George Graham (footballer)
Encyclopedia
George Graham is a Scottish
former football player and manager
. He is best remembered for his success at Arsenal
, as a player in the 1970s and then as manager from 1986 until 1995.
, near Coatbridge
. He was raised by his mother, Janet, after his father, Robert Young Graham, died of tuberculosis
and heart failure on Christmas Day 1944, when George was not yet a month old. His elder sister also died of Tuberculosis at the age of 19, in 1951. When growing up, Graham showed considerable promise as a footballer, and Newcastle United
, Chelsea
and Aston Villa
displayed an interest in the young Graham.
and the United States
. He signed for Aston Villa
in 1961, on his 17th birthday. He spent three seasons at the Birmingham
club, but only made eight appearances – though one of them was the club's 1963
League Cup
final loss to Birmingham City
. Chelsea
signed him in July 1964 for £5000. Graham scored 35 goals in 72 league games for the club and won a League Cup medal in 1965 but he, along with several other Chelsea players, increasingly clashed with their volatile manager Tommy Docherty
. This culminated in Graham and seven others being sent home and disciplined by Docherty for breaking a pre-match curfew
in 1965.
Bertie Mee
's Arsenal
were looking for a replacement for Joe Baker
, and paid £75,000 plus Tommy Baldwin
in 1966 to bring him to Highbury
. He made his debut on 1 October 1966 at home to Leicester City
, and although the result was a 4–2 defeat he immediately became a regular in the Arsenal side. He was Arsenal's top scorer in both 1966–67
and 1967–68
, having started out as a centre forward for the club, but later moved to inside forward
with John Radford
moving from the wing to up front.
With Arsenal, Graham was a runner-up in both the 1968
and 1969
League Cup finals, before finally winning a medal with the 1969–70
Inter-Cities Fairs Cup
. He followed it up with being an integral part of Arsenal's Double
-winning side of 1970–71
, and even had a claim to scoring Arsenal's equaliser in the FA Cup
Final
against Liverpool
, although Eddie Kelly
is officially credited with the goal.
Winning the Double brought the attention of Scotland
and Graham was selected for the national side for the first time against Portugal
on 13 October 1971. He would go on to win twelve caps over the next two years for Scotland, scoring three goals, his final one coming against Brazil
on 30 June 1973. By then, however, Graham was no longer an Arsenal player.
The arrival of Alan Ball
midway through 1971–72
had made his place in the Arsenal side less assured and he therefore moved for £120,000 to Manchester United
in December 1972. In total, he played 308 matches for Arsenal, scoring 77 goals. He spent two years at United, and was relegated to Division Two
, before seeing out his career in England at Portsmouth
and Crystal Palace
. He played the summer of 1978 in America for the California Surf
.
and then later Queens Park Rangers
. On 6 December 1982 Graham was appointed manager of Millwall
, who were then bottom of the old Third Division
. Graham turned the side around in a short space of time—they avoided relegation that season and in 1984–85
they were promoted to the old Second Division
. After he left the club in 1986, they went on to win the Second Division and win promotion to the First in 1987–88
.
, the Aberdeen
manager, as their new manager with Graham as his assistant. However, Ferguson (then in temporary charge of the Scotland national football team
following the death of Jock Stein
the previous September) had decided to wait until after the World Cup
that summer before deciding on his future, and so the Arsenal directors appointed Graham as their new manager on 14 May 1986.
A month after arriving at Arsenal, Graham was linked with the job as manager of the Scotland
national team, but the job went to Andy Roxburgh
instead.
Arsenal had not won a trophy since the FA Cup in 1978–79, and were drifting away from the top teams in the League. Graham cleared out much of the old guard and replaced them with new signings and players promoted from the youth team, while imposing much stricter discipline than his predecessors, both in the dressing room and on the pitch. Arsenal's form immediately improved, so much so that the club were top of the League at Christmas 1986, the club's centenary, for the first time in a decade.
Arsenal finished fourth in Graham's first season in charge, and they went on to win the 1987 League Cup
. While Arsenal lost the League Cup final the following year (a shock 3–2 defeat to Luton Town
), their League form steadily improved. Graham's side featured tight defensive discipline, embodied by his young captain Tony Adams
, who along with Lee Dixon
, Steve Bould
and Nigel Winterburn
, formed the basis of the club's defence for over a decade. However, contrary to popular belief, during this time Graham's Arsenal were not a purely defensive side; Graham also employed capable midfielders such as David Rocastle, Michael Thomas and Paul Merson
, and striker Alan Smith
, whose prolific goalscoring regularly brought him more than 20 goals per season.
At the end of Graham's third season (1988–89
), the club won their first League title since 1971, in highly dramatic fashion, in the final game of the season
against Liverpool at Anfield
; Arsenal needed to win by two goals to take the title; Alan Smith scored for Arsenal early in the second half to make it 1–0, but as time ticked by Arsenal struggled to get a second, and with 90 minutes gone on the clock, Arsenal still needed another goal. With only seconds to go, a Smith flick-on found Michael Thomas surging through the Liverpool defence; the young midfielder calmly lifted the ball over Bruce Grobbelaar
and into the net, and Arsenal were League Champions.
Unable to retain the league title the following season, Graham signed goalkeeper David Seaman
and Swedish
winger Anders Limpar
in the close season; both players proved vital as Arsenal won a second title in 1990–91
and reached the FA Cup semi-finals, losing to arch-rivals Tottenham Hotspur.
Arsenal had finished ahead of runners-up Liverpool
in the race for the league title that season, and in February of that season Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish
had suddenly announced his resignation as manager – and Graham's name was among those mentioned by the media as a possible successor to Dalglish. However, Graham was quick to rule himself out of the running, and the job went to Graeme Souness
instead.
