Robbie Fowler

Personal information
Full name	Robert Bernard Fowler
Date of birth	(1975-04-09) 9 April 1975 (age 37)
Place of birth	Toxteth, Liverpool, England
Height	1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)[1]
Playing position	Striker
Youth career
1984–1993	Liverpool
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1993–2001	Liverpool	236	(120)
2001–2003	Leeds United	30	(14)
2003–2006	Manchester City	80	(20)
2006–2007	Liverpool	30	(8)
2007–2008	Cardiff City	13	(4)
2008	Blackburn Rovers	3	(0)
2009–2010	North Queensland Fury	26	(9)
2010–2011	Perth Glory	28	(9)
2011-2012	Muangthong United	13	(2)
National team
1993–1995	England U21	8	(3)
1994	England B	1	(1)
1996–2002	England	26	(7)
Teams managed
2011-2012	Muangthong United
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Robert Bernard "Robbie" Fowler (born 9 April 1975) is an English professional footballer and manager who plays as a striker and is currently without a club

He is best remembered for his playing days at Liverpool and is the fourth-highest goalscorer in the history of the Premier League. Fowler scored 183 goals in total for Liverpool, 128 of which were scored in the Premier League (162 Premier League goals in total). He subsequently played for Leeds United and Manchester City, before returning to Liverpool in January 2006.

He moved clubs 18 months later to sign for Cardiff City. He refused a one year "pay as you play" contract extension and signed with Blackburn Rovers on a three-month "pay as you play" deal instead. In December 2008, he departed Blackburn and forged a career in Australia with North Queensland Fury and Perth Glory. In 2011 he joined Thai side Muangthong United as a player, but later was appointed player/manager where he remained until 2012. He has been capped for England twenty-six times, scoring seven goals.

Early life[link]

Fowler was born in Toxteth, Liverpool and brought up in the inner city area of Liverpool. At this time he was known as Bernard Ryder, his mother's surname.^[2] He lived in Toxteth at the time of the 1981 Toxteth riots, when he was six years old. As a youngster he supported Everton F.C., regularly travelling to Goodison Park. He played regularly for schoolboy team Thorvald, and once scored 16 times in a 26–0 rout.^[3]

In 1985 a 10-year-old Fowler was selected for Liverpool Schoolboys and was spotted by Liverpool scout Jim Aspinall. He began training with Liverpool once a week and signed schoolboy forms with the club. On leaving school in 1991 he signed as a YTS trainee, and turned professional on his 17th birthday less than a year later.^[4]

Club career[link]

Liverpool[link]

Fowler's career began with Liverpool. He signed as a youth team player on leaving school in the summer of 1991, signing professional terms on his 17th birthday, 9 April 1992.

Fowler's first involvement with the Liverpool first team came on 13 January 1993, when he was an unused substitute in an FA Cup third round tie against Bolton Wanderers. In the following close season, Fowler helped the England under-18 team win the 1993 European Championship,^[5] before making a scoring first-team debut in Liverpool's 3–1 win in a first round League Cup tie at Fulham on 22 September 1993.^[6] Fowler scored all five goals in the second leg at Anfield two weeks later, making him the fourth player in Liverpool's history to score five in a senior fixture.^[4] He scored his first league hat-trick against Southampton in only his fifth league game. His very first league goal for the Reds had come on 16 October 1993, when an 87th minute equaliser at home to struggling Oldham Athletic saved the Reds from what would have been one of the biggest Premier League shocks of the season, with a last gasp own goal giving Liverpool a 2–1 win.^[7] He scored twice in a thrilling 3–3 draw at Tottenham Hotspur on 18 December.^[8]

His first 13 games for the club yielded 12 goals, and he was rewarded with an England Under-21 debut against San Marino in November 1993, in which he scored England's opening goal in the third minute. Fowler was unable to sustain his goal-a-game ratio throughout the season, but finished his first season as the club's leading scorer with 18 goals in all competitions, although Ian Rush had scored more goals in the league. It was, however, a disappointing season for Liverpool, as they finished eighth in the Premier League without making any impact in any of the major competitions, though the departure of Graeme Souness as manager and the appointment of Roy Evans as successor built up hope for the future.^[4]

Success and fame[link]

In the 1994–95 season, Fowler was an ever-present for Liverpool, playing in all of their 57 competitive matches, including the victory in the 1995 League Cup final, and a match against Arsenal in which he scored the Premier league's fastest ever hat-trick, in four minutes and 33 seconds,^[9] a record that still stands.

He also managed braces against Aston Villa, Ipswich Town, Chelsea and Norwich City in the league that season.

Fowler was voted the PFA Young Player of the Year in two consecutive years in 1995 and 1996,^[10] a feat equalled only by Ryan Giggs and Wayne Rooney.^[11]

Throughout the mid and late 1990s, Fowler was widely considered to be the most natural finisher playing in England.^[12] Fowler sealed this reputation as he scored more than 30 goals for three consecutive seasons, up to 1997. He remains the only player to have scored 30 plus goals in his first three full seasons in England scoring 98 goals with a total of 116 in 3 and a half years, something which has also yet to be beaten in La Liga, Seria A and the Bundesliga too. Fowler's partnership with Steve McManaman was largely described as the reason why Liverpool had become the club known for being the most potent attacking force in England at the time,^[13] and Fowler was renowned for scoring goals of all varieties, from every angle and distance, with McManaman describing him as the "greatest goalscorer of all time."^[14]

Stan Collymore, Fowler's strike partner from 1995 to 1997, said in his autobiography that Fowler was the best player he has ever played alongside. Fowler and Collymore were among the most prolific goal-scoring strike partnerships in England during the 1995–96 season. In the same season he scored twice in a 4–3 victory over Newcastle United, a match voted the best of the decade in a Premier League poll. The match helped prevent Newcastle from winning the league, but it was not enough for Liverpool to clinch the title; they finished third while Manchester United were crowned champions. Fowler also played in his first FA Cup final that season, but was on the losing side as Manchester United won 1–0.^[15]

Fowler received a call-up to the full England squad and won his first cap on 27 March 1996 as a substitute in a friendly against Bulgaria.^[10] His first start at international level was against Croatia which was the England game following his substitute appearance. Fowler was part of the England squad for Euro 1996, making two appearances in the tournament.^[16] On 14 December 1996, he scored four against Middlesbrough, including his hundredth for Liverpool. This meant he reached a century of goals one game quicker than his first strike partner, Ian Rush, in just 165 games.

