Alan Shearer
A native of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Shearer made his professional debut with English top-flight club Southampton in 1988, scoring a hat-trick in the process. During several years on the south coast, he became known for his strength and goalscoring ability; he soon received an international call-up along with a transfer to Blackburn Rovers in 1992. Shearer established himself as a player in northern England; he became a regular in the England squad, and his 34-goal tally helped Blackburn secure the Premier League title in 1994–95. He was named Football Writers' Association Player of the Year in 1994 and won the PFA Player of the Year award in 1995. The 1995–96 season saw Shearer score 31 league goals. That same year, he appeared in both the Champions League group stages with Blackburn and Euro 1996 with England, finishing as the latter tournament's top scorer with five goals.
A world-record £15 million move to his boyhood heroes, Newcastle United, followed, and Shearer spent the remainder of his career with the club. While he would never emulate the success of his time at Blackburn Rovers, Shearer won runners-up medals in the Premier League and FA Cup with Newcastle, and a second PFA Player of the Year award. After being named England's captain in 1996 and Newcastle's captain in 1999, he retired from international football following Euro 2000, having amassed 63 appearances and 30 goals. He is both Newcastle's and the Premier League's record goalscorer and having scored 422 goals for club and country, Shearer leads the scoring records with 260 league goals.
Following his retirement from football, Shearer was linked with managerial positions at his former clubs; however, he currently works in media with the BBC. As well as his media work, he has raised substantial amounts of money for various national and local charities, both within and outside of sports.
Early years
Shearer was born in Gosforth, Newcastle-upon-Tyne in 1970 to working-class parents Alan and Anne Shearer. His father, a sheet-metal worker, encouraged a keen Shearer to play football in his youth, and the young player continued with the sport as he progressed through school. Growing up playing on the streets of his hometown, he originally played in midfield because "it meant [he] could get more involved in the games." Shearer captained his school team and helped a Newcastle City Schools team win a 7-a-side tournament at St James' Park, before joining the amateur Wallsend Boys Club as a teenager. It was while playing for the Wallsend club that he was spotted by Southampton F.C.'s scout Jack Hixon, which resulted in Shearer spending most of his summers training with the club's youth team, a time he would later refer to as "the making of me". Shearer had unsuccessful trials for First Division clubs West Bromwich Albion, Manchester City and Newcastle United, before being offered a youth contract with Southampton in April 1986.Club career
Southampton (1986–1992)
Shearer made his professional debut for Southampton coming off the substitutes' bench in a First Division fixture against Chelsea on 26 March 1988, before prompting national headlines with his full debut at The Dell two weeks later, scoring a hat-trick in a 4–2 victory against Arsenal. Shearer ended the 1987–88 season with three goals in five games, and was rewarded with a professional contract.Despite this auspicious start to his career, Shearer was eased gradually into the first team and made just ten goalless appearances for the club the following season. Throughout his career Shearer was recognised for his strength, which, during his time at Southampton enabled him to retain the ball and provide opportunities for others (notably attacking partners Rod Wallace and Matt Le Tissier) to score the goals. This helped him to a return of three goals in 26 games for the 1989–90 season, and in the next, four goals in 36 games. His performances in the centre of the Saints attack were soon recognised by the fans, who voted him their Player of the Year for 1991.
He did not become a regular goalscorer for Southampton until 1991–92, when he scored 13 goals in 41 appearances. This return helped his rise to national prominence, and his club form led to an England call-up; he scored on his debut, and was linked with a summer move to a leading English club, with interest from Manchester United.
Blackburn Rovers (1992–1996)
Despite making just one goalless appearance as England failed to progress past the Euro 1992 group stages that summer, Shearer was soon subject to a British transfer record-breaking £3.3million bid from Blackburn Rovers. Although there was also interest from Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson, Blackburn benefactor Jack Walker's millions were enough to prise the striker from the Saints, and Shearer moved north to Ewood Park in the summer of 1992.His first season with Blackburn was mixed—he missed half of it through injury after snapping his right anterior cruciate ligament in a match against Leeds United in December 1992, but scored 16 goals in the 21 games in which he did feature. Shearer also became a regular in the England team this season and scored his second international goal; it came in a 4–0 1994 FIFA World Cup qualifier win over Turkey in November. The season ended sourly, however, as Shearer was forced to miss some games due to injury and England's World Cup qualification chances were hit by a run of poor form.
