Neil Lennon

Personal information
Full name	Neil Francis Lennon[1]
Date of birth	(1971-06-25) 25 June 1971 (age 41)
Place of birth	Lurgan, Northern Ireland
Height	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Playing position	Midfielder
Club information
Current club	Celtic (manager)
Youth career
1987–1989	Manchester City
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1987–1988	Glenavon	?	(1)
1989–1990	Manchester City	1	(0)
1990–1996	Crewe Alexandra	147	(15)
1996–2000	Leicester City	170	(6)
2000–2007	Celtic	214	(3)
2007–2008	Nottingham Forest	18	(0)
2008	Wycombe Wanderers	9	(0)
Total		?	(26)
National team
	Northern Ireland U21	2	(0)
	Northern Ireland U23	2	(0)
	Northern Ireland B	1	(0)
1994–2002	Northern Ireland	40	(2)
Teams managed
2010–	Celtic
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Neil Francis Lennon (born 25 June 1971)^[2] is a former footballer from Northern Ireland. He is the manager^[3][4] and former captain of Celtic.^[5]

During his playing career he represented English clubs Manchester City, Crewe Alexandra and Leicester City before moving to Scottish club Celtic where he made over 200 appearances as a midfielder. Before retiring as a player, he returned to England to represent Nottingham Forest and Wycombe Wanderers.

Lennon made 40 appearances for Northern Ireland in nine years, scoring two goals.

Early life[link]

Lennon was born in Lurgan, County Armagh^[6] and attended St Michael's Grammar School in the town.^[7] As a youngster he played gaelic football for the school and was also selected for the Armagh minor team.^[8] He grew up supporting Celtic^[9] and played football for the local Lurgan Celtic youth team.^[10]

Club career[link]

Lennon joined Glenavon, after reaching the final of the Milk Cup^[10] and scored on his Irish League debut.^[10] He then joined Manchester City as a trainee in 1987, before he signed for Crewe Alexandra on a free transfer in August 1990.^[11]

In February 1996, Lennon signed for Leicester City for a fee of £750,000.^[12] He moved to Celtic in December 2000.^[13] Lennon became Celtic captain in 2005.

When his former club Leicester City sacked Craig Levein, Lennon was linked with a return to the Midlands side in a player-manager role. He went on record saying he was flattered but wanted to captain Celtic to the Scottish Premier League title.^[14]

Although he was also linked with a move to Crystal Palace in a player-manager role in the summer of 2006,^[15] on 23 June 2006, Celtic announced he had signed a new one-year contract. Sunderland manager Roy Keane made an attempt to sign Lennon prior to the closure of the August 2006 transfer window, but his approach for the player was rejected by Celtic. On 25 April 2007, Lennon announced he would be leaving Celtic, and in his last game for the club on 26 May 2007, he captained the team to victory in the Scottish Cup Final against Dunfermline Athletic. Celtic's 1–0 win clinched the League and Cup Double.^[16]

Lennon joined Nottingham Forest on a one-year contract with an option for a second year on 12 June 2007.^[17] He made his debut captaining the side in a 0–0 draw at home to Bournemouth. He missed a week's training with Forest in November 2007, because of family reasons in Scotland,^[18] and lost his place in the team as a consequence.^[19]

Lennon joined Wycombe Wanderers on 31 January 2008,^[19] leaving on 3 April to take up a coaching role with Celtic.^[20]

International career[link]

Lennon was capped 40 times by Northern Ireland,^[6] scoring two goals. He also captained the team.

