Gordon Strachan
Encyclopedia
Gordon David Strachan OBE
(born 9 February 1957) is a Scottish
football manager
and former player. He is currently without a club, having last managed Middlesbrough
. Strachan played for Dundee
, Aberdeen
, Manchester United
, Leeds United and Coventry City
, as well as the Scotland national team
. Prior to Middlesbrough, Strachan managed Coventry City
, Southampton
and Celtic
. In club football, he played 626 games scoring a total of 138 goals, playing 21 of 25 career seasons in either the English or Scottish top flight. In international football Strachan earned 50 caps, scoring 5 goals and playing in two FIFA World Cup
final tournaments, Spain 82
and Mexico 86
. Strachan retired from playing in 1996 at age 40, setting a Premier League record for an outfield player.
A right-sided midfielder, Strachan made his senior debut in 1974 with Dundee before moving on within Scotland, to spend seven seasons at Aberdeen. He first played for the Scotland national team in 1980. While at Aberdeen Strachan won multiple domestic league and cup honours in the early 1980s, as well as the 1982–83 European Cup Winners' Cup and 1983 European Super Cup. Moving to England, Strachan won the 1985 FA Cup Final
in five seasons with Manchester United, before spending the next seven seasons as club captain at Leeds, winning the 1991–92 First Division league title. He played his last game for Scotland in 1992 while still at Leeds, and then moved to Coventry in 1995 for a final three seasons, as a player-coach
.
Strachan became full time manager of Coventry when the incumbent Ron Atkinson
was appointed as Director of Football
. After five years in the job he was sacked in 2001, when Coventry were relegated from the top flight for the first time in 34 years. However, he immediately returned to the Premier League with Southampton and guided that club to the 2003 FA Cup Final – losing 1–0 to Arsenal. Strachan resigned from Southampton in 2004 and took a 16 month break from management before returning to Scotland to become manager of Celtic in the Scottish Premier League
. With Celtic he achieved three successive league titles and other domestic cup wins, before resigning in May 2009 after failing to win a fourth title. Five months later he became manager of Middlesbrough in the English Football League Championship
, but left the club after a year in the job.
Strachan was named as FWA Footballer of the Year for the 1990–91 season while at Leeds. He was also named Manager of the Year in Scotland multiple times by writers and players while at Celtic. In 2007, Strachan was inducted into the Scottish Football Hall of Fame
. He is the father of Craig Strachan and Gavin Strachan
, also footballers.
, Strachan began his career with Dundee, making his debut in the 1974-75 season
and becoming a regular player the 1975-76 season
, soon becoming captain of the side.
and one of the few sides to break the traditional dominance of the Old Firm
in Scottish football, he won two Scottish League titles, three Scottish Cup
s, the European Cup Winners' Cup and the European Super Cup
.
in August. Strachan had previously signed for Bundesliga side 1. FC Köln
, and United paid £75,000 compensation to resolve the row.
He contributed to the Red Devils' FA Cup
victory over Everton
in 1985
, but gradually began to suffer a loss in form and eventually lost his place as a regular first team player. Aberdeen manager Alex Ferguson followed him to Old Trafford
in November 1986 following the dismissal of Ron Atkinson
.
came to the rescue in March 1989, when he paid £200,000 for Strachan's services. The transfer fee soon paid dividends as Strachan's form resulted in helping Leeds to winning the Second Division title in 1990 and gaining promotion to the First Division after an eight-year exile. The following season he helped Leeds finish fourth in the First Division and Strachan was voted Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year
. A year later, he was a part of the team's strength in Leeds overtaking Manchester United to win the 1991–92 League Championship title in the last ever season of the old Football League before the creation of the FA Premier League
. Strachan continued to be an active first-team player as Leeds enjoyed mixed fortunes during their first three seasons of the Premier League, although he was sometimes kept out of the side by back problems.
. Strachan was not a regular first-team player at Highfield Road, but he helped coach the club's players to a high enough standard to escape relegation from the Premier League in 1995–96
.
which included 5 goals. He appeared in two FIFA World Cup
s — in 1982 and 1986 – and it was in the latter that he scored his most famous International goal, a cross shot against West Germany in Scotland's second match of the tournament in Querétaro
, Mexico. His celebration was unique and comical too, as he attempted to vault the advertising hoarding, his relatively small height made it difficult if not impossible, so he merely rested his right leg on it as his team-mates joined him in celebrating. This goal gave Scotland a surprise lead against one of the world's top national sides, but they ultimately lost the game 2–1 and failure to beat Uruguay
in the final game of the group stages ended their hopes of reaching the last 16, despite playing ten men from the first minute after a challenge on Strachan.
in November 1996, Strachan was promoted to the manager's seat. He finally retired as a player at the end of the season after making his last appearance at the age of 40, at the time a record for an outfield player in the FA Premier League
. Only goalkeeper John Burridge
, who had played for Manchester City
at the age of 43 in the 1994–95
, had played at a greater age in the Premier League at the time.
Strachan also helped Coventry survive a Premier League relegation battle. After losing their penultimate league game, it looked as though their 30-year top flight tenancy had come to an end. But thanks to a victory on the final day, a draw for Middlesbrough
(who had been deducted three points by the FA) and a defeat for Sunderland
, they avoided relegation. Coventry stayed in the top flight for a further four years until the 2000–01 season, during which Strachan became unpopular with fans. In the face of increasing supporter unrest he was sacked five games into the 2001–02
Division One campaign.
– who had sacked manager Stuart Gray
after a terrible start to their first season at the new St Mary's Stadium
. Most pundits had already written off their survival chances by the time of Strachan's appointment in October 2001, but he turned round their fortunes and they finished 11th in the Premier League. The Saints progressed further in 2002–03
when they finished eighth and reached the FA Cup Final, where they lost 1–0 to Arsenal
. As Arsenal had qualified for the UEFA Champions League
, Southampton won a place in the UEFA Cup.
In February 2004, Strachan announced his resignation as Southampton manager. He had earlier announced his intention not to renew his contract when it expired at the end of the 2003–04 season, but resigned even earlier than intended because he wanted to spend time with his family.
as manager of Celtic
in the Scottish Premier League
(SPL). For 2005–06
, his stated aim was to regain the SPL title from rivals Rangers
. He had an embarrassing start to his campaign as Celtic manager, losing 5–0 to Slovakia
n champions Artmedia Bratislava on 27 July 2005 and 3 days later drawing 4–4 with Motherwell
in his first SPL match in charge of the Glasgow
club. The loss against Artmedia meant that Celtic suffered an early exit from European competition, despite winning the return match 4–0.
After this disastrous start, Celtic started to improve under Strachan. A low-point was the shock defeat in the third round of the Scottish Cup to First Division Clyde
on 8 January 2006. However, the following month his team made history when they beat Dunfermline Athletic
8–1, a record victory margin for the SPL.
Strachan's first season was ultimately successful as he coached Celtic to victory in the Scottish League Cup
and, on 5 April 2006 his side clinched the SPL title in record time and with six matches remaining. Reflecting this achievement, Strachan was voted 'manager of the year' by the Scottish Football Writers' Association
8 days later.