That year, he also won a UEFA Fair Play award for denying that he had been fouled by Arsenal goalkeeper David Seaman at Highbury after a penalty had been given.^[17] After unsuccessfully trying to convince the referee to change his decision about the penalty, Fowler took it tamely and Seaman saved. However, Seaman failed to hold on to the ball and Jason McAteer scored from the rebound.^[18] Though many people believe that he deliberately took the penalty kick poorly for reasons of fair play, Fowler said at the time: "As a goalscorer it's part of my job to take it and I wanted to score it. I tried to score. I never missed on purpose. It just happened, it was a bad penalty."^[19]

Spice Boys[link]

Fowler was part of a group of Liverpool players from the mid-1990s who were nicknamed "The Spice Boys" by the press following a series of off-field controversies. The term was coined by the Daily Mail, and arose due to misplaced rumours that Fowler was dating Spice Girl Emma Bunton.^[20] The term was subsequently used in a derogatory manner, implying Fowler and colleagues such as Jamie Redknapp, Stan Collymore, David James and Steve McManaman were underachieving playboys.

Fowler's performance in the 1997–98 football season was marred by a knee ligament injury that kept him out of action for half the season and caused him to miss the 1998 World Cup.^[21] During this period of injury, fellow Liverpool striker, Michael Owen rose to prominence, making his debut in 1997. Owen established himself in the Liverpool team in Fowler's absence.

In 1999, Fowler was fined £60,000 by his club for bringing the game into disrepute. Whilst celebrating his goal against Liverpool's Merseyside rivals, Everton, Fowler used the white line of the penalty area to simulate cocaine use.^[10][22] Liverpool manager Gérard Houllier stated that this was a Cameroonian grass eating celebration, learnt from teammate Rigobert Song.^[23] Defending himself, Fowler later said this was a response to Everton fans who had insulted him with false accusations of drug abuse. Fowler received a four match suspension from the FA for this incident. At the same FA disciplinary hearing, Fowler received a further two match suspension due to a separate incident in which he had taunted the Chelsea defender Graeme Le Saux by waving his backside at him as Le Saux's wife and children watched from the stands. Fowler later attempted to justify his actions by suggesting his homophobic taunts were simply an extension of gamesmanship. The FA imposed a £32,000 fine and a six match ban for the two incidents.^[24]

2000–01 season[link]

The 2000–01 season was Fowler's most successful season. He appeared in three finals, scoring 17 goals and lifting three trophies in a unique cup treble.^[25] In the absence of Jamie Redknapp, who was sidelined by injury, Fowler was named as Liverpool captain when he started.^[4] However he found himself the third choice Liverpool striker, with Houllier favouring a forward partnership of Michael Owen and Emile Heskey.^[4]

He did take part in a fourth round League Cup hammering of Stoke City, scoring a hat-trick in an 8–0 victory, which was second only to the clubs biggest ever win in 1986 - a 10–0 defeat of Fulham.^[26] In the League Cup final against Birmingham City, the club's first cup final since 1996, he captained the side and scored in the 30th minute. Liverpool went on to win the trophy on penalties, with Fowler scoring Liverpool's fifth in the shootout. Fowler picked up the Alan Hardaker Man of the Match award and lifted the trophy.

Fowler's season picked up from there as he scored several important goals including one against runaway champions Manchester United and a free kick in the FA Cup semi-final against Wycombe Wanderers. Fowler featured as a substitute in the 2001 FA Cup Final coming on as a 77th minute replacement for Vladimír Šmicer. Liverpool, who were 1–0 down at that point, eventually won the game 2–1 with two goals from Michael Owen. Fowler raised the trophy along with Sami Hyypiä and Jamie Redknapp.

Four days later he was a substitute again in Liverpool's third final, the 2001 UEFA Cup Final against Deportivo Alavés. He came on in the 64th minute for Emile Heskey with the score at 3–3. He scored seven minutes later but Alavés equalised before full time and Liverpool eventually won with a golden goal, an own goal, in the 116th minute.^[27] Fowler and Hyypiä then raised Liverpool's third trophy of the season together. Liverpool's next and final game of the season was against Charlton Athletic F.C. and Fowler scored twice in a 4–0 victory that assured them UEFA Champions League qualification for the next season.

Liverpool departure[link]

Fowler began the 2001–02 season controversially, after being dropped by the then manager Gérard Houllier from the Liverpool squad for the 2001 Charity Shield match following a training ground confrontation with assistant manager Phil Thompson.^[28] He made an appearance in Liverpool's 3–2 European Super Cup victory over Bayern Munich,^[29] but starts were intermittent. In October 2001, he scored his first league hat-trick for three years, helping Liverpool beat Leicester City 4–1, but was dropped for the following league match. Though Fowler had been on a contract extension from 1999 (unlike Steve McManaman – who exercised his Bosman entitlement the very same year), Fowler was linked to Lazio, Arsenal and Leeds, and Liverpool's management as well as fans and the media constantly reported that what happened with McManaman (regarded as a huge financial loss) would never be repeated and thus the club never rejected those bids without consideration.^[30] This meant that coupled with Fowler's relationship with Houllier, speculation over Fowler's future persisted for most of Houllier's tenure and became an issue that divided Liverpool fans.^[31][32] His last appearance for Liverpool was against Sunderland, in which he was substituted at half-time.^[33][34]

Leeds United[link]

Despite his popularity with Liverpool fans, who referred to Fowler as "God",^[35] Michael Owen and Emile Heskey had established themselves as Liverpool's regular strike partnership, leaving Fowler on the fringes of the first team. This along with his difficult relationship with Houllier, he sought regular first team football away from Anfield in a £12 million move to Leeds United.^[36] Fowler maintains that Houllier forced him out of Liverpool, and accused Houllier of pressuring the Liverpool Echo newspaper to use its influence to turn opinion against him.^[37]

The transfer went ahead just one month after his hat-trick at Leicester with a fee of £12 million. He made his Leeds debut in an away game against Fulham,^[38] the same ground where he had made his thrillingly memorable Liverpool debut eight years earlier. Fowler scored 12 goals in the remainder of the season, helping Leeds to a UEFA Cup qualifying place. Fowler was included in the England squad for the 2002 World Cup, but only made one appearance, coming on as substitute in a second round win over Denmark.

Fowler suffered an aggravation of a pre-existing hip injury in the 2002–03 pre-season, and did not recover until December.^[36] Struggling to gain fitness, and seeing team-mates sold off due to a financial crisis, Fowler's form and market value diminished. It was despite this decrease in form that he still, in total,scored 15 goals in 31 appearances for Leeds; achieving an impressive strike rate of just less than one goal every two games. In 2002–03, Leeds finished 15th in the Premier League and a severe financial crisis was developing.