Returning to fitness for the 1993–94 season, he scored 31 goals from 40 games as Blackburn finished runners-up to Manchester United in the Premier League. His performances for the club led to him being named the Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year for that season. On the international scene, England had failed to qualify for the 1994 World Cup finals, but Shearer added three more goals to his international tally before embarking on his most successful domestic season as a player to date.
The arrival of Chris Sutton for the 1994–95 season established a strong attacking partnership at Blackburn. Shearer's league-record 34 goals, coupled with Sutton's 15, helped the Lancashire club take the Premier League title from holders Manchester United on the final day of the season, and the duo gained the nickname "the SAS" (Shearer And Sutton). Shearer also had his first taste of European football in the UEFA Cup that season, and scored in the second leg as Blackburn went out in the first round, losing to Trelleborgs FF of Sweden. His efforts for the club led to Shearer being awarded the PFA Players' Player of the Year for 1995.
Although the club could not retain the title the following year, Shearer again ended the (now 38-game) season as Premier League top scorer, with 31 goals in 35 games, as Blackburn finished seventh in the league. The previous season's first-place finish also saw the club enter the Champions League. Shearer's only goal in six full Champions League games was a penalty in a 4–1 victory against Rosenborg in the final fixture and Blackburn finished third in their group, failing to progress to the next stage. Shearer's international strike rate had also dried up, with no goals in the twelve matches leading up to Euro 96. He missed the final three games of the season for his club due to injury, but recovered in time to play in England's European Championship campaign.
Newcastle United (1996–2006)
After Euro 96, Manchester United again sought to sign Shearer, and entered the battle for his signature. Shearer stated he came close to signing for the club after extended talks with United manager Alex Ferguson. However it was speculated in the media that the Blackburn Rovers owner Jack Walker would not allow him to sign for Manchester United. On 30 July 1996, however, a world transfer record-breaking £15 million bid from his hometown club and league runners-up Newcastle United, managed by Shearer's hero Kevin Keegan, instead prompted Shearer's return to Newcastle.
Shearer made his league debut away at Everton, on 17 August 1996, and maintained his form during the rest of the season, finishing as Premier League top-scorer for the third consecutive season with 25 goals in 31 Premier League games, as well as winning another PFA Player of the Year accolade, despite a groin injury forcing him to miss seven matches. However the league title still eluded the club, who finished second in the league for a consecutive year, with Keegan walking out mid-way through the season.
Another injury problem; this time an ankle ligament injury sustained in a pre-season match at Goodison Park, restricted Shearer to just two goals in 17 games in the 1997–98 season. His injury was reflected in the club's form, and Newcastle finished just 13th in the League. However, United (now managed by Shearer's old boss at Blackburn, Kenny Dalglish) had a good run in the FA Cup; Shearer scored the winning goal in a semi final victory over Sheffield United as the team reached the final. The team were unable to get on the scoresheet at Wembley, and lost the game 2–0 to Arsenal. An incident during a game against Leicester City in the league saw Shearer charged with misconduct by the FA, with media sources claiming that video footage showed him intentionally kicking Neil Lennon in the head following a challenge. The referee of the game took no action against Shearer, and he was then cleared of all charges by the FA, with Lennon giving evidence in the player's defence. Former Football Association chief Graham Kelly, who brought the charges against the player, later claimed in his autobiography that Shearer had threatened to withdraw himself from the 1998 World Cup squad if the charges were upheld; a claim streuously denied by Shearer.