Lennon decided to retire from international football in August 2002 upon receiving a death threat before a Northern Ireland match against Cyprus. The threats came after his alleged claim that he wanted to play for a team representing a United Ireland.^[21] The threat was allegedly made by the Loyalist Volunteer Force, although the organisation later denied this.^[22][23]

International goals[link]

Scores and results list Northern Ireland's goal tally first

Goal	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	5 October 1996	Belfast, Northern Ireland	Armenia	1–0	1–1	1998 World Cup qualification[24][25]
2	18 October 1998	Belfast, Northern Ireland	Moldova	2–2	2–2	Euro 2000 qualification[26][27]

Management and coaching[link]

Lennon was linked with the vacant manager's job at Hibernian after the resignation of John Collins,^[28] but the job was given to Mixu Paatelainen. Lennon's first coaching appointment was as first team coach with Celtic in 2008.^[29] After the appointment of Tony Mowbray as Celtic manager, Lennon took charge of the Celtic reserve team.^[30]

Following Mowbray's departure from Celtic on 25 March 2010, Lennon was appointed caretaker manager for the remainder of the 2009–10 season.^[31] He appointed former team-mate Johan Mjällby as his assistant. Celtic won all of their remaining league games under Lennon, including wins over Kilmarnock,^[32] Hibernian,^[33] and Rangers,^[34] but lost 2–0 to First Division side Ross County in the Scottish Cup.^[35]

Neil Lennon returned to play for Celtic in the John Kennedy testimonial match, 9 August 2011

Lennon was appointed manager of Celtic on a full time basis on 9 June 2010.^[3][36] On 28 July, in his first competitive game as full time manager, Celtic lost 3–0 away to Braga in the UEFA Champions League.^[37] In the 2010–11 season, Lennon was given a six match touchline ban for excessive misconduct, which was later reduced to four matches after appeal.^[38] He was given another four match touchline ban by the SFA following an altercation with Rangers assistant manager Ally McCoist after a Scottish Cup match in March 2011.^[39]

Lennon led Celtic to the final of the League Cup in March 2011, but they lost 2–1 to Rangers after extra time.^[40] They remained in contention for the SPL title until the final day of the 2010–11 season, when they won 4–0 at home to Motherwell, but finished a point behind Rangers.^[41] He won his first silverware as a manager when Celtic beat Motherwell 3–0 in the Scottish Cup Final a week later.^[42]

Lennon won the SPL Manager of the Month award for November 2011.^[43]

Personal life[link]

Lennon has spoken about having suffered from depression since 2000.^[44]

In September 2008, Lennon was assaulted whilst in the West End of Glasgow.^[45] His attackers were subsequently charged, convicted and jailed for two years each on 16 January 2009.^[46]

In January 2011, Lennon reached an out of court settlement with the Bank of Ireland after a company of which he was a director defaulted on a 3.7 million Euro loan.^[47]

In January 2011, the Royal Mail intercepted packages containing bullets addressed to Lennon and Celtic and Northern Ireland players Niall McGinn and Paddy McCourt.^[48] In March 2011, a suspect package addressed to him was discovered in a mail depot in Saltcoats.^[49]

In March 2011, Lennon and two high-profile fans of Celtic were sent parcel bombs. The device sent to Lennon was intercepted by the Royal Mail at a depot in Kirkintilloch, Scotland whilst the two other devices were delivered, but treated as suspicious packages and were not opened.^[50] (See HM Advocate v Muirhead and McKenzie.)

In response to the death threats, First Minister Alex Salmond condemned those that "use football as a pretext for their pathetic and dangerous prejudices" and UEFA President Michel Platini said he would fight violence and sectarianism. Former Celtic Director Dr. Michael Kelly described the bombs and bullets as terrorism.^[51] After these threats, Lennon was subsequently put under 24-hour protection.^[52]

On 31 August 2011, a Hearts supporter was found guilty of a breach of the peace, after running into the technical area of the football pitch, and shouting and swearing at Lennon, during a match against Celtic in Edinburgh on 11 May 2011.^[53] A further charge of assault, aggravated by religious and racial prejudice, during the same incident, was found not proven.^[53] The media and many observers disapproved of the jury's verdict, mainly because of the admission of assault from the accused, as well as the evidence presented.^{[54][55][56][57][58][55][59]} The supporter was given an eight-month prison sentence.^[60]

Honours[link]

Player[link]

Lennon (bottom right) enjoying Leicester's League Cup victory on 27 February 2000