Manchester City[link]

In the 2002–03 season, Fowler was transferred to Manchester City following a protracted transfer saga. Fowler initially turned down the move, and a dispute between Manchester City manager Kevin Keegan and chairman David Bernstein over whether the transfer should take place due to medical concerns resulted in Bernstein leaving the club.^[39] Following encouragement from Keegan, Fowler finally signed for Manchester City on 16 January 2003 for an initial fee of £3 million and a further £3 million dependent upon appearances.^[10] Bizarre transfer conditions meant Leeds United still paid a significant proportion of Fowler's wages.^[40] Fowler made his Manchester City debut against West Bromwich Albion on 1 February 2003,^[41] but made a poor start to his Manchester City career, scoring just two goals in the remainder of the season.

Fowler continued to struggle with fitness problems in the 2003–04 season, completing the full 90 minutes only nine times, however he did score against his old club Liverpool in a 2–2 draw at home. The arrival of close friend, Steve McManaman, from Real Madrid gave Fowler hope, but the pair failed to rekindle their prolific partnership from their time at Liverpool, and received criticism from the fans and tabloids for their salaries, alleged excesses^[42] as well as named and shamed in a sex scandal covered by the News of the World^[43] that year.

Despite the slump, Fowler rallied for the following campaign, and showed a marked improvement in the second half of the 2004–05 season, scoring his 150th Premiership goal in the 3–2 win over Norwich City on 28 February 2005. However, his failure to convert a 90th minute penalty kick against Middlesbrough's Mark Schwarzer in the final game of the season prevented Manchester City from gaining a place in the UEFA Cup.^[44] Despite this, Fowler ended the season as the club's joint top goal scorer and gained the approval of the fans, finishing in the top three in the fans' Player of the Year poll.^[45] Fowler later described this as "one of the proudest achievements of my career".^[46]

Fowler had injury problems at the start of the 2005–06 season and rarely featured when fit, making just two substitute appearances in the first four months of the season. His first start of the season came against Scunthorpe United in the FA Cup on 7 January 2006, in which he scored a hat-trick.^[47] The following week he scored Manchester City's third goal in their 3–1 win against local rivals Manchester United after coming on as substitute. However, Fowler made only one more appearance for Manchester City before returning to Liverpool on a free transfer.^[48]

Return to Liverpool[link]

Fowler playing for Liverpool.

On 27 January 2006, Fowler rejoined Liverpool from Manchester City on a free transfer, signing a contract until the end of the season. Fowler had remained a Liverpool fan after he left the club; he was in the Istanbul crowd when Liverpool won the Champions League in 2005.

The fans were overjoyed to learn that Fowler had returned; there were large banners in the game against Birmingham City which read 'God – number eleven, welcome back to heaven', with 'God' being Fowler's nickname while he was previously at Liverpool.

Fowler's return against Birmingham City in February 2006 was labelled by the tabloid press as the stuff of fairytales,^[49] and he himself said he felt like "a kid waking up on Christmas morning every day".^[35] Fowler's first appearance back at Anfield was as a substitute against Birmingham, receiving a standing ovation upon his introduction.^[50] After his return, he had three goals ruled out for offside, before finally getting off the mark on 15 March 2006 in a home game against Fulham, the same opponents against which he scored his first ever goal for Liverpool 13 years earlier.

Fowler's next Liverpool goal, against West Bromwich Albion, meant he overtook Kenny Dalglish in the club's all time top scorers. His resurgence continued as he marked his 31st birthday with a goal against Bolton Wanderers. He made it four goals in five games when he scored the only goal in a 1–0 victory over Blackburn Rovers on 16 April 2006. However, Fowler's fitness remained a concern. In March 2006, manager Rafael Benítez commented on Fowler's work and progress by saying, "to buy a Robbie Fowler who is fit and scoring goals would cost a lot, maybe £10m or more". Despite concerns about his fitness, Fowler finished the 2005–06 season scoring on a more consistent basis than Liverpool's other strikers. In May 2006 he was offered a new one year contract with the club,^[51] and celebrated by scoring the first goal in Liverpool's last league game of the season in a 3–1 away win at Portsmouth. It was his final game of the season as he was unable to take part in the club's FA Cup Final success due to being cup-tied.

Fowler featured rarely in his final Liverpool season, making only six league starts. Bizarrely, all three of his League goals were penalties against Sheffield United. One of these was in the away game on the opening day of the season, and the other two in the reverse fixture at Anfield. Appearances in other competitions were more common due to Rafael Benítez's squad rotation policy. On 25 October 2006 Fowler was named as Liverpool's captain for the first time since his return in a League Cup tie against Reading, scoring just before half-time in a 4–3 win.

On 5 December, Fowler scored his first two goals in the UEFA Champions League competition proper against Galatasaray (he had previously scored during a qualifying tie some six years prior against FC Haka),^[52][53] though Liverpool lost 3–2.

On 1 May 2007 he was a substitute in the Champions League semi-final against Chelsea, brought on in the last few minutes of extra-time. He set up an attack for Dirk Kuyt but the shot went straight at the Chelsea goalkeeper. The match went into a penalty shoot-out that Liverpool won. Fowler was due to take the fifth and final spot-kick, but the game had already ended when Kuyt slotted home his winning penalty.^[54]

In what transpired to be his last appearance for the club, against Charlton Athletic on 13 May, Fowler was given the captain's armband one final time. He was substituted two minutes from the final whistle and given a standing ovation. He finished his second run as a Liverpool player with a UEFA Champions League runners-up medal, although he was not named in either the starting eleven or the seven substitutes. He became a free agent on 1 July having scored 183 goals in 369 appearances during his two spells at the club.^[6]

Cardiff City[link]

On 21 July Fowler signed a two-year contract to play for Cardiff City.^[55] He missed the season's opening fixtures due to a lack of fitness,^[56] making his debut in a League Cup tie on 28 August.^[57] He scored his first two Cardiff goals on 22 September against Preston North End, scoring with two headers.^[58] Fowler scored twice in his next game, a third round League Cup tie against West Brom, which Cardiff won 4–2.^[59] This led to a fourth round tie against Fowler's former club Liverpool, at Anfield, but Cardiff were knocked out in a 2–1 defeat.^[60]