An almost injury-free season helped Shearer improve on his previous year's tally in 1998–99, the striker converting 14 goals in 30 league games, but Newcastle finished 13th again, with Ruud Gullit having replaced Kenny Dalglish just after the season got underway. He also helped Newcastle to a second consecutive FA Cup final and qualification for the following season's UEFA Cup, but they once again lost; this time 2–0 to Treble-chasing Manchester United. Further managerial changes betrayed another lacklustre season in 1999–2000 as unpopular Ruud Gullit resigned to be replaced by the 66-year-old Bobby Robson. The former's dismissal followed his decision to leave Shearer out of the starting lineup for the club's 2–1 defeat to arch-rivals Sunderland. Despite Gullit giving Shearer the captain's armband, reports of a rift between club captain and manager were rife, Gullit's decision proved deeply unpopular with fans and his departure capped a dismal start to the season. Even with Robson in charge, the club struggled to progress beyond mid-table, although Shearer missed only one league game and notched up 23 goals. Newcastle did reach the FA Cup semi finals, but a third consecutive final was beyond them as they were beaten by Chelsea. This season also saw Shearer sent off for the first time in his career, in the opening match against Aston Villa, after referee Uriah Rennie showed him a second yellow card for excessive use of his elbows.
Shearer suffered an injury-hit and frustrating season in 2000–01, having retired from international football after the Euro 2000 tournament in order to focus on club football. He managed only five goals in 19 games in the league. 2001–02 was much better though; Shearer bagged 23 goals in 37 league games as Newcastle finished fourth—their highest standing since 1997—meaning they would qualify for the following season's Champions League competition. One of the most memorable incidents of the season saw Roy Keane sent off after a confrontation with Shearer during Newcastle's 4–3 win over the Red Devils in September 2001. Shearer also saw red for the second time in his career this season, after allegedly elbowing an opposition player in a match against Charlton Athletic. The card was subsequently rescinded by referee Andy D'Urso after reviewing video replays after the game.
The 2002–03 season saw Shearer and Newcastle make their return to the UEFA Champions League. Newcastle lost their first three matches in the opening group stage, but Shearer's goal against Dynamo Kiev, coupled with further wins against Juventus and Feyenoord saw the club progress to the second group stage. Shearer's hat-trick against Bayer Leverkusen and Brace against Inter in the second group stage helped him reach a total of seven Champions League goals, along with his 17 in 35 games in the league, and a total of 25 for the season as the team again improved to finish in third place in the Premier League.
After this, Newcastle would have one more chance to progress in the Champions League in early 2003, but Shearer was one of those who failed to score as the team were eliminated in a penalty shootout by Partizan Belgrade in the third qualifying round. United progressed well in that season's UEFA Cup and Shearer's six goals helped the club reach the semi-finals, where they were beaten by eventual runners up Olympique de Marseille. Domestically he also had a good season, with 22 goals in 37 appearances, however could not prevent the club club dropping out of the Champions League places to finish in fifth, qualifying once again for the UEFA Cup.
Announcing that this would be his final season before retirement, Shearer's form in 2004–05 was patchy; alongside new signing Patrick Kluivert, he scored only seven goals in his 28 games as the club finished the season in 14th place. The club fared better in the cup competitions, however, eventually losing out to Sporting in the Uefa Cup quarter-finals and Manchester United in the FA Cup semi-finals. Shearer scored a hattrick in the first round win against Hapoel Bnei Sakhnin, and ended the season with a haul of 11 European goals, in addition to his one goal in domestic cups.
The summer of 2004 saw Shearer reverse his decision to retire, after pressure from then-manager Graeme Souness, decided to continue playing in a player-coach capacity until the end of the following season. and he returned for one more season in 2004–05. This last season saw him break Jackie Milburn's 49-year-old record of 200 goals for Newcastle United (not including his 38 World War II wartime match goals) when he netted his 201st strike in a home Premier League fixture against Portsmouth on 4 February 2006, becoming the club's highest-ever goalscorer. On 17 April 2006, with three games remaining in his final season as a player, Shearer suffered a tear to the medial collateral ligament in his left knee after a collision during the 4–1 win at Sunderland in which he scored his 206th goal. The injury caused him to miss those final three games, effectively bringing forward his retirement. Shearer finished his final season with 10 goals in 32 league games.