The following year Strachan restructured the team and made a series of signings, bringing in players such as Hibernian's Derek Riordan
, Chelsea's Jiri Jarosik
, Kenny Miller
and Lee Naylor both from Wolverhampton Wanderers, Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink
from PSV Eindhoven, Thomas Gravesen
from Real Madrid
and Paul Hartley
and Steven Pressley
from Heart of Midlothian
. Celtic flourished, and by mid-January 2007 held a 17 point lead in the SPL table.
Champions League football again returned to Celtic Park, the team having automatically qualified for the group stages and drawn alongside Benfica, FC Copenhagen
and Manchester United
. Home victories against all three Group F members saw the team progress to the final 16 of the Champions League for the first time since the competition was re-formatted in 1993. Celtic lost the tie, against eventual winners AC Milan
in extra time, missing out on a place in the quarter finals.
On 22 April 2007 Strachan guided Celtic to their 41st league championship, and second in succession. A 2–1 victory against Kilmarnock left Celtic 13 points clear of Rangers with four matches remaining. Later that day Strachan was recognised as the inaugural Scottish PFA Manager of the Year for 2007. Celtic went on to win the Scottish Cup
, beating Dunfermline.
In the 2007–08 season, Strachan led Celtic into the last 16 of the Champions League again after beating AC Milan, Benfica and Shaktar Donetsk. However by April there was a lot of criticism from the press and the fans after the 1–0 loss to Aberdeen in the Scottish Cup quarter final and the 1–0 loss to 10 man Motherwell
in the league. But he proved the critics wrong again and after beating Rangers
twice at home, on 22 May 2008, Strachan became only the third ever Celtic manager to guide the club to three consecutive Scottish league titles.
After failing to lead Celtic to another league title in the 2008/09 season, he stepped down as manager on 25 May 2009.
team Middlesbrough
on 26 October 2009, in succession to Gareth Southgate
and signed a four-year contract.
Ironically, he had been linked with the Middlesbrough manager's job 15 years earlier, when still a Leeds United player.
His first game in charge was on 31 October where Middlesbrough lost 1–0 to Plymouth Argyle
with Adam Johnson missing a penalty. On 5 December 2009, Middlesbrough won their first match under Strachan, 5–1 away to Queens Park Rangers
. after a poor run of results including a 3–0 loss at home to Blackpool and a 1–0 loss at home to Cardiff City Strachan got his first home win- 3–0 against Scunthorpe.
After a poor start to the 2010–11 season
with Middlesbrough in 20th place, Strachan left the club by mutual consent on 18 October, and voluntarily tore up his contract, meaning that the club did not have to pay him compensation for the two and a half years remaining on his deal.
have attributed their success at Celtic to lifestyle changes enforced by Strachan.
. In his 1999 autobiography the Manchester United manager said "I decided this man could not be trusted an inch – I would not want to expose my back to him in a hurry". In his own 2006 autobiography Strachan said of the comments he was "surprised and disappointed". The rivalry dates from Strachan's time playing under Ferguson, first at Aberdeen and later Manchester Utd. The hostilities between the two men are widely recognised to have decreased especially since they were seen on cordial terms during Celtic and Manchester United Champions League
fixtures in both 2006 and 2008.
, and was also widely tipped to be Berti Vogts
's replacement as Scotland manager, before the post was filled by Walter Smith
. During the break, Strachan analysed football matches for the media, most notably alongside Adrian Chiles
on BBC Sport
's Match of the Day 2
.
For the 2006 FIFA World Cup
, Strachan was appointed as the official FIFA Ambassador for Scotland, joining fifty others in fund raising for SOS Children's Villages
, the official charity of the tournament.
and Gavin Strachan
, also footballers, and Gemma Strachan.
Renowned for his deadpan
humour in media interviews, quotes attributed to Strachan have become part of popular football culture.
|1974–75
||rowspan="3"|Dundee
||Division One
||1||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1975–76
||Premier Division
||23||6||||||||||||||||
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||36||7||||||||||||||||
|-
|1977–78
||rowspan="7"|Aberdeen
||rowspan="7"|Premier Division
||12||2||||||||||||||||
|-
|1978–79
||31||5||||||||||||||||
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||33||10||||||||||||||||
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||20||6||||||||||||||||
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||30||7||||||||||||||||
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||32||12||||||||||||||||
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|1983–84
||25||13||||||||||||||||
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|1984–85
||rowspan="5"|Manchester United
||rowspan="5"|First Division
||41||15||||||||||||||||
|-
|1985–86
||28||5||||||||||||||||
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|1986–87
||34||4||||||||||||||||
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|1987–88
||36||8||||||||||||||||
|-
|1988–89
||21||1||||||||||||||||
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|1988–89
||rowspan="7"|Leeds United
||rowspan="2"|Second Division
||11||3||||||||||||||||
|-
|1989–90
||46||16||||||||||||||||
|-
|1990–91
||rowspan="2"|First Division
||34||7||||||||||||||||
|-
|1991–92
||36||4||||||||||||||||
|-
|1992–93
||rowspan="3"|Premier League||31||4||||||||||||||||
|-
|1993–94
||33||3||||||||||||||||
|-
|1994–95
||6||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1994–95
||rowspan="3"|Coventry City
||rowspan="3"|Premier League||5||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1995–96
||12||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1996–97
||9||0||||||||||||||||
243||68||||||||||||||||
383||70||||||||||||||||
626||138||||||||||||||||
:
Manchester United
:
Leeds United
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Celtic
:
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(born 9 February 1957) is a Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
football manager
Coach (sport)
In sports, a coach is an individual involved in the direction, instruction and training of the operations of a sports team or of individual sportspeople.-Staff:...
and former player. He is currently without a club, having last managed Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough F.C.
Middlesbrough Football Club , also known as Boro, are an English football club based in Middlesbrough, who play in the Football League Championship. Formed in 1876, they have played at the Riverside Stadium since August 1995, their third ground since turning professional in 1889...
. Strachan played for Dundee
Dundee F.C.
Dundee Football Club, founded in 1893, are a football club based in the city of Dundee, Scotland. They are nicknamed The Dee or The Dark Blues and play their home matches at Dens Park. Their shirt colour is dark blue. Dundee currently play in the Scottish First Division, having been relegated from...
, Aberdeen
Aberdeen F.C.
Aberdeen Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Aberdeen...
, Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
, Leeds United and Coventry City
Coventry City F.C.
Coventry City Football Club, otherwise known as the Sky Blues owing to the traditional colour of their strip, are a professional English Football league club based in Coventry...
, as well as the Scotland national team
Scotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...
. Prior to Middlesbrough, Strachan managed Coventry City
Coventry City F.C.
Coventry City Football Club, otherwise known as the Sky Blues owing to the traditional colour of their strip, are a professional English Football league club based in Coventry...
, Southampton
Southampton F.C.
Southampton Football Club is an English football team, nicknamed The Saints, based in the city of Southampton, Hampshire. The club gained promotion to the Championship from League One in the 2010–2011 season after being relegated in 2009. Their home ground is the St Mary's Stadium, where the club...
and Celtic
Celtic F.C.
Celtic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, which currently plays in the Scottish Premier League. The club was established in 1887, and played its first game in 1888. Celtic have won the Scottish League Championship on 42 occasions, most recently in the...
