scored six times in just 24 appearances and he was part of the squad that won the Cup Winners Cup in 1994.

In 1996 the striker signed for Manchester City but his first season was a bit of a disaster as the club went through five managers, some of them liking the striker and others leaving him out completely as he contributed just five goals. Again, the following year was poor and despite finishing as the top scorer they were relegated from Divison One.

The 1998-99 season was when Dickov became a City hero, scoring 16 goals in total, including the 95^th minute equaliser in the final of the playoffs against Gillingham which was later voted as City’s Greatest Ever Goal in 2005. The game went to penalties and they would go on to win the game. In the following campaign Man City gained back to back promotions but injuries limited his game time. He did score the fourth goal in a 4-1 win over Blackburn Rovers which clinched promotion.

The Premier League was tough for Dickov as he found himself on the bench a lot and only managed four goals in the league as they were relegated. Lack of first team opportunites led to him leaving for Leicester City in 2002 and at the end of the season he suffered yet another relegation. He and the club would bounce back immediately with the striker hitting a career high 20 goals. Despite 13 goals Leicester were relegated again and he left the club for Blackburn.

He stayed at Blackburn for two seasons, scoring 17 times before returning to Man City. His second spell was less spectacular than his first as he failed to find the back of the net and ended up being loaned to Crystal Palace and Blackpool. While there he was named Player of the Month and scored six times in 11 games in total.

At the end of his contract he resigned for Leicester, helping them to win League One in the process. After promotion he did not play much and was loaned out to Derby County and was released soon after. Leeds United signed him but he only managed one start for the club.

His final playing days were at Oldham were he was player manager.

The final word can go to the man himself, speaking about that Wembley goal, which if he didn’t score who knows where City would be. “I was a lucky little boy to score that goal.”

4th February – Kevin Campbell

Kevin Campbell may not be one of the biggest names to have played during the Premier League era but he was certainly a good striker that could always grab a goal for whoever he was playing for.

The 45 year old has been retired since 2007 but will be fondly remembered by Everton and West Brom in particular. During his career he did a rare thing for an English player and that was play abroad. He also scored 83 Premier League goals which puts him number 40 in the all time list.

Campbell began his career at Arsenal and was prolific for the youth team, scoring 59 goals in a single season and helping the club win the FA Youth Cup. He went on to make his debut on 7^th May 1988 against Everton, unfortunately he could not find his way past Paul Merson and Alan Smith to secure a first team spot. In 1989 he joined Leyton Orient on loan and was a success scoring nine times in 16 games which led to them wanting to sign him permanently, however Arsenal refused to sell.

He went out on loan once more, this time to Leicester City and again showed that he could find the back of the net with five goals in 11 games. In the 1990-91 season he established himself in the Arsenal first team and helped the team win the First Division title after scoring eight times in ten games during the run in. After the signing of Ian Wright, Campbell got less recognition for his work but still chipped in with some important goals. Over the next few seasons he helped the team win the FA Cup, League Cup and the Cup Winners Cup. More signings were made, including John Hartson and Dennis Bergkamp, so Campbell left the club after playing 224 games and scoring 59 goals.

Nottingham Forest signed the striker for £2.5 million in the summer of 1995 but unfortunately he could not stop them from getting relegated in 1997. He stuck with the team and his 23 goals in the following season helped them to an immediate return to the Premier League. Controversy then clouded the next 12 months of his career as he was sold to Turkish side Trabzonspor for £2.5 million and this made Forest striker Pierre van Hooijdonk go on strike. But worse was still to come as after just seven months he was involved in a racist incident with the club president. Campbell was very popular with the fans and the other players so they stood behind him and accompanied him to the press conference announcing his departure and the reasons.

In March 1999, Campbell joined relegation threatened Everton and was arguably one of the greatest loans ever in the Premier League. Despite only playing eight games he finished the season as the club’s top scorer with nine goals and was named April’s Player of the Month. In the summer he made the move permanent and he became even more of a legend at the club by scoring the winner against Liverpool at Anfield. Although Everton were largely disappointing in the Premier League with bottom half finishes, Campbell was a regular scorer.

West Brom then signed Campbell on a free transfer in January 2005 and many had written them off after being bottom of the Premier League at Christmas. But after making Campbell captain there was an upturn in form and he led them to survival, the first time a team had achieved this. Unfortunately he could not repeat the trick in the following season and the club were relegated and was released. He then joined Cardiff City but he could not have as much of an influence as he hoped and played his last professional game on the 20^th February 2007 against former club West Brom.