Leicester City

• Winner
  • League Cup: 1996–97,^[9] 1999–2000^[9]
• Runner-up
  • League Cup: 1998–99^[9]

Celtic

• Winner
  • Scottish Premier League (5): 2000–01,^[9] 2001–02,^[9] 2003–04,^[9] 2005–06,^[9] 2006–07^[9]
  • Scottish Cup (3): 2000–01,^[9] 2003–04, 2006–07^[9]
  • Scottish League Cup (2): 2000–01,^[9] 2005–06^[9]

• Runner-up
  • Scottish Cup (1): 2001–02^[61]
  • Scottish League Cup (1): 2002–03^[62]
  • UEFA Cup (1): 2002–03^[9][63]

Manager[link]

• Winner
  • Scottish Premier League (1): 2011–12
  • Scottish Cup (1): 2010–11
• Runner-up
  • Scottish Premier League (2): 2009–10, 2010–11
  • Scottish League Cup (2): 2010–11, 2011–12

Awards and achievements[link]

• SPL Player of the Month (3): March 2001, March 2004, April 2007

• SPL Manager of the Month (7): September 2010,^[64] January 2011,^[65] April 2011, November 2011, December 2011, February 2012, April 2012

• SPL Manager of the Year
  • Winner : 2011-12

Managerial statistics[link]

Team	Country	From	To	Record
				P	W	D	L	Win %
Celtic	Scotland	25 March 2010	Present[66]	&10000000000000113000000113	&1000000000000008500000085	&1000000000000001200000012	&1000000000000001600000016	&1000000000000007521999975.22
Total				&10000000000000113000000113	&1000000000000008500000085	&1000000000000001200000012	&1000000000000001600000016	&1000000000000007521999975.22

Correct as of 4 May 2012.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Neil Lennon career stats at Soccerbase

Steven Gerrard

Gerrard playing for Liverpool
Personal information
Full name	Steven George Gerrard[1]
Date of birth	(1980-05-30) 30 May 1980 (age 32)[1]
Place of birth	Whiston, England
Height	1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)[2]
Playing position	Midfielder
Club information
Current club	Liverpool
Number	8
Youth career
1987–1998	Liverpool
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1998–	Liverpool	405	(89)
National team‡
1999	England U21	4	(1)
2000–	England[3]	91	(19)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 18:00, 25 May 2012 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 22:00, 26 May 2012 (UTC)

Steven George Gerrard MBE ( /ˈdʒɛrɑrd/; born 30 May 1980) is an English footballer who plays for and captains Premier League club Liverpool. He also has 91 caps for the England national team. He has played much of his career in a centre midfield role, but he has also been used as a second striker and right winger.^[4]

Gerrard, who has spent his entire career at Anfield, made his début in 1998 and cemented his place in the first team in 2000, succeeding Sami Hyypiä as team captain in 2003. His honours include two FA Cups, three League Cups, one UEFA Champions League, one UEFA Cup, and two Super Cups. In 2005, Gerrard came third in voting for the Ballon d'Or.

Gerrard made his international debut in 2000 and has represented England at the Euro 2000 and Euro 2004, as well as the 2006 World Cup where he was the team's top goalscorer with two goals. Gerrard first captained his country at the 2010 World Cup in the absence of regular captain Rio Ferdinand, who missed the tournament through injury.^[5] He was named again as England captain for the Euro 2012.

Gerrard is widely regarded as one of the greatest English footballers ever. Gerrard came second only to Kenny Dalglish in the "100 Players Who Shook The Kop" - a Liverpool fan poll.^[6] Zinedine Zidane said in 2009 that he considered Gerrard one of the best footballers in the world.^[7] In 2010, The Guardian named Gerrard to their World XI team, which compiled the greatest footballers of all time onto one squad.