In November, Fowler travelled to Frankfurt, Germany to see Dr. Hans-Wilhelm Müller-Wohlfahrt, a specialist sports injuries doctor, to try and resolve a recurring hip problem that had left him lacking fitness in early season fixtures for the Bluebirds.^[61] The treatment involved taking around twenty-eight injections into his hip. He returned to full training in late November and made his comeback on 15 December as a late substitute in a 1–0 defeat against Bristol City.^[62] However he went on to suffer another injury blow just days later after a mistimed tackle in training from club captain Darren Purse left him with damaged ankle ligaments.^[63][64] Due to the new injury blow Cardiff and Fowler made plans for him to go to Colorado, United States to undergo keyhole surgery on the hip problem, which had plagued him in recent seasons, in the hope that it would finally resolve the problem.^[65]

On 17 January, it was announced that Fowler could miss the rest of the 2007–08 season for Cardiff after his hip operation revealed that the injury was worse than previously thought. Surgeons were forced to perform a micro-fracture in order for the hip to heal properly.^[66] Despite this, he attempted to make a comeback at the end of the season to play in the FA Cup final against Portsmouth and was included in the 18-man match squad.^[67] However he did not feature in the game in any way and thus did not receive a runners-up medal having not made an appearance in the competition.^[68]

Blackburn Rovers[link]

Fowler was offered a new pay-as-you-play contract with Cardiff for the 2008–09 season in May 2008 and was expected to sign the contract. However, he pulled out of the deal, preferring to accept an offer of a trial at Blackburn Rovers from former Liverpool colleague Paul Ince who'd just retired after a spell at Macclesfield Town & eventually went on to manage MK Dons & Notts County. The move left Cardiff manager Dave Jones and chairman Peter Ridsdale furious after the club had assisted Fowler's rehabilitation throughout the summer. After training with Blackburn and appearing in a handful of friendlies he was offered a six-month deal by the club to last until January, but Fowler turned down the deal due to it being a shorter offer than the previous one he had rejected at Cardiff. After turning down the offer, Fowler made a shock enquiry about returning to Cardiff on the deal he had originally turned down, prompting anger from supporters and a swift "no thanks" from the club.^[69]

Fowler concluded the trial period at Blackburn by agreeing to a three month pay-as-you-play deal.^[70][71] He stated that he was eager to return to the Premier League and that his pre-existing relationship with Ince would not earn him any preferential treatment.^[70] He made his first appearance against Everton in a 1–0 win in the League Cup on 24 September.^[72] With a month left on his contract at Blackburn, Fowler received interest from League Two side Grimsby Town. Fowler a noted friend of then Grimsby manager Mike Newell had held talks at Blundell Park over a possible Player/Coach role with the club.^[73]

His three month deal at Blackburn expired on 12 December,^[74] and after not being offered a new contract was released by the club,^[75] he entered talks with new Australian A-League club North Queensland Fury.^[76]

North Queensland Fury[link]

Fowler playing for North Queensland Fury.

Fowler signed with the North Queensland Fury on 4 February 2009 and became their inaugural marquee player; with his family relocating to Townsville for the 2009–2010 season of the Australian A-League.^[77] It was an important signing for the new franchise who struggled to sign a marquee player, while some questioned whether Fowler would be able to cope with the heat and humidity of North Queensland.^[78]

Fowler made his debut in July 2009 in a 2–1 preseason loss against Wolverhampton Wanderers in Perth after recovering from groin and hip complaints.^[79] Fowler was subsequently named North Queensland Fury's captain for the 2009/10 season and the first in the club's history. He scored his first A-League goal from a penalty kick in his club's first competitive match against Sydney FC on Saturday 8 August 2009. In rounds four, five, and six Fowler scored Solo's Hyundai A-League Goal of the Week.

Shortly after his arrival in Australia, it was reported in the British media that Fowler would be making a swift return to his homeland and sign for League One side Tranmere Rovers, who had just appointed Fowler's former Liverpool team mate John Barnes as manager. However, Fowler was quick to dismiss talk of a quick return to England.^[80] When Barnes was dismissed three months later, it was reported that Tranmere had approached Fowler about becoming player-manager, but these reports too were dismissed.^[81]

Controversy erupted around Fowler after he reportedly refused to play against the Brisbane Roar on 23 January after being named on the interchange bench for the clash.^[82] He however returned to the starting line up for two of the last three games of the season. On 15 June 2010, Fowler confirmed that he is taking legal action over the ending of his playing contract with North Queensland Fury. He is suing the Fury and Football Federation Australia, which took over the running of the club.^[83]

Perth Glory[link]

On 27 April 2010, it was announced that Fowler had agreed to become part of Glory's squad for the 2010–11 A-League season.^[84][85] Fowler reportedly ignored offers from Middle East clubs as well as Sydney FC to play in Perth. He joined the Glory for pre-season training in mid-June, following World Cup sponsorship commitments. Fowler scored his first goal for Perth on 29 August, a penalty against Melbourne Heart. He followed this up with a headed goal the following week against the Wellington Phoenix. In the following match, Fowler's hat-trick gave the Glory a 3–1 victory against Melbourne Victory at the Dairy Famers Stadium in Townsville. Fowler ended the year as top scorer for the club.

Muangthong United[link]

On 7 July 2011 Fowler agreed to play with Muangthong United, signing a one-year contract. In a press conference he stated that the weather conditions of Nonthaburi should not be a problem as he had played in Townsville and Perth. He was quickly a hit with Muangthong fans and the Thai public in general; he attended Thailand's World Cup Qualifier against Oman wearing the national team's shirt. He has since played a handful of scoreless games, both at the Yamaha Stadium and on the road in the AFC Cup, until the Twin Qilins were eliminated from the competition by Al-Kuwait. Muangthong took action and sacked Henrique Calisto as Head Coach. A statement on the Muangthong website read: 'The Board have appointed Robbie Fowler as the acting Head Coach and terminate the contract of Portuguese boss Henrique Calisto. The contract is until the end of the season and the team must adapt to long-term goals if it is to succeed in Asia.' Thus making Fowler, player/coach of Muangthong United.^{[86][87][88][89][90]}

On 16 October 2011, Fowler scored his first goal for MTU against Chiangrai. He took 250 minutes to score his first goal in the Thai Premier League, and it was his first ever goal as a player coach. He scored his 250th club career goal on 21 December 2011 against TTM Phichit. On 4 January 2012, he scored his 251st club career goal in the Thai FA Cup quarter final against Sriracha Suzuki. Three days later, Fowler scored his 252nd club career goal in the semi final against Songkhla. On 28 February 2012 Fowler announced he had left the club following Slavisa Jokanovic unveiled as coach of Muangthong United.^[91]

On 1 March 2012, Blackpool manager Ian Holloway confirmed that Fowler was training with the Seasiders and that he could earn a deal until the end of the season.^[92] However, they could not confirm a deal and Fowler decided not to move to Blackpool when Karl Oyston offered the striker just £100 a week with £5,000 for every first-team appearance.^[93]

International career[link]

Fowler has won 26 caps for England scoring 7 goals and has not been called to the England team since 2002.