Tribute and testimonial
In tribute to Shearer's contribution to Newcastle United over more than ten years, the club erected a large banner of Shearer on the outside of the cantilever superstruture of the Gallowgate End of St James' Park. The banner measured high by wide, covering almost half of the Gallowgate End, aptly placed above the club bar, Shearer's, opened in his honour in 2005. The banner depicted Shearer as the "Gallowgate Giant", with one arm aloft in his signature goal celebration, with the message "Thanks for 10 great years", and was featured in in the media coverage reflecting on his career at the club, with the banner being displayed from 19 April 2006 until 11 May 2006, the day of his testimonial match. The banner could be seen across the city and as far away as Gateshead across the River Tyne, standing taller than the iconic local landmark, the Angel of the North.
Shearer was awarded a testimonial match by the club, against Celtic F.C.. All proceeds of the match went to charitable causes. Due to the injury sustained three games earlier at Sunderland, Shearer was unable to play in the whole match; however he initiated the kick-off and came off the bench to score a penalty, winning the game 3–2. The match was a sell-out, and saw Shearer perform a lap of honour at the end with his family, with his young son notably covering his ears due to the volume of noise produced by the crowd in tribute.
International career
Shearer's international career began in 1990 when he was handed a callup to the England under-21 squad under Dave Sexton. During his time with the squad, he scored 13 times in 11 games; a record return which is still unbeaten. The striker's goals at this level, coupled with his club form, meant he was soon promoted to the senior squad by coach Graham Taylor. Marking his debut in the 2–0 win against France in February 1992 with a goal, he made his only appearance for the England B team a month later. Due to replace Gary Lineker, who retired in 1992, in the England attack,Shearer played only intermittently in the qualifying campaign for the 1994 FIFA World Cup due to injury and the team failed to reach the competition finals.
Euro 96 was a more positive experience for both Shearer and England. With England not required to qualify as hosts, Shearer had not scored in 12 games in the 21 months prior, but found the net in the 22nd minute of the first game, against Switzerland. Scoring once in the following game against Scotland and twice in a 4–1 win over the Netherlands, Shearer helped England to progress to the next stage in front of their own fans in Wembley.
In the quarter finals, England were outplayed by Spain but got through to a penalty shootout after a goalless draw. Shearer scored the first England penalty, while the Spaniards failed to score from two of theirs, sending England into the semi-final against Germany. Shearer headed England into the lead after three minutes, but the Germans quickly equalised and the match went to penalties again. This time, Germany won from the spot; although Shearer scored, his team-mate Gareth Southgate missed his kick and England were eliminated. Shearer's five goals made him the competition's top scorer, and together with team mates David Seaman and Steve McManaman, was listed in the official UEFA team of the tournament.
The new England manager Glenn Hoddle appointed Shearer squad captain for the 1998 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Moldova on 1 September 1996, and the player held onto the captaincy after scoring once in that match and twice in the following game against Poland. He scored a total of five goals in England's successful qualification campaign for the 1998 FIFA World Cup; adding strikes against Georgia and away to Poland to his tally. Shearer was sidelined for much of the 1997–98 season, but recovered to play in the World Cup finals. With Michael Owen replacing Teddy Sheringham as Shearer's strike partner, Shearer's return saw him score England's first goal of the tournament, in a 2–0 win over Tunisia, his only goal in the three group matches. England faced long-time rivals Argentina in the second round. Shearer scored a first-half equaliser from the penalty-spot before David Beckham was sent off early in the second half. The scores tied 2-2, the game went to penalties. Shearer scored again, but England were eliminated after David Batty's shot was saved by the Argentina goalkeeper. This defeat ended England's participation in what was to be Shearer's only World Cup tournament.
In September 1999, Shearer scored his only England hat-trick in a Euro 2000 qualifier against Luxembourg. This helped England reach a play-off against Scotland; England won the game over two legs and in doing so qualified for the European Championships. By now, Shearer was approaching his 30th birthday, and he announced that he intended to retire from international football after the Euro 2000 tournament.