. In club football, he played 626 games scoring a total of 138 goals, playing 21 of 25 career seasons in either the English or Scottish top flight. In international football Strachan earned 50 caps, scoring 5 goals and playing in two FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
final tournaments, Spain 82
1982 FIFA World Cup
The 1982 FIFA World Cup, the 12th FIFA World Cup, was held in Spain from 13 June to 11 July. The tournament was won by Italy, after defeating West Germany 3–1 in the final.-Host selection:...
and Mexico 86
1986 FIFA World Cup
The 1986 FIFA World Cup, the 13th FIFA World Cup, was held in Mexico from 31 May to 29 June. The tournament was the second to feature a 24-team format. Colombia had been originally chosen to host the competition by FIFA but, largely due to economic reasons, was not able to do so and officially...
. Strachan retired from playing in 1996 at age 40, setting a Premier League record for an outfield player.
A right-sided midfielder, Strachan made his senior debut in 1974 with Dundee before moving on within Scotland, to spend seven seasons at Aberdeen. He first played for the Scotland national team in 1980. While at Aberdeen Strachan won multiple domestic league and cup honours in the early 1980s, as well as the 1982–83 European Cup Winners' Cup and 1983 European Super Cup. Moving to England, Strachan won the 1985 FA Cup Final
1985 FA Cup Final
The 1985 FA Cup Final was contested by Manchester United and holders Everton at Wembley Stadium. United won by a single goal, scored in extra time by Norman Whiteside....
in five seasons with Manchester United, before spending the next seven seasons as club captain at Leeds, winning the 1991–92 First Division league title. He played his last game for Scotland in 1992 while still at Leeds, and then moved to Coventry in 1995 for a final three seasons, as a player-coach
Player-coach
A player-coach, in sports, is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. The term can be used to refer to both players who serve as head coaches, or as assistant coaches....
.
Strachan became full time manager of Coventry when the incumbent Ron Atkinson
Ron Atkinson
Ronald Ernest Atkinson, commonly known as "Big Ron" and "Bojangles" is an English former football player and manager. In recent years he has become one of Britain's best-known football pundits...
was appointed as Director of Football
Director of football
"Director of football" is a term describing a senior management figure at a football club, most commonly used in Europe. The exact nature of the role is often unclear and extremely variable and causes much debate in the sports media...
. After five years in the job he was sacked in 2001, when Coventry were relegated from the top flight for the first time in 34 years. However, he immediately returned to the Premier League with Southampton and guided that club to the 2003 FA Cup Final – losing 1–0 to Arsenal. Strachan resigned from Southampton in 2004 and took a 16 month break from management before returning to Scotland to become manager of Celtic in the Scottish Premier League
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
. With Celtic he achieved three successive league titles and other domestic cup wins, before resigning in May 2009 after failing to win a fourth title. Five months later he became manager of Middlesbrough in the English Football League Championship
Football League Championship
The Football League Championship is the highest division of The Football League and second-highest division overall in the English football league system after the Premier League...
, but left the club after a year in the job.
Strachan was named as FWA Footballer of the Year for the 1990–91 season while at Leeds. He was also named Manager of the Year in Scotland multiple times by writers and players while at Celtic. In 2007, Strachan was inducted into the Scottish Football Hall of Fame
Scottish Football Hall of Fame
The Scottish Football Hall of Fame is located at the Scottish Football Museum. Inductees are picked each year by fans and a committee selects the eight finalists who are inducted at an annual dinner....
. He is the father of Craig Strachan and Gavin Strachan
Gavin Strachan
Gavin David Strachan is a Scottish association football coach and sports journalist. He is the son of manager and former player Gordon Strachan, and currently is youth team coach at Peterborough United...
, also footballers.
Dundee
Born in EdinburghEdinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, Strachan began his career with Dundee, making his debut in the 1974-75 season
1974-75 in Scottish football
The 1974–75 season was the 78th season of Scottish league football. It was the final season of the old, two-division set up. At the end of the season, the top ten teams in Division One formed the new Premier Division. The remaining eight teams, together with the top six from Division Two went...
and becoming a regular player the 1975-76 season
1975-76 in Scottish football
The 1975–76 season was the 79th season of Scottish league football. It was the first season in the new, three-tier setup. Division One was no longer the top division in Scottish football, although all three divisions are still part of the Scottish Football League.The Premier Division...
, soon becoming captain of the side.
Aberdeen
Strachan came to prominence at the age of 20 when he was signed by Aberdeen on 1 November 1977 for a fee of £50,000.With the famous Aberdeen team of the 1980s, managed by Alex FergusonAlex Ferguson
Sir Alexander Chapman "Alex" Ferguson, CBE is a Scottish association football manager and former player, currently managing Manchester United, where he has been in charge since 1986...
and one of the few sides to break the traditional dominance of the Old Firm
Old Firm
The Old Firm is a common collective name for the association football clubs Celtic and Rangers, both based in Glasgow, Scotland.The origin of the term is unclear. One theory has it that the expression derives from Celtic's first game in 1888, which was played against Rangers. However, author,...
in Scottish football, he won two Scottish League titles, three Scottish Cup
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,, commonly known as the Scottish Cup or the William Hill Scottish Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the main national cup competition in Scottish football. It is a knockout cup competition run by and named after the Scottish Football Association.The...
s, the European Cup Winners' Cup and the European Super Cup
European Super Cup
The UEFA Super Cup is an annual football game between the reigning champions of the two cup competitions organized by UEFA: the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Europa League...
.
Manchester United
In August 1984, Manchester United spent £500,000 to take him to Old TraffordOld Trafford (football)
Old Trafford is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 75,811, Old Trafford is the second-largest football stadium in England after Wembley, the third-largest in the United Kingdom and the eleventh-largest in Europe...
in August. Strachan had previously signed for Bundesliga side 1. FC Köln
1. FC Köln
1. FC Köln is a German association football club based in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia. It was formed in 1948 as a merger of the clubs Kölner Ballspiel-Club 1901 and SpVgg Sülz 07....
, and United paid £75,000 compensation to resolve the row.
He contributed to the Red Devils' FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
victory over Everton
Everton F.C.
Everton Football Club are an English professional association football club from the city of Liverpool. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of English football...
in 1985
FA Cup 1984-85
The FA Cup 1984–85 was the 104th staging of the world's oldest football knockout competition, The Football Association Challenge Cup, or FA Cup. The competition was won by Manchester United, who defeated Everton 1–0 at Wembley, thus denying Everton the double on top of the European Cup...
, but gradually began to suffer a loss in form and eventually lost his place as a regular first team player. Aberdeen manager Alex Ferguson followed him to Old Trafford
Old Trafford
Old Trafford commonly refers to two sporting arenas:* Old Trafford, home of Manchester United F.C.* Old Trafford Cricket Ground, home of Lancashire County Cricket ClubOld Trafford can also refer to:...
in November 1986 following the dismissal of Ron Atkinson
Ron Atkinson
Ronald Ernest Atkinson, commonly known as "Big Ron" and "Bojangles" is an English former football player and manager. In recent years he has become one of Britain's best-known football pundits...
.
Leeds United
Leeds United manager Howard WilkinsonHoward Wilkinson
Howard Wilkinson is a former English football player and manager, and has recently stepped down as a Non-Executive Director at Sheffield Wednesday after formerly relinquishing the chairman role to Milan Mandaric...
came to the rescue in March 1989, when he paid £200,000 for Strachan's services. The transfer fee soon paid dividends as Strachan's form resulted in helping Leeds to winning the Second Division title in 1990 and gaining promotion to the First Division after an eight-year exile. The following season he helped Leeds finish fourth in the First Division and Strachan was voted Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year
Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year
The Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year is an annual award given to the player who is adjudged to have been the best of the season in English football...