Coaching career[link]

Milton Keynes Dons[link]

On returning to England, Robbie has worked with League One side Milton Keynes Dons on an ad-hoc basis to assist the club's coaching staff. On 7 April 2011, Bury confirmed that Fowler would join their coaching staff for one week to assist Richie Barker.^[94] Fowler briefly coached Liverpool's strikers in April 2011.

Non-football career[link]

In association with long term friend Steve McManaman, Fowler has invested in several racehorses through a chattily named company The Macca and Growler Partnership, most notably 2003 Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Celebration Chase runner-up Seebald.^[95] In 2005, Fowler was listed as one of the 1,000 wealthiest Britons by the Sunday Times Rich List, with the paper estimating he has a property portfolio of more than 80, while his Robbie Fowler Sports Promotions company has been reported to have net assets of £1.58 million.^[96] Other business interests including a large property portfolio have resulted in Fowler's net wealth totaling £28 million.^[97] This gave rise to the affectionate Manchester City Football Club chant, We all live in a Robbie Fowler house, sung to the tune of Yellow Submarine.^[37]

On 2 September 2005, Fowler released a book called Fowler: My Autobiography, about his time as a footballer and the issues surrounding him. Since his transfer to Liverpool he has updated it and included a section about his return to Anfield. Excerpts published in newspapers included criticism of the England management.

In June 2008, Fowler participated alongside McManaman in Steve Nash and Claudio Reyna's Showdown in Chinatown, an 8-on-8 charity soccer game at Sara D. Roosevelt Park in Manhattan with McManaman making five of the goals, including one for Fowler.^[98]

In 2011, Fowler and McManaman participated in a Select World XI against Chechen dictator Ramzan Kadyrov and his select XI in a public relations fundraiser in the war torn nation's capital of Grozny.^[99] The match caused much press bewilderment in the western world, mainly due to Kadyrov's abysmal human rights record and known practices of torture and rape as weapons of rule.^[100] British press also cited the use of and payment of footballers to parade the event as particularly "evil", with The Guardian labelling it "Football's moment in Bed with Kadyrov".^[101]

Personal life[link]

Fowler married wife Kerrie on 9 June 2001 in the town of Duns in Scotland. Together they have three daughters named Madison, Jaya, and Mackenzie,^[102] and one son, Jacob.

Career statistics[link]

International goals[link]

Updated to games played 28 January 2008.

#	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	29 March 1997	London, England	Mexico	2–0	Win	Friendly[103]
2.	15 November 1997	London, England	Cameroon	2–0	Win	Friendly[103]
3.	31 May 2000	London, England	Ukraine	2–0	Win	Friendly[104]
4.	25 May 2001	Derby, England	Mexico	4–0	Win	Friendly[104]
5.	5 September 2001	Newcastle, England	Albania	2–0	Win	FIFA World Cup 2002 Qualification[104]
6.	27 March 2002	Leeds, England	Italy	1–2	Loss	Friendly[104]
7.	26 May 2002	Kobe, Japan	Cameroon	2–2	Draw	Friendly[104]

Managerial statistics[link]

Team	Nat	From	To	Record
				G	W	D	L	Win %
Muangthong United		30 September 2011	1 February 2012	&1000000000000001500000015	&100000000000000070000007	&100000000000000040000004	&100000000000000040000004	&1000000000000004667000046.67

Honours[link]

Liverpool[link]

• League Cup (2): 1995, 2001
• FA Cup (1): 2001
• UEFA Cup (1): 2001
• UEFA Super Cup (1): 2001

Runner-up

• FA Cup: 1996
• UEFA Champions League: 2007

Muangthong United[link]

Runner-up

• FA Cup: 2011

England[link]

• UEFA European Under-18 Football Championship (1): 1993

Personal[link]

• PFA Young Player of the Year (2): 1995, 1996
• UEFA Fair Play Award (1): 1997
• Premier League Player of the Month (2): December 1995, January 1996
• PFA Team of the Year (1): 1996
• North Queensland Fury Player of the Year (1): 2010
• North Queensland Fury Players Player of the Year (1): 2010
• North Queensland Fury Golden Boot (1): 2010
• Perth Glory Golden Boot (1): 2011

References[link]

Bibliography[link]

• Fowler, Robbie; Maddock, David (2005). Fowler: My Autobiography. London: Macmillan. ISBN 1-4050-5132-9. 

External links[link]

• Perth Glory profile
• Robbie Fowler career stats at Soccerbase
• Goal.com profile
• Robbie Fowler player profile at cardiffcityfc.co.uk
• Robbie Fowler player profile at liverpoolfc.tv

England squads v t e England squad – UEFA Euro 1996 Third Place 1 Seaman 2 G. Neville 3 Pearce 4 Ince 5 Adams (c) 6 Southgate 7 Platt 8 Gascoigne 9 Shearer 10 Sheringham 11 Anderton 12 Howey 13 Flowers 14 Barmby 15 Redknapp 16 Campbell 17 McManaman 18 Ferdinand 19 P. Neville 20 Stone 21 Fowler 22 Walker Coach: Venables v t e England squad – UEFA Euro 2000 1 Seaman 2 G. Neville 3 P. Neville 4 Campbell 5 Adams 6 Keown 7 Beckham 8 Scholes 9 Shearer (c) 10 Owen 11 McManaman 12 Southgate 13 Martyn 14 Ince 15 Barry 16 Gerrard 17 Wise 18 Barmby 19 Heskey 20 Phillips 21 Fowler 22 Wright Coach: Keegan v t e England squad – 2002 FIFA World Cup 1 Seaman 2 Mills 3 A. Cole 4 Sinclair 5 Ferdinand 6 Campbell 7 Beckham (c) 8 Scholes 9 Fowler 10 Owen 11 Heskey 12 Brown 13 Martyn 14 Bridge 15 Keown 16 Southgate 17 Sheringham 18 Hargreaves 19 J. Cole 20 Vassell 21 Butt 22 James 23 Dyer Coach: Eriksson

Paul Ince

Personal information
Full name	Paul Emerson Carlyle Ince
Date of birth	(1967-10-21) 21 October 1967 (age 44)
Place of birth	Ilford, London, England
Height	1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Playing position	Midfielder
Youth career
1982–1986	West Ham United
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1986–1989	West Ham United	72	(7)
1989–1995	Manchester United	206	(25)
1995–1997	Internazionale	54	(10)
1997–1999	Liverpool	65	(14)
1999–2002	Middlesbrough	93	(7)
2002–2006	Wolverhampton Wanderers	115	(10)
2006	Swindon Town	3	(0)
2007	Macclesfield Town	1	(0)
Total		609	(72)
National team
1989	England U21	2	(0)
1992	England B	1	(0)
1992–2000	England	53	(2)
Teams managed
2006–2007	Macclesfield Town
2007–2008	Milton Keynes Dons
2008	Blackburn Rovers
2009–2010	Milton Keynes Dons
2010–2011	Notts County
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Paul Emerson Carlyle Ince^[1] (born 21 October 1967 in Ilford, Greater London) is an English football manager and a former professional footballer who played as a midfielder from 1982 to 2007.