The final word can go to Bryan Robson. “He’s got vast experience and Premier League know-how. I think he’ll be a success. He’s up for trying to keep us in the Premier League. The way he leads the line is a good example to everybody but the way he gets on with players has been excellent.”

31st October – Denis Irwin

Denis Irwin may not spring to mind when thinking of Manchester United greats but there is no denying that he is one of the club’s most dependable and consistent full backs ever.

The 49 year old had a very good career and has been called Alex Ferguson’s pound for pound greatest ever signing which is a huge honour and just shows how important he was to the side during the 1990s. Irwin also got the honour of being named in the first Premier League Overall Team of the Decade and represented his country, Republic of Ireland, 56 times and was part of the World Cup 1994 squad.

Irwin started his career at Leeds United in 1983 and went on to make 72 appearances in the Second Division for the club, including 41 games in the 1984-85 season. But in 1986 he moved to Oldham Athletic on a free transfer and barely missed a league match over the next four seasons, featuring in 167 games and scoring four goals.

In his final season at the club he helped the club reach the semi final of the FA Cup and the final of the League Cup before moving to Manchester United in 1990 for a fee of £625,000. He would spend the next 12 years at Old Trafford and would win seven Premier League title along the way, which is an incredible achievement. He can also add three FA Cup, a League Cup, a Cup Winners’ Cup and a Champions League winners medal to his collection before he left the club.

During his time at the club he also became a reliable goalscorer from the penalty spot and also was a real asset from free kicks, delivering great balls into the box. He would score 22 goals in the league all together for the club with his first coming on the 7th September 1991 in a 3-0 home win over Norwich City. Irwin’s best goalscoring season came in the 1992-93 season, as the team went on to lift the first ever Premier League trophy, hitting the back of the net five times.

He continued to be Manchester United’s first choice until his mid thirties and was rewarded with a testimonial against Manchester City on the 16th August 2000 but this was the beginning of the end of his time at the club as he was no longer an automatic first choice. Irwin made his last appearance for the club in a 0-0 draw against Charlton Athletic on the 12th May 2002 and was given the captain’s armband by Alex Ferguson on his 529th appearance for the club.

After the 2001-02 season the Irishman joined Wolves and was a crucial part of their promotion to the Premier League, playing in 43 of the 46 league games and scoring goals against Burnley and Grimsby. Wolves then struggled in the top flight but on Irwin’s return to Old Trafford he received a warm reception but this was a personal high point in a poor season as the club were relegated. Irwin announced his retirement from the game at the end of the season.

The final word can go to the former Manchester United captain Bryan Robson. “We called him the quiet assassin. He was a left back and he was taking penalties in a team full of Man United players. He’d take all of the free kicks – it just shows what a class player he was. He was tough and quick.”

23rd September – Paolo Rossi

Paolo Rossi is celebrating his 58th birthday today and he is a legend in his home country of Italy because he led them to the World Cup title in 1982.

In the tournament he scored six goals which meant he won the Golden Boot and was then also awarded the Golden Ball for being the player of the tournament becoming only the third player after Garrincha in 1962 and Mario Kempes in 1978 to pick up all three awards at a World Cup. Although his reputation was slightly tarnished after a betting scandal in 1980 he claimed he was innocent and came back from a two year ban just in time to become the country’s hero.

Rossi started his career at Juventus but had a difficult time there and after three operations on his knee he was sent out on loan to gain experience at Como. He was shifted out to the right wing by Como and could not show his true potential. But in 1976 he moved to Vicenza where his career really started and he began to play as the centre forward and immediately showed his eye for goal.

In his first year at the club he won the Serie B Golden Boot after his 21 goals in 36 games. These goals also helped the club gain promotion to the top flight, where Rossi just seemed to get better and better, hitting 24 goals in just 30 games and becoming the first player to ever finish as the top scorer in Serie A and Serie B in consecutive seasons. After his impressive spell at Vicenza he was called up to the Italy squad for the 1978 World Cup and gained international fame as one of the world’s best strikers after scoring three goals and assisting another four in the tournament.

Despite averaging better than a goal in every game in the following campaign, he could not stop Vicenza getting relegated and was loaned out to Perugia for the 1978-79 season. He scored 13 times in his first year with the club but then the betting scandal stopped him playing more games for them.