. A year later, he was a part of the team's strength in Leeds overtaking Manchester United to win the 1991–92 League Championship title in the last ever season of the old Football League before the creation of the FA Premier League
FA Premier League
The Premier League is an English professional league for association football clubs. At the top of the English football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with The Football League. The Premier...
. Strachan continued to be an active first-team player as Leeds enjoyed mixed fortunes during their first three seasons of the Premier League, although he was sometimes kept out of the side by back problems.
Coventry City
Strachan remained at Leeds United until March 1995, when he moved to Coventry City to work as player-coach under new manager Ron AtkinsonRon Atkinson
Ronald Ernest Atkinson, commonly known as "Big Ron" and "Bojangles" is an English former football player and manager. In recent years he has become one of Britain's best-known football pundits...
. Strachan was not a regular first-team player at Highfield Road, but he helped coach the club's players to a high enough standard to escape relegation from the Premier League in 1995–96
1995-96 in English football
- Premiership :Newcastle United were 12 points clear at the top of Manchester United, but Alex Ferguson's relatively young and inexperienced side overhauled them during the second half of the season to win the title....
.
International career
Strachan had a fruitful International career with ScotlandScotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...
which included 5 goals. He appeared in two FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
s — in 1982 and 1986 – and it was in the latter that he scored his most famous International goal, a cross shot against West Germany in Scotland's second match of the tournament in Querétaro
Querétaro
Querétaro officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Querétaro de Arteaga is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 18 municipalities and its capital city is Santiago de Querétaro....
, Mexico. His celebration was unique and comical too, as he attempted to vault the advertising hoarding, his relatively small height made it difficult if not impossible, so he merely rested his right leg on it as his team-mates joined him in celebrating. This goal gave Scotland a surprise lead against one of the world's top national sides, but they ultimately lost the game 2–1 and failure to beat Uruguay
Uruguay national football team
The Uruguayan national football team represents Uruguay in international association football and is controlled by the Uruguayan Football Association, the governing body for football in Uruguay. The current head coach is Óscar Tabárez...
in the final game of the group stages ended their hopes of reaching the last 16, despite playing ten men from the first minute after a challenge on Strachan.
Coventry City
When Ron Atkinson became Coventry City's Director of FootballDirector of football
"Director of football" is a term describing a senior management figure at a football club, most commonly used in Europe. The exact nature of the role is often unclear and extremely variable and causes much debate in the sports media...
in November 1996, Strachan was promoted to the manager's seat. He finally retired as a player at the end of the season after making his last appearance at the age of 40, at the time a record for an outfield player in the FA Premier League
FA Premier League
The Premier League is an English professional league for association football clubs. At the top of the English football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with The Football League. The Premier...
. Only goalkeeper John Burridge
John Burridge
John Burridge is an English former football goalkeeper who played for 29 different clubs in a career that lasted nearly 30 years. Overall, Burridge played 771 league games in the English and Scottish leagues, and several more at non-league level...
, who had played for Manchester City
Manchester City F.C.
Manchester City Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Manchester. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's , they became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894...
at the age of 43 in the 1994–95
1994-95 in English football
-Premiership:Blackburn Rovers ended their 81-year wait for the league title thanks to the strike partnership of Alan Shearer and Chris Sutton which scored a total of more than 50 league goals. Manchester United would have made it three league titles in a row if they had been able to turn a 1-1 draw...
, had played at a greater age in the Premier League at the time.
Strachan also helped Coventry survive a Premier League relegation battle. After losing their penultimate league game, it looked as though their 30-year top flight tenancy had come to an end. But thanks to a victory on the final day, a draw for Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough F.C.
Middlesbrough Football Club , also known as Boro, are an English football club based in Middlesbrough, who play in the Football League Championship. Formed in 1876, they have played at the Riverside Stadium since August 1995, their third ground since turning professional in 1889...
(who had been deducted three points by the FA) and a defeat for Sunderland
Sunderland A.F.C.
Sunderland Association Football Club is an English association football club based in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear who currently play in the Premier League...
, they avoided relegation. Coventry stayed in the top flight for a further four years until the 2000–01 season, during which Strachan became unpopular with fans. In the face of increasing supporter unrest he was sacked five games into the 2001–02
2001-02 in English football
The 2001-02 season was the 122nd season of competitive football in England.-Arsenal cruise to title glory:In what had earlier been one of the most closely fought Premiership title races for years, Arsenal won the championship by seven points. Their crown was won in the penultimate game of the...
Division One campaign.
Southampton
Strachan returned to management within weeks, taking the manager's job at Premier League SouthamptonSouthampton F.C.
Southampton Football Club is an English football team, nicknamed The Saints, based in the city of Southampton, Hampshire. The club gained promotion to the Championship from League One in the 2010–2011 season after being relegated in 2009. Their home ground is the St Mary's Stadium, where the club...
– who had sacked manager Stuart Gray
Stuart Gray (footballer born 1960)
Stuart Gray is an English former footballer and manager, who is the former manager of Football League Two side Northampton Town. On 30th December 2010 he was appointed the caretaker manager of Burnley following the sacking of Brian Laws, reverting to his role as first team coach when Eddie Howe...
after a terrible start to their first season at the new St Mary's Stadium
St Mary's Stadium
St Mary's Stadium is the home of Southampton F.C., in the city of Southampton. It is a UEFA 4-star rated stadium and with a capacity of 32,689 is the largest football stadium in the south of England, outside of London.-History:...
. Most pundits had already written off their survival chances by the time of Strachan's appointment in October 2001, but he turned round their fortunes and they finished 11th in the Premier League. The Saints progressed further in 2002–03
2002-03 in English football
The 2002-03 season was the 123rd season of competitive football in England.-Most Memorable rise:*Wigan Athletic marked their 25th season of Football League membership by winning the Division Two championship and reaching the league's second tier for the very first time.-Most Memorable...
when they finished eighth and reached the FA Cup Final, where they lost 1–0 to Arsenal
Arsenal F.C.
Arsenal Football Club is a professional English Premier League football club based in North London. One of the most successful clubs in English football, it has won 13 First Division and Premier League titles and 10 FA Cups...
. As Arsenal had qualified for the UEFA Champions League
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
, Southampton won a place in the UEFA Cup.
In February 2004, Strachan announced his resignation as Southampton manager. He had earlier announced his intention not to renew his contract when it expired at the end of the 2003–04 season, but resigned even earlier than intended because he wanted to spend time with his family.
Celtic
After a 16 month break, Strachan returned to management on 1 June 2005, when he succeeded Martin O'NeillMartin O'Neill
Martin Hugh Michael O'Neill, OBE, is a Northern Irish football manager and former player.Until resigning the post on 9 August 2010, he was manager of Aston Villa. Starting his career in his native Northern Ireland, O'Neill moved to England where he spent most of his playing career with Nottingham...
as manager of Celtic
Celtic F.C.