He spent the majority of his playing career at the highest level, after leaving West Ham United he joined Manchester United where he played in the Premier League. After two years in Italian Serie A with Internazionale he returned to England to play in the top flight for Liverpool, Middlesbrough and Wolverhampton Wanderers. After a spell as player-coach of Swindon Town, he hung up his boots whilst player-manager of Macclesfield Town in 2007. He went on to manage Milton Keynes Dons (twice), Blackburn Rovers and Notts County. He was capped 53 times by England, scoring 2 goals.

As a player he won numerous honours with Manchester United, became the first black player to captain the England team and was also the first black Briton to manage a team in the highest tier of English football.^[2]

Club career[link]

West Ham United[link]

Ince grew up as a West Ham United supporter. He was spotted playing, aged 12, by West Ham manager John Lyall around the time that the club was in the Second Division and achieved a surprise FA Cup final triumph over Arsenal.

He signed for the Hammers as a trainee, aged 14. Lyall helped Ince through troubled school times eventually signing him as a YTS trainee, on leaving school, in 1984.^[3] He is a product of the West Ham youth team and made his debut in English football on 30 November 1986 against Newcastle United in the First Division.^[4] He became a regular player in 1987–88, proving himself to have all-round qualities of pace, stamina, uncompromising tackling and good passing ability. He also packed a powerful shot, and was awarded with England under-21 honours to go with the youth caps he acquired as an apprentice. He firmly established himself as the successor in West Ham's midfield for the veteran Billy Bonds, who retired at the end of the 1987–88 season. Unfortunately for Ince, West Ham were not enjoying one of their best spells when he broke into the team. Despite having won the FA Cup in 1980 and finished third in the league in 1986, they had failed to sustain their challenge for major honours and finished 15th in 1987 and 16th in 1988, and worse was to follow.

In August 1988, an eventful season for Ince began. In a struggling West Ham side, he shot to national recognition with two stunning goals in a shock 4–1 win over defending league champions Liverpool in the League Cup, and continued to score goals as the Hammers reached the semi-finals while having real trouble finding any form in the League. West Ham lost to Luton Town in the semi-finals and, despite frequent displays of individual brilliance from Ince, were relegated at the end of the season, a disappointment which cost manager John Lyall his job after 15 years at the helm.

Manchester United[link]

Paul Ince in March 1991.

Ince played just once in the Second Division the following season before completing a highly controversial transfer to Manchester United for £1 million. Ince had been photographed in a Manchester United kit long before the transfer was complete, which appeared in the Daily Express. Ince received hateful abuse from West Ham United fans for many years afterwards. The initial move was postponed after he failed a medical, but was quickly completed on 14 September 1989 after he later received the all-clear. [2]

In a recent^[when?] article in Four Four Two magazine, when answering questions about his career from readers, he got his chance to explain the story^{[citation needed]}:

"I spoke to Alex Ferguson and the deal was close to being done. I then went on holiday, and my agent at the time, Ambrose Mendy, said it wasn't worth me coming back to do a picture in a United shirt when the deal was completed, so I should do one before I left, and it would be released when the deal was announced. Lawrence Luster of the Daily Star took the picture and put in the library. Soon after, their sister paper, the Daily Express, were looking for a picture of me playing for West Ham, and found the one of me in the United shirt in the pile. They published it and all hell broke loose.

"I came back from holiday to discover West Ham fans were going mad. It wasn't really my fault. I was only a kid, I did what my agent told me to do, then took all the crap for it."

Ince eventually made his Manchester United debut in a 5–1 win over Millwall, although his next game for United came in a 5–1 Manchester derby defeat by Manchester City. Ince became a strong presence in the United midfield alongside long serving captain Bryan Robson and (when he wasn't out of the team injured) fellow new midfielder Neil Webb.

United won the FA Cup in his first season, defeating Crystal Palace 1–0 in a replay at Wembley after initially drawing 3–3. In both of these games, Ince was selected at right-back in favour of Viv Anderson, with his favoured central midfield position being occupied by Mike Phelan. Ince was man of the match for the replay.^[5]

Over the next four seasons, Robson's United career gradually wound down until he finally left to manage Middlesbrough in 1994. During this time, Ince found himself playing alongside several other different central midfielders, including Mike Phelan, Neil Webb and Darren Ferguson. The arrival of striker Eric Cantona in November 1992 saw Brian McClair become Ince's regular central midfield partner until the arrival of Roy Keane the following season.

Meanwhile, Ince became United's key midfielder, with snapping tackles, raking passes and some tremendously hit shots, though he was not too prolific a goalscorer. One of his best games came in January 1994, when he scored twice in a 2–2 away draw with former club West Ham in the Premier League.

He won his second winners' medal when United defeated Barcelona in the final of the European Cup Winners Cup in Rotterdam in 1991 and received his third another year later when United beat Nottingham Forest in the 1992 League Cup final.

The next year, Manchester United were competing in the inaugural Premiership season with Ince and his best friend at the time, Ryan Giggs at the fore and part of a now legendary team that included Mark Hughes, Eric Cantona, Peter Schmeichel, Andrei Kanchelskis, Steve Bruce and Denis Irwin. Seeking a first League title for 26 years, United won it and Ince completed his domestic medal set just three years after joining the club.

Manchester United continued to dominate the domestic game in 1993–94 and Ince was the midfield general in the side which won the "double" of Premiership and FA Cup in 1994. A year later and Ince suffered more of the all too familiar chants of "Judas" when he and Manchester United went to West Ham on the last day of the season, needing a win to retain their Premiership crown. Sadly for them, they could only draw the game and Blackburn Rovers took the title. It went from bad to worse as Ince featured then in the United team which also lost the FA Cup final to Everton. During that season, his central midfield partner Roy Keane had missed 17 of United's 42 league games due to injury, meaning that Ince often found himself partnered with Brian McClair and – particularly towards the end of the season – the 20-year-old Nicky Butt.