Early life[link]

Born in Whiston, Merseyside,^[1] Gerrard started out playing for hometown team Whiston Juniors, where he was noticed by Liverpool scouts. He joined the Reds' youth academy at the age of nine.^[8] Gerrard then had trials with various clubs at fourteen, but his success wasn't immediate — Gerrard never made it into the England Schoolboys team. Gerrard's trials included Manchester United, which he claimed in his 2006 autobiography was "to pressure Liverpool into giving me a YTS contract."^[9] He signed his first professional contract with Liverpool on 5 November 1997.^[9]

Liverpool career[link]

Beginnings (1998-2003)[link]

Gerrard made his Liverpool first-team debut on 29 November 1998 in a match against Blackburn Rovers as a last minute substitute for Vegard Heggem.^[10] He made thirteen appearances in his debut season, filling in the midfield position for injured captain Jamie Redknapp^[8] and playing on the right wing, but he scarcely contributed in the short on-pitch time he received, due to nervousness affecting his play.^[11] Gerrard recalled in a November 2008 interview with The Guardian, "I was out of position and out of my depth." The Liverpool hierarchy nonetheless remained convinced that he would improve.^[11] Gerrard saw himself as a defensive player primarily, looking to make key tackles rather than push the team forward.^[10]

Gerrard partnered Redknapp in central midfield for the 1999–00 season. After starting the derby match against Everton on the bench, he replaced Robbie Fowler in the second half but received his first career red card for a late foul on Everton's Kevin Campbell.^[12] Later that season, Gerrard scored his first senior goal in a 4–1 victory over Sheffield Wednesday.^[13] However, he began to suffer from nagging back problems, which sports consultant Hans-Wilhelm Müller-Wohlfahrt later diagnosed as a result of accelerated growth, coupled with excessive playing, during his teenage years.^[9] He was then beset by groin injuries that required four separate operations.^[9]

Gerrard shooting for Liverpool

In 2000–01, he made fifty starts in all competitions and scored ten goals as Liverpool won the League Cup, FA Cup, and the 2001 UEFA Cup.

Struggles and uncertainty (2003-2004)[link]

Gerrard replaced Sami Hyypiä as Liverpool captain in October 2003, as manager Gérard Houllier said that he recognised Gerrard had demonstrated leadership qualities early on, but needed to mature.^[14] He chose to extend his contract at the club, signing a new four-year deal.^[15]

Houllier quit after a trophyless 2003–04 campaign, and Gerrard was linked with a move to Chelsea during the offseason. He admitted he was not "happy with the progress Liverpool has made", and that "for the first time in my career I've thought about the possibility of moving on."^[16] In the end, Gerrard turned down a £20 million offer from Chelsea to stay with Liverpool and new coach Rafael Benítez.^[17]

Breakthrough and trophies (2004-2007)[link]

Liverpool were wracked with injury early in the 2004–05 season, and a foot injury suffered in a September league match against Manchester United shelved Gerrard until late November. He returned to score in the last five minutes of a Champions League group stage match against Olympiacos to secure Liverpool's advancement to the knockout round.^[18] He claimed that this was his most important, if not his best, goal for Liverpool to date.^[19] However, Gerrard netted an own goal during the 2005 League Cup final on 27 February, which proved decisive in Liverpool's 3–2 loss to Chelsea.^[20]

During a six-minute stretch in the second half of the 2005 Champions League final against A.C. Milan, Liverpool came back from a three-goal deficit to tie the match at 3–3 after extra time, with Gerrard scoring one of the goals. Liverpool's third goal was gained as a penalty from a foul awarded to Liverpool when Gennaro Gattuso fouled Gerrard in Milan's penalty box. Gerrard did not participate in the penalty shootout, which Liverpool won 3–2 as they claimed their first Champions League trophy in twenty years,^[21] though he was named the Man of the Match, and later received the UEFA Club Footballer of the Year award.^[22]

In regards to his contract issues with Liverpool, Gerrard told the press after the final, "How can I leave after a night like this?"^[23] But negotiations soon stalled and on 5 July 2005, after Liverpool turned down another lucrative offer from Chelsea, Gerrard rejected a club-record £100,000-a-week offer. Liverpool chief executive Rick Parry conceded the club had lost Gerrard, saying, "Now we have to move on. We have done our best, but he has made it clear he wants to go and I think it looks pretty final."^[24] The next day, Gerrard signed a new four-year deal as Parry blamed the earlier breakdown of talks on miscommunication between the two sides.^[25][26]