Celtic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, which currently plays in the Scottish Premier League. The club was established in 1887, and played its first game in 1888. Celtic have won the Scottish League Championship on 42 occasions, most recently in the...
in the Scottish Premier League
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
(SPL). For 2005–06
2005-06 in Scottish football
The 2005–06 season was the 109th season of competitive football in Scotland.-2005:*1 June: Gordon Strachan officially takes charge of Celtic after the resignation of Martin O'Neill...
, his stated aim was to regain the SPL title from rivals Rangers
Rangers F.C.
Rangers Football Club are an association football club based in Glasgow, Scotland, who play in the Scottish Premier League. The club are nicknamed the Gers, Teddy Bears and the Light Blues, and the fans are known to each other as bluenoses...
. He had an embarrassing start to his campaign as Celtic manager, losing 5–0 to Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
n champions Artmedia Bratislava on 27 July 2005 and 3 days later drawing 4–4 with Motherwell
Motherwell F.C.
Motherwell Football & Athletic Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Motherwell, North Lanarkshire. The club compete in the Scottish Premier League and are one of only seven teams to have remained in this league since it was founded in 1998...
in his first SPL match in charge of the Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
club. The loss against Artmedia meant that Celtic suffered an early exit from European competition, despite winning the return match 4–0.
After this disastrous start, Celtic started to improve under Strachan. A low-point was the shock defeat in the third round of the Scottish Cup to First Division Clyde
Clyde F.C.
Clyde Football Club are a Scottish professional football team currently playing in the Third Division of the Scottish Football League. Although based for the last fifteen years in the new town of Cumbernauld, they are traditionally associated with an area that covers Rutherglen in South...
on 8 January 2006. However, the following month his team made history when they beat Dunfermline Athletic
Dunfermline Athletic F.C.
Dunfermline Athletic Football Club are a Scottish football team based in Dunfermline, Fife, commonly known as just Dunfermline. They currently compete in the Scottish Premier League....
8–1, a record victory margin for the SPL.
Strachan's first season was ultimately successful as he coached Celtic to victory in the Scottish League Cup
Scottish League Cup
The Scottish League Cup is a football competition open to all Scottish Football League and Scottish Premier League clubs. At present it is also known as the Scottish Communities League Cup owing to the sponsorship deal in place with the Scottish Government. In the past it has been sponsored by...
and, on 5 April 2006 his side clinched the SPL title in record time and with six matches remaining. Reflecting this achievement, Strachan was voted 'manager of the year' by the Scottish Football Writers' Association
Scottish Football Writers' Association
The Scottish Football Writers' Association is an association of Scottish football journalists and correspondents writing for newspapers and agencies, founded in 1965...
8 days later.
The following year Strachan restructured the team and made a series of signings, bringing in players such as Hibernian's Derek Riordan
Derek Riordan
Derek George Riordan is a Scottish footballer who plays as a forward. He has been capped three times by the Scotland national football team. Riordan started his career with Hibernian in 2001 and had a brief spell on loan with Cowdenbeath in 2003...
, Chelsea's Jiri Jarosik
Jirí Jarošík
Jiří Jarošík is a Czech footballer who is currently playing for AC Sparta Prague. He played Czech national team, where he played 23 matches. He is a defender and midfielder.-Early career:...
, Kenny Miller
Kenny Miller
Kenneth "Kenny" Miller is a Scottish footballer who plays as a striker for Cardiff City and the Scotland national football team...
and Lee Naylor both from Wolverhampton Wanderers, Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink
Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink
Jan Johannes Vennegoor of Hesselink is a Dutch footballer, currently playing for PSV Eindhoven. He formerly played for the Netherlands national team as a striker...
from PSV Eindhoven, Thomas Gravesen
Thomas Gravesen
Thomas Gravesen is a retired Danish professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He has played for teams such as Hamburger SV, Everton F.C., Real Madrid CF and Celtic F.C.....
from Real Madrid
Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol , commonly known as Real Madrid, is a professional football club based in Madrid, Spain. The club have won a record 31 La Liga titles, the Primera División of the Liga de Fútbol Profesional , 18 Copas del Rey, 8 Spanish Super Cups, 1 Copa Eva Duarte and 1 Copa de la...
and Paul Hartley
Paul Hartley
Paul James Hartley is a Scottish professional footballer. He is currently player and manager at Alloa Athletic. Hartley began his career as a right winger, but was moved into a central midfield position in 2002...
and Steven Pressley
Steven Pressley
Steven John "Elvis" Pressley is a retired Scottish footballer, who is now the manager of Scottish First Division club Falkirk. Pressley had a long playing career, playing for both halves of the Old Firm and making over 100 league appearances for both Dundee United and Hearts...
from Heart of Midlothian
Heart of Midlothian F.C.
Heart of Midlothian Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Gorgie, in the west of Edinburgh. They currently play in the Scottish Premier League and are one of the two principal clubs in the city, the other being Hibernian...
. Celtic flourished, and by mid-January 2007 held a 17 point lead in the SPL table.
Champions League football again returned to Celtic Park, the team having automatically qualified for the group stages and drawn alongside Benfica, FC Copenhagen
F.C. Copenhagen
F.C. Copenhagen is a professional Danish football club in Copenhagen, Denmark. It is part of the Parken Sport & Entertainment....
and Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
. Home victories against all three Group F members saw the team progress to the final 16 of the Champions League for the first time since the competition was re-formatted in 1993. Celtic lost the tie, against eventual winners AC Milan
A.C. Milan
Associazione Calcio Milan, commonly referred to as A.C. Milan or simply Milan , is a professional Italian football club based in Milan, Lombardy, that plays in the Serie A. Milan was founded in 1899 by English lace-maker Herbert Kilpin and businessman Alfred Edwards among others...
in extra time, missing out on a place in the quarter finals.
On 22 April 2007 Strachan guided Celtic to their 41st league championship, and second in succession. A 2–1 victory against Kilmarnock left Celtic 13 points clear of Rangers with four matches remaining. Later that day Strachan was recognised as the inaugural Scottish PFA Manager of the Year for 2007. Celtic went on to win the Scottish Cup
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,, commonly known as the Scottish Cup or the William Hill Scottish Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the main national cup competition in Scottish football. It is a knockout cup competition run by and named after the Scottish Football Association.The...
, beating Dunfermline.
In the 2007–08 season, Strachan led Celtic into the last 16 of the Champions League again after beating AC Milan, Benfica and Shaktar Donetsk. However by April there was a lot of criticism from the press and the fans after the 1–0 loss to Aberdeen in the Scottish Cup quarter final and the 1–0 loss to 10 man Motherwell
Motherwell F.C.
Motherwell Football & Athletic Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Motherwell, North Lanarkshire. The club compete in the Scottish Premier League and are one of only seven teams to have remained in this league since it was founded in 1998...
in the league. But he proved the critics wrong again and after beating Rangers
Rangers F.C.
Rangers Football Club are an association football club based in Glasgow, Scotland, who play in the Scottish Premier League. The club are nicknamed the Gers, Teddy Bears and the Light Blues, and the fans are known to each other as bluenoses...
twice at home, on 22 May 2008, Strachan became only the third ever Celtic manager to guide the club to three consecutive Scottish league titles.
After failing to lead Celtic to another league title in the 2008/09 season, he stepped down as manager on 25 May 2009.
Middlesbrough
Strachan was appointed manager of ChampionshipFootball League Championship
The Football League Championship is the highest division of The Football League and second-highest division overall in the English football league system after the Premier League...
team Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough F.C.