Shearer did not score in England's opening 3–2 defeat against Portugal, but did so as England defeated Germany 1–0 in Charleroi, ensuring that England beat their European neighbours for the first time since the 1966 World Cup Final. To remain in the tournament, England only required a draw against Romania in the final group match, and Shearer scored a penalty as England went in at half-time 2–1 up,but Romania ultimately won 3–2. England's tournament was over, and so was Shearer's international career. From his 63 caps, he captained the team 34 times and scored thirty goals; joint-fifth in the England all-time goalscorers list with Nat Lofthouse and Tom Finney.
Style of play
As a player, Shearer was often styled as a classic English centre-forward, owing to his stength, heading ability and strong shot. Of his 206 Newcastle goals, 49 of them were scored with his head. Earlier in his career, especially at Southampton, Shearer played a more creative role; providing chances for fellow strikers, and making runs into space. Later on in his career, Shearer played a more forward role; his age meant that he lost much of the pace which served him on the south coast. Able to hold the ball up well, he also functioned as a target man, providing balls for other players. Although his strength allowed him to hold on to the ball, his playing style sometimes brought him criticism; most commonly that his play was too physical, and that he used his elbows too aggressively: it was this which led to both of his sendings off, although one was rescinded.Shearer was noted as a proficient penalty taker for both club and country, and he scored 45 times from the spot for Newcastle, where he was the first-choice taker. He was also an able free-kick taker, scoring five goals directly from set-pieces for the north-east club, despite not being first-choice free-kick taker during most of his time at Newcastle.
Personal life
Shearer is married to Lainya, who he met while playing for Southampton. A local of the area, the couple lived with her parents during Shearer's second year at the south coast club, and were married on 8 June 1991 at St. James' Church in the city. In contrast to the portrayal of some WAGs (wives and girlfriends) of later players by the media, Lainya is described by Shearer as a quiet and reserved person, not comfortable in the spotlight her husband's fame sometimes brought.The couple have three children: two girls named Holly and Chloe, and the youngest, a boy named Will. Shearer cited not wanting to uproot his family as a key reason for remaining in England during his career, having had the chance to move to Juventus or Barcelona when leaving Blackburn.
Shearer's family accompanied him onto the pitch following the striker's testimonial in May 2006 as he performed a lap of honour at St. James' Park. During this, young Will, dressed in Newcastle United kit, was seen to cover his ears due to the volume of the reception for Shearer from the St. James' Park crowd.
Career after football
Television career and commercial roles
Following work as a player while injured, and, as an ex-England captain, guest pundit spots for international matches, on retirement Shearer became has been a regular pundit for the BBC's Match of the Day. He also formed part of the team who covered the 2006 World Cup for the BBC.Former Newcastle chairman Freddy Shepherd announced that, after Shearer finished the 2005–06 season as Newcastle's caretaker assistant manager, he would become the club's "Sporting Ambassador" for 2006–07.
Charitable causes
During his playing days, Shearer had been involved with the Children's charity the NSPCC, taking part in the organisation's Full Stop campaign in 1999. Since retiring from football Shearer has also done work for several charities both nationally and in the Newcastle area.In his testimonial match, he raised £1.64m benefiting fourteen good causes including £400,000 for the NSPCC and £320,000 for completion of the "Alan Shearer Centre," a respite care facility based in West Denton, Newcastle. In October 2006 he became an ambassador for the NSPCC, describing it as "the kick-off to my most important role yet". He has also worked with the charity the Dream Foundation. In 2006, Shearer founded the Alan Shearer Academy Scholarship to aid the development of promising young players in the region.
In 2008, he raised over £300,000 for Sport Relief in a bike ride with fellow Match of the Day presenter Adrian Chiles, the idea for which emerged in an off the cuff question from cycling fan Chiles to Shearer as to how he kept fit since retirement. Shearer also played and scored twice in Soccer Aid, a game involving celebrities and former players at Wembley Stadium in September 2008, to raise money for UNICEF.