Gerrard during the 2006–07 season

Gerrard scored 23 goals in 53 appearances in 2005–06, and in April became the first Liverpool player since John Barnes in 1988 to be voted the PFA Player of the Year.^[27] He scored twice in the 2006 FA Cup final against West Ham United, including an equalizer that sent the match into extra time, and Liverpool won their second consecutive major trophy on penalties. The goals made him the only player to have scored in the FA Cup, League Cup, UEFA Cup and Champions League finals.^[28] Gerrard netted a penalty as Liverpool eliminated league rival Chelsea in the 2006–07 Champions League semi-finals to return to their second final in three seasons, which they lost 2–1 to Milan.^[29][30]

Gerrard suffered a hairline toe fracture in an August 2007 Champions League qualifier against Toulouse F.C.,^[31] but returned four days later to play the entirety of a 1–1 league draw against Chelsea.^[32] On 28 October 2007, Gerrard played his 400th game for Liverpool in a league match against Arsenal, in which he scored.^[33][34] He scored in all but one of Liverpool's domestic and European matches during the month of November, and after scoring the only goal in a Champions League away tie against Olympique de Marseille on 11 December, he became the first Liverpool player since John Aldridge in 1989 to score in seven consecutive games in all competitions.^[35]

Continued success and stardom (2007-)[link]

Gerrard made his 300th Premier League appearance on 13 April 2008 in a match against Blackburn Rovers, scoring the opening goal,^[36][37] and finished the season with twenty-one goals in all competitions, surpassing his total from the 2006–07 season. Gerrard was selected for the PFA Team of the Year and he was also one of the nominees or the PFA Player of the Year, alongside teammate Fernando Torres.^[38][39]

Gerrard needed to undergo groin surgery at the beginning of the 2008–09 season, but the problem was not serious and he quickly returned to training.^[40] He scored what appeared to be his hundredth career Liverpool goal against Stoke City on 20 September, but it was disallowed after Dirk Kuyt was ruled offside.^[41] He achieved the milestone eleven days later in a 3–1 Champions League group stage win over PSV.^[42]

He made his 100th appearance in European club competition for Liverpool on 10 March 2009 against Real Madrid and scored twice in a 4–0 win.^[43] Four days after the impressive victory over Real, Gerrard would score at Old Trafford for the first time from the penalty spot, putting Liverpool ahead on their way to a 4–1 victory over Manchester United.^[44] Following these results, three-time FIFA World Player of the Year Zinedine Zidane hailed the Liverpool skipper, saying "Is he the best in the world? He might not get the attention of Messi and Ronaldo but yes, I think he might be."^[45] On 22 March 2009, Gerrard scored his first ever hat-trick in the Premier League, against Aston Villa, in a 5–0 victory.^[46] On 13 May 2009, Gerrard was named as the 2009 Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year, becoming the first Liverpool player to win the award in nineteen years. Gerrard had pipped Manchester United duo Ryan Giggs and Wayne Rooney in the poll voted for by journalists, beating Ryan Giggs by just 10 votes. Upon receiving the award, he was quoted as saying "I'm delighted but I'm a little bit surprised", he commented. "When you look at the quality of the players there are in this league, it's a great privilege to win this kind of award."^[47] He ended the 2009–10 season with a total of 12 goals and 9 assists from 46 matches.