Middlesbrough Football Club , also known as Boro, are an English football club based in Middlesbrough, who play in the Football League Championship. Formed in 1876, they have played at the Riverside Stadium since August 1995, their third ground since turning professional in 1889...
on 26 October 2009, in succession to Gareth Southgate
Gareth Southgate
Gareth Southgate in Crawley, West Sussex is a retired English footballer and ex-manager. He is known as the "Penalty Misser of '96." He served as manager of Middlesbrough from June 2006, until he was dismissed in October 2009...
and signed a four-year contract.
Ironically, he had been linked with the Middlesbrough manager's job 15 years earlier, when still a Leeds United player.
His first game in charge was on 31 October where Middlesbrough lost 1–0 to Plymouth Argyle
Plymouth Argyle F.C.
Plymouth Argyle Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Plymouth, Devon, that plays in Football League Two.Since becoming professional in 1903, the club has won five Football League titles, five Southern League titles and one Western League title. The 2009–10 season was the...
with Adam Johnson missing a penalty. On 5 December 2009, Middlesbrough won their first match under Strachan, 5–1 away to Queens Park Rangers
Queens Park Rangers F.C.
Queens Park Rangers Football Club is an English professional football club, based in White City, Hammersmith and Fulham, west London. As the 2010-11 Football League Championship champions, they now play in the top tier of English football the Premier League, for the first time in 15 years...
. after a poor run of results including a 3–0 loss at home to Blackpool and a 1–0 loss at home to Cardiff City Strachan got his first home win- 3–0 against Scunthorpe.
After a poor start to the 2010–11 season
2010–11 Football League Championship
The 2010–11 Football League Championship was the seventh season of the league under its current name and nineteenth season under its current league division format...
with Middlesbrough in 20th place, Strachan left the club by mutual consent on 18 October, and voluntarily tore up his contract, meaning that the club did not have to pay him compensation for the two and a half years remaining on his deal.
Management style
Typically playing a traditional 4–4–2 formation, and very occasionally 4–5–1, Strachan is widely known for his rigorous management style, and admits to watching video replays of his club's games two, sometimes three times. He also places great emphasis on player health and fitness, forbidding his players to drink alcohol excessively or regularly, and often giving dietary advice to his players, attributing his own longevity as a player to a strict and somewhat unusual diet involving seaweed. Players such as Scotland international Gary CaldwellGary Caldwell
Gary Robert Caldwell is a Scottish footballer who is currently the captain of Wigan Athletic and also plays for the Scotland national football team....
have attributed their success at Celtic to lifestyle changes enforced by Strachan.
Rivalries
During his managerial career Strachan has had an ongoing public feud with Alex FergusonAlex Ferguson
Sir Alexander Chapman "Alex" Ferguson, CBE is a Scottish association football manager and former player, currently managing Manchester United, where he has been in charge since 1986...
. In his 1999 autobiography the Manchester United manager said "I decided this man could not be trusted an inch – I would not want to expose my back to him in a hurry". In his own 2006 autobiography Strachan said of the comments he was "surprised and disappointed". The rivalry dates from Strachan's time playing under Ferguson, first at Aberdeen and later Manchester Utd. The hostilities between the two men are widely recognised to have decreased especially since they were seen on cordial terms during Celtic and Manchester United Champions League
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
fixtures in both 2006 and 2008.
Other work
While taking a break from management after leaving Southampton in 2004, Strachan turned down an offer to become the manager at their local rivals PortsmouthPortsmouth F.C.
Portsmouth Football Club is an English football club based in the city of Portsmouth. The club is nicknamed Pompey. Portsmouth's home matches have been played at Fratton Park since the club's formation in 1898. The team currently play in the Football League Championship after being relegated from...
, and was also widely tipped to be Berti Vogts
Berti Vogts
Hans-Hubert "Berti" Vogts is a German former footballer. He played for Borussia Mönchengladbach and won the World Cup with West Germany in 1974. He later managed Germany , Scotland and Nigeria...
's replacement as Scotland manager, before the post was filled by Walter Smith
Walter Smith
Walter Smith, OBE is a Scottish football manager. His most recent job was at Scottish Premier League club Rangers.Smith had a relatively modest playing career, consisting of two spells with Dundee United which was split by a short time at Dumbarton.A pelvic injury meant he moved in to coaching at...
. During the break, Strachan analysed football matches for the media, most notably alongside Adrian Chiles
Adrian Chiles
Adrian Chiles is a British television and radio presenter, currently working for ITV Sport presenting football coverage....
on BBC Sport
BBC Sport
BBC Sport is the sports division of the BBC. It became a fully dedicated division of the BBC in 2000. It incorporates programmes such as Match of the Day, Grandstand , Test Match Special, Ski Sunday, Rugby Special and coverage of Formula One motor racing, MotoGP and the Wimbledon Tennis...
's Match of the Day 2
Match of the Day 2
Match of the Day 2 is a football highlights programme shown on BBC Two in the United Kingdom...
.
For the 2006 FIFA World Cup
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six...
, Strachan was appointed as the official FIFA Ambassador for Scotland, joining fifty others in fund raising for SOS Children's Villages
SOS Children's Villages
SOS Children's Villages is an independent, non-governmental international development organisation which has been working to meet the needs and protect the interests and rights of children since 1949. It was founded by Hermann Gmeiner in Imst, Austria...
, the official charity of the tournament.
Personal life
Strachan is the father of CraigCraig Strachan (footballer)
Craig Scott Strachan in Aberdeen, Scotland, is a retired Scottish professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder for Coventry City, and Rochdale in the Football League.He is the son of Gordon Strachan.-References:...
and Gavin Strachan
Gavin Strachan
Gavin David Strachan is a Scottish association football coach and sports journalist. He is the son of manager and former player Gordon Strachan, and currently is youth team coach at Peterborough United...
, also footballers, and Gemma Strachan.
Renowned for his deadpan
Deadpan
Deadpan is a form of comic delivery in which humor is presented without a change in emotion or body language, usually speaking in a casual, monotone, solemn, blunt, disgusted or matter-of-fact voice and expressing an unflappably calm, archly insincere or artificially grave demeanor...
humour in media interviews, quotes attributed to Strachan have become part of popular football culture.
Player
|-|1974–75
Scottish Football League 1974-75
Statistics of Scottish Football League in season 1974–75. At the end of this season, the leagues were reconstructed into three divisions of 10, 14 and 14...
||rowspan="3"|Dundee
Dundee F.C.
Dundee Football Club, founded in 1893, are a football club based in the city of Dundee, Scotland. They are nicknamed The Dee or The Dark Blues and play their home matches at Dens Park. Their shirt colour is dark blue. Dundee currently play in the Scottish First Division, having been relegated from...
||Division One
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
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|1975–76
Scottish Football League 1975-76
Statistics of Scottish Football League in season 1975–76.-Scottish Premier Division:Champions: Rangers Relegated: Dundee, St Johnstone-Scottish League Division One:Promoted: Partick Thistle, Kilmarnock...
||Premier Division
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
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|-
|1976–77
Scottish Football League 1976-77
Statistics of Scottish Football League in season 1976/1977.-Scottish Premier Division:Champions: Celtic Relegated: Hearts, Kilmarnock-Scottish League Division One:Promoted: St Mirren, Clydebank Relegated: Raith Rovers, Falkirk...
||Division One
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
||36||7||||||||||||||||
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|1977–78
Scottish Football League 1977-78
Statistics of the Scottish Football League in season 1977–78.-Scottish Premier Division:-Scottish League Division One:-Scottish League Division Two:...
||rowspan="7"|Aberdeen
Aberdeen F.C.