In the summer of 1995, Ferguson sold him to Internazionale of Milan for £7.5 million – at the time one of the costliest transfer fees involving an English player. Ferguson had long sustained a tempestuous relationship with Ince, labelling him a "bottler" and a "big-time Charlie", which many fans saw as the prime reason for Ince being sold, rather than on footballing or economic grounds.^[6][7] Ince's sale caused massive unrest among United supporters, and the discontent deepened when United turned to the much younger Nicky Butt as his successor rather than buying a more experienced player. A similar uproar followed the subsequent sale of Ince's team mates Mark Hughes and Andrei Kanchelskis, although the younger players who filled their places in the team contributed greatly to United's "double double" success in the 1995–96 season as well as the triumphs of subsequent seasons.

While at United, Ince had collected two Premier League title medals as well as two FA Cup winner's medals and one winner's medal each in the European Cup Winners' Cup and Football League Cup. He had also collected runners-up medal's in the League Cup twice and the FA Cup once.

Internazionale[link]

In the 1995/1996 season Inter failed to challenge for a 14th scudetto, finishing seventh in the Serie A. Ince, though, had a successful first season, playing in all but four of Inter's league matches and performing well after a slow start which had started speculation of a November transfer window move to Arsenal. The next year, Ince had another successful season with the nerazzurri, scoring 6 times in 24 matches in the championship – in which Inter finished third – and also playing his part in Inter's run through to the UEFA Cup Final. Ince scored in the third round second-leg match away to Boavista as Inter swept all before them before meeting Schalke in the Final. Ince didn't play in the away first-leg as Inter lost 1–0 but he returned to the line-up for the home match which the Italians won 1–0 thanks to a goal from Ivan Zamorano. Penalties were again a heart breaker for Ince though, as Schalke won 4–1 in the resulting penalty shootout.

Despite being offered a new, improved contract by club president Massimo Moratti, Ince decided that after two years away it was time to move home and he left Inter.

Liverpool[link]

After two seasons in Italy, Ince returned to England in the summer of 1997 in order for his son, Thomas, approaching his fifth birthday, to attend an English school. He joined Liverpool for more than £4 million – a move which surprised many because of the long history of rivalry between Manchester United and Liverpool, and few players had ever appeared for both of these clubs during their careers.

According to Graham Le Saux's autobiography, Ince's homophobic taunting and Le Saux's reaction during a 1997 Liverpool – Chelsea match has resulted in a long running coolness between the two players, despite the fact that Le Saux is not actually gay.^[8]

Ince won no honours in his first season with Liverpool as his new club were in the midst of a transitional period where they were cast as 'nearly men' and, rather derogatorily, 'Spice Boys' – a term coined to describe the likes of team mates and good friends of Ince's like Steve McManaman, Robbie Fowler, Jason McAteer and Jamie Redknapp as underachieving playboys in the game; the term itself is derived from the name of the contemporary pop-group, the Spice Girls.

Ince's second season with Liverpool was again trophyless (seventh place in the league meant they wouldn't even be competing in the UEFA Cup the following season) but he achieved a personal high point when he scored a late equalizer against Manchester United at Anfield and celebrated with some ferocity in front of the Spion Kop, though it wasn't enough to deprive United of the Premier League title that formed part of their treble success.

Middlesbrough[link]

In the summer of 1999, however, Liverpool coach Gérard Houllier put Ince on the transfer list and the 31-year-old signed for Middlesbrough for £1 million, who were still managed by Ince's former team-mate Bryan Robson.

As club captain, Ince played three seasons making 106 appearances with 9 goals at Middlesbrough before he was given a free transfer in 2002.

Wolverhampton Wanderers[link]

Ince joined Wolverhampton Wanderers and was playing outside a national top division for the first time since his one brief appearance there for West Ham in 1989, prior to his move to Manchester United. That said, Ince was in the Wolves team which won promotion to the Premier League as Division One playoff winners in his first season. They were relegated after just one season in the top flight (their first since 1983–84), but Ince helped them beat his old club Manchester United 1–0 in mid January and chose to stay with Wolves despite their relegation.

Ince was expected to retire at the end of the 2004–05 season, but he changed his mind halfway through the season following the appointment of Glenn Hoddle as manager of a Wolves side who were struggling at the wrong end of the league. In June 2005, he signed a new one-year contract with Wolves. In April 2006, he announced that he wanted to continue playing for Wolves for a further season after speaking with his close friend Teddy Sheringham. However, following Ince's failure to get the manager's job at Wolves in July 2006 on Hoddle's resignation, the newly appointed manager, Mick McCarthy, decided not to offer Ince a new contract. Upon leaving, Ince declared his intention to return, at some point in the future, as manager of Wolves.

International career[link]

Ince made his debut for the full England team in September 1992 in a friendly match against Spain in Santander. England lost 1–0 but Ince proved a success. He was duly awarded his second cap a month later in a disappointing 1–1 draw with Norway in a qualifying match for the 1994 World Cup.

Success at international level was not forthcoming. Ince was booked in a crucial World Cup qualifier against Poland, which caused him to be suspended for a critical 2–0 loss to Norway. However, Ince made history during England's summer tour of the U.S. when, in a match against the host nation, he became England's first black captain in the absence of David Platt and Tony Adams. England lost 2–0.

Ince won his tenth England cap in a 3–0 win over Poland which kept alive their World Cup qualification hopes, though required a victory over the Netherlands in Rotterdam a month later. In a controversial match, Holland beat England 2–0 and qualification hopes had gone. Ince scored twice – his first and only international goals – as the qualifying campaign ended with a 7–1 thumping of San Marino in Bologna. England had needed to win by seven clear goals and hope the Netherlands lost to Poland. Neither occurred, and England failed to qualify.

During Euro 96 Ince was a member of Terry Venables' England team as the midfield ball winner and got the label of "Gazza's minder" whose job was to create room for Paul Gascoigne to exploit with his natural ball skills. Though the first group game ended in a disappointing 1–1 draw at Wembley against Switzerland, England went on to defeat the old enemy Scotland 2–0 and then put on a display regarded as "total football" against (ironically) the Netherlands, the team whose performances at the 1974 World Cup had first prompted the phrase's coining. Ince was fouled for a penalty which gave England the lead and helped them towards a 4–1 win; he also picked up a yellow card which rendered him unavailable for the quarter final against Spain, which England won on penalties.