Coaching
Responding to speculation of an immediate move into coaching, Shearer has stated that he would take some personal time off to "enjoy life" for the next couple of years following his retirement from playing. He is also quoted as saying that he would like to move into management eventually, "when the time was right", and pursuant to this, before he had retired from playing he had embarked on the UEFA Pro Licence course, which is required to be able to manage a team in European competition.Reflecting this desire, in July 2006 he turned down a role with England, citing his BBC commitments and desire to be away from the pressure of a job within football. Despite this, Shearer has since still been repeatedly linked in the media with managerial or coaching positions at his three former clubs; most recently turning down the opportunity to apply for the managerial position at Blackburn.
Career statistics
Club
|- |1987–88||rowspan="6"|Southampton||rowspan="6"|First Division||5||3||0||0||0||0||colspan="2"|-||5||3 |- |1988–89||10||0||0||0||0||0||colspan="2"|-||10||0 |- |1989–90||26||3||3||0||6||2||colspan="2"|-||35||5 |- |1990–91||36||4||4||2||6||6||colspan="2"|-||46||12 |- |1991–92||41||13||7||2||6||3||colspan="2"|-||54||18 |- |Total||118||23||14||4||18||11||0||0||150||38 |- |1992–93||rowspan="5"|Blackburn Rovers||rowspan="5"|Premier League||21||16||0||0||5||6||colspan="2"|-||26||22 |- |1993–94||40||31||4||2||4||1||colspan="2"|-||48||34 |- |1994–95||42||34||2||0||3||2||3||1||50||37 |- |1995–96||35||31||2||0||4||5||6||1||47||37 |- |Total||138||112||8||2||16||14||9||2||171||130 |- |1996–97||rowspan="11"|Newcastle United||rowspan="11"|Premier League||31||25||3||1||1||1||5||1||40||28 |- |1997–98||17||2||6||5||0||0||colspan="2"|-||23||7 |- |1998–99||30||14||6||5||2||1||2||1||40||21 |- |1999–2000||37||23||6||5||1||0||6||2||50||30 |- |2000–01||19||5||0||0||4||2||colspan="2"|-||23||7 |- |2001–02||37||23||5||2||4||2||colspan="2"|-||46||27 |- |2002–03||35||17||1||1||0||0||12||7||48||25 |- |2003–04||37||22||2||0||1||0||11||6||51||28 |- |2004–05||28||7||4||1||1||0||9||11||42||19 |- |2005–06||32||10||3||1||2||1||4||2||41||14 |- |Total||303||148||36||21||16||7||49||30||404||206559||283||58||27||50||32||58||32||725||374 |}International goals
- Scores and results list England's goal tally first. "Score" column indicates the score after the player's goal.
Honours
In football
Club and international honours- Premier League Winner: 1994–95 (Blackburn Rovers)
- Premier League Runner up: 1993–94 (Blackburn Rovers), 1996–97 (Newcastle United)
- FA Cup Runner up: 1998 (Newcastle United), 1999 (Newcastle United)
- Euro 96 Golden Boot Winner (five goals)
- Highest-ever Premier League goalscorer: 260 goals
- Record for most Premier League goals in a 42-game season (1992-5): 34
- Record for most Premier League goals in a 38-game season (1995 onwards): 31
- Most overall goals scored for Newcastle United: 206
- Most European goals for Newcastle United: 30
Personal honours
- PFA Players' Player of the Year: 1995, 1997
- Football Writers' Association Player of the Year: 1994
- Inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame in 2004.
- Named by Pele as one of the 125 greatest living footballers.
- In the awards to mark ten seasons of the Premier League, Shearer was named as: "Overall Player of the Decade", "Domestic Player of the Decade" and "Outstanding Contribution to the Premier League" and "Top Goalscorer".
Held jointly with Andrew Cole. Held jointly with Cristiano Ronaldo.
Outside football
- Officer of the Order of the British Empire
- Freeman of the City of Newcastle
- Awarded an honorary doctorate in Civil Law from Northumbria University in 2006.
References
References
- Alan Shearer career stats at Football Database
- Alan Shearer profile at 4thegame.com
External links
- Shearer9.com - unofficial fansite
- February 2006 radio interview with the BBC
- Interview with Alan Shearer at vidFootball.com
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Last updated on Saturday October 11, 2008 at 17:23:55 PDT (GMT -0700)
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