Aberdeen Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Aberdeen...
||rowspan="7"|Premier Division
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
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|1978–79
Scottish Football League 1978-79
Statistics of the Scottish Football League in season 1978–79.-Scottish Premier Division:-Scottish League Division One:-Scottish League Division Two:...
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|1979–80
Scottish Football League 1979-80
Statistics of Scottish Football League in season 1979/1980.-Scottish Premier Division:Champions: AberdeenRelegated: Dundee, Hibernian-Scottish League Division One:Promoted: Hearts, AirdrieoniansRelegated: Arbroath, Clyde...
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|1980–81
Scottish Football League 1980-81
Statistics of the Scottish Football League in season 1980–81.-Scottish Premier Division:-Scottish League Division One:-Scottish League Division Two:...
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|1981–82
Scottish Football League 1981-82
Statistics of the Scottish Football League in season 1981–82.-Scottish Premier Division:-Scottish League Division One:-Scottish League Division Two:...
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|1982–83
Scottish Football League 1982-83
Statistics of the Scottish Football League in season 1982–83.-Scottish Premier Division:-Scottish League Division One:-Scottish League Division Two:...
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|1983–84
Scottish Football League 1983-84
Statistics of the Scottish Football League in season 1983–84.-Scottish Premier Division:-Scottish League Division One:-Scottish League Division Two:...
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|-
|1984–85
The Football League 1984-85
-Overview:The 1984–1985 season was the 85th completed season of The Football League.-First Division:Howard Kendall’s Everton side beat neighbours Liverpool to the league championship, while Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United followed closely behind...
||rowspan="5"|Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
||rowspan="5"|First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
||41||15||||||||||||||||
|-
|1985–86
The Football League 1985-86
-Overview:The 1985–1986 season was the 86th completed season of the The Football League.-Final league tables and results :The tables below are reproduced here in the exact form that they can be found at the website, with home and away statistics separated.Re-election: During the first five seasons...
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|1986–87
The Football League 1986-87
-Overview:The 1986–1987 season was the 87th completed season of the The Football League.-Innovations for this season:Playoffs to determine promotion places were introduced in 1987 so that more clubs remained eligible for promotion closer to the end of the season, and at the same time to aid in the...
||34||4||||||||||||||||
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|1987–88
The Football League 1987-88
The 1987–1988 season was the 88th completed season of the The Football League.-First Division:Liverpool won the league title with a comfortable nine-point margin and just two defeats all season...
||36||8||||||||||||||||
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|1988–89
The Football League 1988-89
The 1988–1989 season was the 89th completed season of the Football League.No European qualification took place due to the Heysel Stadium disaster suspension in place....
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|-
|1988–89
The Football League 1988-89
The 1988–1989 season was the 89th completed season of the Football League.No European qualification took place due to the Heysel Stadium disaster suspension in place....
||rowspan="7"|Leeds United
Leeds United A.F.C.
Leeds United Association Football Club are an English professional association football club based in Beeston, Leeds, West Yorkshire, who play in the Football League Championship, the second tier of the English football league system...
||rowspan="2"|Second Division
Football League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
||11||3||||||||||||||||
|-
|1989–90
The Football League 1989-90
The 1989–1990 season was the 90th completed season of The Football League.- First Division :Liverpool overhauled a greatly improved Aston Villa side to win their 18th league championship trophy and their fifth major trophy in as many seasons under Kenny Dalglish’s management. To date, this remains...
||46||16||||||||||||||||
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|1990–91
The Football League 1990-91
The 1990–1991 season was the 91st completed season of The Football League.-First Division:Arsenal took their second league title in three seasons despite a season during which it often looked as though the good points would be outnumbered by the bad points...
||rowspan="2"|First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
||34||7||||||||||||||||
|-
|1991–92
The Football League 1991-92
The 1991–1992 season was the 92nd completed season of The Football League.- First Division :The last-ever league championship before the creation of the Premier League was won by Leeds United who overhauled Manchester United thanks to the efforts of players like Gordon Strachan, Lee Chapman, David...
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|1992–93
FA Premier League 1992-93
The 1992–93 FA Premier League was the first season of the Premier League, the top division of English football. The league was made up of the 22 clubs that broke away from The Football League at the end of the 1991–92 season. The new league was backed up by a five-year, £305 million deal with...
||rowspan="3"|Premier League||31||4||||||||||||||||
|-
|1993–94
FA Premier League 1993-94
-New league sponsors:From the start of the 1993-94 season, the FA Premier League was sponsored by Carling Breweries.-Promoted teams:Newcastle United and West Ham were promoted to the Premier League from the First Division as champions and runners-up respectively. The last promotion place was won by...
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|-
|1994–95
FA Premier League 1994-95
-Promoted teams:Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest were promoted from the Football League First Division as winners and runners-up respectively. Leicester City won the 1993-94 playoff.-Controversial incidents:...
||6||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1994–95
FA Premier League 1994-95
-Promoted teams:Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest were promoted from the Football League First Division as winners and runners-up respectively. Leicester City won the 1993-94 playoff.-Controversial incidents:...
||rowspan="3"|Coventry City
Coventry City F.C.
Coventry City Football Club, otherwise known as the Sky Blues owing to the traditional colour of their strip, are a professional English Football league club based in Coventry...
||rowspan="3"|Premier League||5||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1995–96
FA Premier League 1995-96
-Promoted teams:Due to the decision to reduce the number of clubs in the Premier League from 22 to 20, only two clubs were promoted this season: Middlesbrough as Football League First Division champions, and Bolton Wanderers who won the 1994-95 playoff.-Transfers:...
||12||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1996–97
FA Premier League 1996-97
The 1996–97 FA Premier League season was the fifth season of the competition, since its formation in 1992. The majority of the season was contested by the reigning champions, Manchester United, along with Newcastle United, Arsenal and Liverpool...
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Manager
| Team | Nat | From | To | Record | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | Win % | ||||
| Coventry City Coventry City F.C. Coventry City Football Club, otherwise known as the Sky Blues owing to the traditional colour of their strip, are a professional English Football league club based in Coventry... |
 |
5 November 1996 | 10 September 2001 |
|||||
| Southampton Southampton F.C. Southampton Football Club is an English football team, nicknamed The Saints, based in the city of Southampton, Hampshire. The club gained promotion to the Championship from League One in the 2010–2011 season after being relegated in 2009. Their home ground is the St Mary's Stadium, where the club... |
|
22 October 2001 | 13 February 2004 |
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| Celtic Celtic F.C. Celtic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, which currently plays in the Scottish Premier League. The club was established in 1887, and played its first game in 1888. Celtic have won the Scottish League Championship on 42 occasions, most recently in the... |
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1 June 2005 | 25 May 2009 |
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| Middlesbrough Middlesbrough F.C. Middlesbrough Football Club , also known as Boro, are an English football club based in Middlesbrough, who play in the Football League Championship. Formed in 1876, they have played at the Riverside Stadium since August 1995, their third ground since turning professional in 1889... |
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26 October 2009 | 18 October 2010 |
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| Total |
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Player
AberdeenAberdeen F.C.