Venables put Ince back in the side for the semifinal against Germany, replacing the suspended Gary Neville as England switched systems to a back three, accommodating Ince in central midfield with Paul Gascoigne and David Platt. Ince and England played superbly but could only manage a 1–1 draw and England lost the penalty shootout. Ince received criticism for not taking a penalty (the crucial missed kick from Gareth Southgate was England's sixth) and for spending the whole shootout sitting down in the centre circle with Steve McManaman with their backs to goal.

Another new England coach came on the scene in Glenn Hoddle and Ince kept his place for the next six internationals, which included five crucial qualifiers for the 1998 World Cup in France. England won four of them but lost 1–0 at home to Italy. During the first of these qualifiers against Moldova in Chişinău, a famous photograph of Ince was taken as he tried to climb a wall at the stadium, only for Gascoigne to pull his tracksuit trousers down, revealing Ince's bare buttocks in front of an army of cameras.

Ince won his 30th England cap in May 1997 as England beat Poland 2–0 in Chorzow to leave them with an opportunity to get through to the World Cup provided they could beat Moldova at Wembley and then not lose to Italy in Rome. Moldova were duly dispatched 4–0 and Ince, in an incident reminiscent of Terry Butcher against Sweden seven years earlier, started the Italy match with a white England shirt and ended it with a red one after his own blood soaked the shirt following a deep cut to his head. The game ended goalless and England had qualified.

Ince was selected in the England squad for the World Cup in 1998, winning his 40th cap in the opening group game against Tunisia in Marseille. England got through the group but succumbed in the second round to Argentina, again after a penalty shootout. This time Ince did take a penalty but saw it saved.

Due to a red card against Sweden in England's first qualifying match for Euro 2000 Ince was suspended for three matches by UEFA. After initially failing to displace Tim Sherwood and David Batty in Kevin Keegan's new-look side, Ince returned to the XI for the two legged play-off with Scotland as England sealed its place in the Netherlands and Belgium.

In a warm up match for Euro 2000 against Malta Ince came on as a substitute and won his 50th cap. He duly played in all three of England's group games of the tournament – winning a penalty against Romania in the last game – but England lost two of three matches and were eliminated. Ince immediately retired from the England scene.

Managerial career[link]

Swindon Town (player-coach)[link]

After much speculation and prolonged discussions – On 31 August 2006, Ince signed a one-year contract with Swindon Town as a player/coach. Swindon were rumoured to have beaten the likes of Birmingham City and West Bromwich Albion for his signature. A key factor in the transfer was Ince's long standing friendship with Town manager Dennis Wise, who had played alongside him occasionally in the England team during the 1990s. He made his full debut for Swindon in the 2–1 victory over MK Dons on 12 September 2006.

Ince only played one other game for Swindon after the MK victory – before the club announced that Ince had felt he could not fulfil his playing duties with the club and that his contract had been terminated by mutual consent, although he continued coaching at the club to complete his coaching badges.

Macclesfield Town[link]

On 23 October 2006, Ince was confirmed as the new player-manager of Macclesfield Town in succession to Brian Horton. However, he was ineligible to play for the Silkmen until January when the transfer window opened, as Swindon Town still held his registration.^[9] He joined Macclesfield with the club bottom of League Two, seven points off their nearest rivals. He then revived confidence and after a 3–0 win against Chester they managed to climb off the bottom of the table. They subsequently avoided relegation, albeit on the last day of the season. On 4 January 2007 Ince was named as League Two Manager of the Month for December. Ince played his last game of professional football on 5 May 2007 in Macclesfield's 1–1 home draw with Notts County coming off the substitute bench to replace Alan Navarro in the 85th minute of play.^{[citation needed]}

Milton Keynes Dons (2007–08)[link]

Ince was unveiled as the new Milton Keynes Dons manager along with his assistant Ray Mathias and fitness coach Duncan Russell on 25 June 2007.^[10] The Dons reached the top of their Division in September 2007^[11] and other clubs began to take a serious interest. In October and November 2007, he denied rumours that he was being linked with managerless Premiership teams Wigan,^[12] Derby County^[13] and Championship team Norwich City.^[14]

Ince was named as League Two "manager of the month" in October and December 2007, and again in April 2008.^[15][16][17]

Ince's first silverware as manager came in the Football League Trophy Final at Wembley on 31 March 2008, with the MK Dons defeating Grimsby Town 2–0. He then secured the Dons' return to Coca-Cola League 1 in April 2008 after they beat Stockport County 3–2. On 26 April, the Dons became League Two champions after they beat Bradford City 2–1.

Blackburn Rovers[link]

In the close-season it was speculated that Ince had been contacted by Blackburn Rovers in their search to appoint a new manager, something that Ince himself denied.^[18] However, the BBC reported that Ince would be named as Blackburn manager by the end of the week of 19 June.^[19] He was appointed on 22 June and became the first black British manager in England's top division.^[20] On the first day of the 2008–09 FA Premier League season, Blackburn Rovers faced Everton at Goodison Park – this was Ince's first premiership game with Blackburn Rovers. David Dunn opened the scoring for Ince's side and Roque Santa Cruz and Andre Ooijer later scored in a 3–2 win. Ince's 2008 summer signings included England international goalkeeper Paul Robinson, Danny Simpson (Loan), Vince Grella, Carlos Villanueva (Loan), Robbie Fowler, Mark Bunn and Keith Andrews.

After winning just three games in 17, Ince was sacked on 16 December 2008 after just six months in charge.^[21] Ince had been with Blackburn only 177 days, one of the shortest reigns of a Premier League manager.^[22] Blackburn fans had been demanding his removal following a 5–3 loss to Manchester United at Old Trafford in the Carling Cup on 3 December 2008. At the game, the crowd could be heard chanting "You don't know what you're doing" and "We want Incey out" as well as singing the name of their former manager Graeme Souness.^[23]

Ince cited his failure at Blackburn Rovers as being due to a lack of financial backing, conditions that were known to Ince at the time of signing for the club.^{[citation needed]} Ince did, however, spend over £10 million on Paul Robinson, Vince Grella and Keith Andrews regardless of these restrictions.^[24]

Milton Keynes Dons (2009–10)[link]

On 3 July 2009, Ince signed again for Milton Keynes Dons on a two-year deal.^[25][26] During Ince's second spell the Dons were less successful, primarily due to negative tactics and many panic buys during transfer windows. However on 16 April 2010, he announced that he would leave the job a year early, at the end of the 2009–10 season.^[27]

Notts County[link]

Ince returned to management on 28 October 2010, signing a three year deal with Notts County.^[28] On 3 April 2011 he left the club by mutual consent after losing a club record 9 games in a row, including a 2-0 defeat to relegation rivals Oldham Athletic the day before.

Statistics[link]

Player[link]

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