Following the 2009–10 season, Rafael Benítez departed Liverpool after six years and was succeeded as manager by Roy Hodgson, who quickly assured fans that Gerrard would not be sold.[2] To further eliminate any speculation surrounding his future at the club, Gerrard made a statement emphasising his excitement at the coming season with Liverpool and praising the signing of Joe Cole.^[48] Gerrard soon played his first pre-season match of the 2010–11 season against Borussia Mönchengladbach on 1 August 2010 alongside new signing Joe Cole.^[49]

Gerrard before Jamie Carragher's Testimonial Match (2010)

Gerrard scored his first goal of the 2010–11 season from the penalty spot in a Europa League qualifier against Macedonian side FK Rabotnički on 5 August 2010.^[50]

His next two goals came on 19 September at Old Trafford in a 3–2 loss against Manchester United; he scored from a penalty kick in the 64th minute and a free-kick 6 minutes later to level the game at 2–2.^[51] He followed this up with the equaliser in a 2–2 home draw with Sunderland.^[52] 11 days later Gerrard came off the bench to score a second-half hat-trick in a 3–1 win over Napoli in the Europa League.^[53]

Gerrard missed the start of English Premier League season 2011–2012 due to groin injury which had kept him away for much of the 2010–2011 season as well.^[54] Gerrard made his first start for Liverpool squad in the October match at Anfield against fierce rivals Manchester United. Gerrard scored the club's only goal in the match, from a free kick, which ended in a 1-1 draw. On October 29, Gerrard underwent a treatment to clear an infection in his right ankle, which was placed in a protective plaster cast. He was forced to miss Liverpool's league match against West Bromwich that day and was ruled out for at least the following week's match against Swansea the following week and England's friendly matches against Sweden and Spain the week after.^[55] After a prolonged ankle injury recuperation, Gerrard returned to first team action in the match against Blackburn Rovers, coming off the bench. On 30 December, Gerrard came off the bench against Newcastle United and scored a fine goal.^[56] Gerrard helped Liverpool reach their first cup final at Wembley Stadium in 18 years as Liverpool prevailed 3-2 on aggregate over Manchester City. Gerrard fired home a penalty during both legs to secure a trip to the Carling Cup Final against Cardiff in February 2012, which Liverpool won on penalties.

On his 400th league appearance for Liverpool, Gerrard scored a hat-trick to give Liverpool a 3-0 victory over rivals Everton in the Merseyside Derby on 13 March 2012.

International career[link]

Gerrard made his international debut against Ukraine on 31 May 2000.^[57] That summer, he was called up for Euro 2000, making only one appearance as a substitute in a 1–0 win over Germany before England were eliminated in the group stage.^[58][59] Gerrard scored his first international goal in the famous 5–1 victory over Germany in a 2002 World Cup qualifier in September 2001, and while England qualified, Gerrard was forced to pull out of the squad due to his ongoing groin problems after pulling up in Liverpool's final match of the season against Ipswich.^[60]

He was a regular starter in Euro 2004, scoring once – against Switzerland – before England were eliminated by Portugal in the quarter-finals on penalties.^[61] He participated in his first World Cup in 2006 and two goals, both in the group stage, against Trinidad & Tobago and Sweden, although his spot kick was one of three saved by goalkeeper Ricardo as England again bowed out to Portugal in the quarter-finals on penalties.^[62] He was England's top scorer in the tournament.

Gerrard was made vice-captain of the England team by coach Steve McClaren,^[63] and while he filled in for John Terry as captain, England suffered back-to-back losses to Russia and Croatia that ended their Euro 2008 qualifying hopes.^[64] After new coach Fabio Capello took over the team in early 2008, Gerrard was given a trial run as captain but Capello settled on Terry for the role.^[65][66] Gerrard was subsequently replaced as England vice-captain by Rio Ferdinand.^[67]

Gerrard helped England qualify for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, scoring two goals in England's 5–1 win over Croatia.^[68]

John Terry was replaced by Rio Ferdinand as captain in 2010, following revelations about the former's private life,^[69] and Gerrard subsequently became vice-captain again. When the England team left for the 2010 World Cup, Gerrard was the most experienced player in the squad with 80 caps. During preparations for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, however, Rio Ferdinand was injured, meaning that Gerrard was appointed by Capello as captain for the tournament.^[5] After the tournament Gerrard, part of a group of England players dubbed the "Golden Generation", confirmed that he would continue to be available for selection, despite suggestions from Capello that he would seek to re-build the team.^[70]