Aberdeen Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Aberdeen...
:
- Scottish Premier DivisionScottish Football League Premier DivisionThe Scottish Football League Premier Division was, from 1975 until 1998, the top division of the Scottish Football League and the entire Scottish football league system...
winner: 1979–80 and 1983–84 - Scottish CupScottish CupThe Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,, commonly known as the Scottish Cup or the William Hill Scottish Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the main national cup competition in Scottish football. It is a knockout cup competition run by and named after the Scottish Football Association.The...
winner: 1982Scottish Cup 1981-82The 1981–82 Scottish Cup was the 97th staging of Scotland's most prestigious football knockout competition. The Cup was won by Aberdeen who defeated Rangers in the final.-First round:-Replays:-Second round:-Replays:-Second Replay:...
, 1983Scottish Cup 1982-83The 1982–83 Scottish Cup was the 98th staging of Scotland's most prestigious football knockout competition. The Cup was won by Aberdeen who defeated Rangers in the final.-First round:-Replay:-Second round:-Replay:-Second Replay:...
and 1984Scottish Cup 1983-84The 1983–84 Scottish Cup was the 99th staging of Scotland's most prestigious football knockout competition. The Cup was won by Aberdeen who defeated Celtic in the final.-First round:-Second round:-Replay:-Second Replay:-Third round:... - UEFA Cup Winners' CupUEFA Cup Winners' CupThe UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a football club competition contested annually by the most recent winners of all European domestic cup competitions. The cup is one of the many inter-European club competitions that have been organised by UEFA. The first competition was held in the 1960–61 season—but...
winner: 1983UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1982-83The season 1982-83 of the European Cup Winners' Cup was won by Aberdeen FC in an extra-time victory against Real Madrid. It was the second and last time the title went to Scotland, following Rangers' victory in 1972.-Preliminary round:-First round:... - UEFA Super Cup winner: 19831983 UEFA Super CupThe 1983 UEFA Super Cup was a two-legged match contested between the European Cup champions Hamburger SV, and the European Cup Winners' Cup champions Aberdeen.The match was tied at 0–0 in the first leg at the Volksparkstadion in Hamburg...
- Scottish League CupScottish League CupThe Scottish League Cup is a football competition open to all Scottish Football League and Scottish Premier League clubs. At present it is also known as the Scottish Communities League Cup owing to the sponsorship deal in place with the Scottish Government. In the past it has been sponsored by...
runner-up: 1978–791978-79 in Scottish footballThe 1978-1979 season was the 82nd season of competitive football in Scotland.-Scottish Premier Division:Champions: Celtic Relegated: Hearts, Motherwell-Scottish League Division One:Promoted: Dundee, Kilmarnock...
and 1979–801979-80 in Scottish footballThe 1979–80 season was the 83rd season of competitive football in Scotland.-Scottish Premier Division:Champions: AberdeenRelegated: Dundee, Hibernian-Scottish League Division One:Promoted: Hearts, Airdrieonians...
Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
:
- FA CupFA CupThe Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
winner: 19851985 FA Cup FinalThe 1985 FA Cup Final was contested by Manchester United and holders Everton at Wembley Stadium. United won by a single goal, scored in extra time by Norman Whiteside.... - Football League First DivisionFootball League First DivisionThe First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
runner-up: 1987–88
Leeds United
Leeds United A.F.C.
Leeds United Association Football Club are an English professional association football club based in Beeston, Leeds, West Yorkshire, who play in the Football League Championship, the second tier of the English football league system...
:
- Football League Second DivisionFootball League Second DivisionFrom 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
winner: 1989–90 - Football League First DivisionFootball League First DivisionThe First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
winner: 1991–92 - FA Charity ShieldFA Community ShieldThe Football Association Community Shield is English football's annual match contested between the champions of the previous Premier League season and the holders of the FA Cup at Wembley Stadium. If the Premier League champions also won the FA Cup then the league runners-up provide the opposition...
winner: 1992
Manager
SouthamptonSouthampton F.C.
Southampton Football Club is an English football team, nicknamed The Saints, based in the city of Southampton, Hampshire. The club gained promotion to the Championship from League One in the 2010–2011 season after being relegated in 2009. Their home ground is the St Mary's Stadium, where the club...
:
- FA CupFA CupThe Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
runner-up: 2003FA Cup Final 2003The 2003 FA Cup Final saw the holders Arsenal, beat Southampton. The match took place on Saturday, 17 May 2003 at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff and ended 1–0 with a 38th minute goal by Robert Pirès separating the sides....
Celtic
Celtic F.C.
Celtic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, which currently plays in the Scottish Premier League. The club was established in 1887, and played its first game in 1888. Celtic have won the Scottish League Championship on 42 occasions, most recently in the...
:
- Scottish Premier LeagueScottish Premier LeagueThe Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
winner: 2005–06Scottish Premier League 2005-06The 2005–06 Scottish Premier League was won by Celtic, with a 17-point margin over their nearest challengers Hearts in the first season under the management of Gordon Strachan...
, 2006–07Scottish Premier League 2006-07The 2006–07 Scottish Premier League season was the ninth season of the Scottish Premier League. It began on July 29, 2006.The league champions, Celtic and runners-up, Rangers, qualified for the UEFA Champions League on the return of Walter Smith as manager following a brief and disastrous...
and 2007–08 - Scottish CupScottish CupThe Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,, commonly known as the Scottish Cup or the William Hill Scottish Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the main national cup competition in Scottish football. It is a knockout cup competition run by and named after the Scottish Football Association.The...
winner: 2007Scottish Cup 2006-07The 2006–07 Scottish Cup was the 122nd staging of Scotland's most prestigious football knockout competition, also known for sponsorship reasons as the Tennent's Scottish Cup. The competition was won by Celtic after defeating Dunfermline Athletic in the final.Dunfermline Athletic reached the... - Scottish League CupScottish League CupThe Scottish League Cup is a football competition open to all Scottish Football League and Scottish Premier League clubs. At present it is also known as the Scottish Communities League Cup owing to the sponsorship deal in place with the Scottish Government. In the past it has been sponsored by...
winner: 2006Scottish League Cup 2005-06The 2005–06 Scottish League Cup was the 60th staging of the Scotland's second most prestigious football knockout competition, also known for sponsorship reasons as the CIS Insurance Cup....
, 2009Scottish League Cup 2008-09The 2008–09 Scottish League Cup was the 63rd season of the Scotland's second most prestigious football knockout competition, also known for sponsorship reasons as the Co-operative Insurance Cup...
Individual
- FWA Footballer of the Year: 1990–91
- SPFA Manager of the Year: 2005–06
- SFWA Manager of the YearSFWA Manager of the YearThe Scottish Football Writers' Association Manager of the Year award is given to the football manager in the top-flight of Scottish football, the Scottish Premier League, whom is seen to have been the best manager of the previous season.The award was first given in 1987, and was won by...
: 2005–06, 2006–07 - PFA Scotland Manager of the YearPFA Scotland Manager of the YearThe PFA Scotland Manager of the Year is awarded by the Professional Footballers’ Association Scotland to the football manager in Scottish football who is seen to have been the best manager over the previous season...
: 2006–07, 2008–09