After he completed his ban he rejoined Juventus in the 1980-81 season but could only play three times, scoring one goal but this earned him his call up to the Italy squad for the 1982 World Cup which was heavily criticised before the tournament. The criticism was justified as he looked a shadow of his former self in the three group games, however Enzo Bearzot stood by his striker. He repaid this faith by scoring a hatrick in the quarter final against Brazil in a 3-2 win and then followed this up with two against Poland in the semis. Then in the final against Germany he scored the first of Italy’s three goals to help them lift the trophy.

After the World Cup he could not keep up his phenomenal goal scoring record for Juventus but he did still have a record that many strikers would be proud of – 24 league goals in 83 games. These goals were good enough to win two Serie A titles, the Italian Cup, the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup, UEFA Super Cup and the European Cup in his four years at the club.

In 1985 Rossi joined AC Milan and although he only scored two goals he went down as a legend as these goals came in a derby victory over Inter. He only spent one season at the club and then went on to play for Verona, and scored the 100th league goal of his career at the club and finally retiring with a record of 103 goals in 251 games, as well as 20 in 48 games for the national team.

The final word can go to the Italy manager Enzo Bearzot speaking after the 1982 World Cup. “I knew that if Rossi wasn’t in Spain, I wouldn’t have had an opportunist inside the penalty box. In that area, he was really good, really fast, always ready to fool defenders with his feints.”

10th May- Dennis Bergkamp

He is definitely one of the best players to have ever been in the Premier League and is someone that made the league what it is today.

Dennis Bergkamp, now 45, is currently the assistant manager of Dutch side Ajax and may one day become a great manager but until then he will be considered one of the most technically gifted and intelligent footballers to have played in England and it must have been a real treat to watch him in training every day.

It always seemed like he was going to be a special player when he joined Ajax at the age of 11 and then was given his debut by Dutch legend Johan Cruyff in 1986. It only took him two months to score his first professional goal in a 6-0 win over HFC Haarlem and at the end of his first season he won his first European trophy and gained a lot of praise for his performances in the Cup Winners’ Cup.

For the next few season he established himself as a regular in the side and was the top scorer in the Eredivisie from 1991 to 1993 as well as being voted Dutch Footballer of the Year in 1992 and 1993. These goals and performances helped the club win the league, the UEFA Cup and the KNVB Cup twice.

In 1993 he left Ajax for Inter Milan and made his debut against Reggiana on the 29th August. It was a tough first season for the Dutchman as the club struggled and he only managed eight league goals. They ended up finishing 13th in Serie A but they did win the UEFA Cup and Bergkamp finished as top scorer in the competition eight goals, including a hatrick against Rapid Bucharest. His second season at the club was even worse and his relationship with the press was at an all time low with them branding him a ‘donkey’ and when Massimo Moratti purchased Inter his time at the club was up.

Bergkamp joined Arsenal in June 1995 for £7.5 million and this price delighted Inter president Moratti who said. “You will be lucky if Bergkamp scored 10 goals.” At first it seemed like the Italian was correct as he failed to settle in England as he did not look good enough for the first six games, however a game against Southampton at Highbury would change everything. He scored twice and nobody ever doubted his abilities again.

Bergkamp was becoming a big player in England and was instrumental in the 1997-98 season. He finished as the club’s top scorer with 22 and this included his memorable hatrick against Leicester City and is regarded as one of the best ever seen. He unfortunately missed the FA Cup final through injury but was given the PFA Player of the Year award.

Once again in the 2001-02 season as Arsenal won the double, Bergkamp was a crucial part of the squad. He played in 33 games and assisted 15 goals and scored one of the best goals ever seen in a game against Newcastle United where he flicked it past the defender and rolled it into the net. In the next season he scored his 100th goal for the club and they won the FA Cup.

Bergkamp was also a major part of ‘The Invincibles’ with him playing 28 times and although the goals were beginning to dry up, his performances were still of the highest quality. After winning the FA Cup for the fourth time in 2005 he delighted everyone by signing a new one year contract with the club. Arsene Wenger said: “He has so much to offer, Dennis is a special talent with vast experience and that will certainly help us in our pursuit of honours.”

And in a day that was dubbed ‘Bergkamp Day’ by Arsenal fans he scored a goal in the 89th minute which proved to be his last competitive goal. The final word can go to the Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger. “He has what we want to have at the club: dedication, huge desire to win, and a touch of class as well. I believe that ever single supporter who thinks about Dennis, speaks about class. He was completely dedicated to the club.”