Graham went on to sign striker and eventual second all-time top scorer Ian Wright
from Crystal Palace
in October, and the club's first entry in the European Cup since 1971–72. The European venture went badly; Arsenal were knocked out by S.L. Benfica in the second round and failed to make the lucrative group stage. The season went from bad to worse when the Gunners were knocked out of the FA Cup by lowly Wrexham, though Arsenal recovered to finish fourth in the League.
After this season, Graham changed his tactics; he became more defensive and turned out far less attack-minded sides, which depended mainly on goals from Wright rather than the whole team. Between 1986–87
and 1991–92
Arsenal averaged 66 League goals a season (scoring 81 in 1991–92), but between 1992–93
and 1994–95
only averaged 48; this included just 40 in 1992–93, when the club finished 10th in the inaugural season of the FA Premier League
, scoring fewer than any other team in the division.
Graham's Arsenal became Cup specialists, and in 1992–93 Arsenal became the first side to win the FA Cup and League Cup double, both times Arsenal beating Sheffield Wednesday
, 2–1 in the League Cup Final
and 2–1 after a replay in the FA Cup Final
replay. The next season they continued in the same vein, winning the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup
, their second European trophy; in the final Arsenal beat favourites and holders Parma 1–0 with a tight defensive performance and Alan Smith's 21st minute goal from a left foot volley.
The 1994 Cup Winners' Cup proved to be George Graham's last trophy at the club; the following February he was sacked after nearly nine years in charge, after it was discovered he had accepted an illegal £425,000 payment from Norwegian agent Rune Hauge
following Arsenal's 1992 acquisition of John Jensen and Pål Lydersen, two of Hauge's clients. Graham was eventually banned for a year by the Football Association for his involvement in the scandal, after he admitted he had received an "unsolicited gift" from Hauge.
club (28) they still finished in a secure 13th place. Bringing in players such as Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink
in the close season, 1997–98
saw Leeds score twice as many goals as the previous season finish fifth in the Premiership and secure UEFA Cup
qualification.
. Just five months after taking charge he guided the club to victory over Leicester City
in the 1999 League Cup Final
, and with it a place in the 1999–2000 UEFA Cup
. He was sacked on 15 March 2001, soon after the club had been purchased by ENIC
, for alleged breach of contract. The club stated that Graham had been issued "several written warnings prior to his sacking for giving out what was deemed by the club as being private information" before, earlier that week, apparently informing the media he had "a limited budget" for new players and expressing his disappointment with it. This led to his being summoned to a meeting with Spurs executive vice-chairman David Buchler, after which he was dismissed. Buchler subsequently questioned whether Graham had the interests of the club at heart and described his conduct in the meeting as "aggressive and defiant". Graham's legal representatives issued a statement expressing he was "shocked and upset to have been sacked and could not believe such a flimsy excuse was given". It went on to say that Graham "believes ENIC always intended to sack him."
Despite guiding the club to its first trophy in eight seasons, Graham could not achieve a finish higher than tenth in the Premiership and remained unpopular with a large section of the supporters, because of his previous role at Arsenal, Tottenham's most bitter rivals.
.
However, he was linked with several managerial vacancies after leaving Tottenham. In October 2001, following the dismissal of Peter Taylor at Leicester City
, he was linked with that vacancy, but it was filled by Dave Bassett
instead.
The following season
, with Glenn Roeder
under fire at the helm of a West Ham United
side heading for Premier League relegation, Graham's name was mentioned as a possible replacement, but Roeder actually lasted until the opening weeks of the 2003–04 season
and this time there was little mention of Graham's name in the hunt for a successor, which ended with the appointment of Alan Pardew
. In the 2003 close season, the resignation of Graham Taylor at Aston Villa
saw Graham's name mentioned by the media as a possible successor, but again nothing came of it, with this vacancy being filled by David O'Leary
, who had played under Graham at Arsenal and worked as his assistant at Leeds. He and O'Leary had both been mentioned as candidates for the job at Sunderland
twice during the 2002–03 season following the departure of Peter Reid
in October and Howard Wilkinson
in March.
Graham has revealed that he suffers from arthritis. "I love my golf but because of my arthritis, I've not played much in the last two years, if any. When I was a player, when I had a lot of time on my hands, I got down to an eight handicap. But when I was manager, I went back to 12. I've just taken up tennis and have to say I'm not very good." [Read more: http://www.metro.co.uk/showbiz/interviews/691-george-graham#ixzz1OR4mTb2m]
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||rowspan="3"|Chelsea
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||rowspan="7"|Arsenal
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||37||11||||||||||||||||
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|1971–72
||40||8||||||||||||||||
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||16||3||||||||||||||||
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||rowspan="3"|Manchester United
||rowspan="2"|First Division
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|1973–74
||24||1||||||||||||||||
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|1974–75
||Second Division
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||rowspan="3"|Portsmouth
||rowspan="2"|Second Division
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|1976–77
||Third Division
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|1976–77
||rowspan="2"|Crystal Palace
||Third Division
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|1977–78
||Second Division
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Arsenal
Winner:
With Arsenal
Winner:
Runner-up:
With Tottenham Hotspur
Winner:
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
former football player and manager
Coach (sport)
In sports, a coach is an individual involved in the direction, instruction and training of the operations of a sports team or of individual sportspeople.-Staff:...
. He is best remembered for his success at Arsenal
Arsenal F.C.
Arsenal Football Club is a professional English Premier League football club based in North London. One of the most successful clubs in English football, it has won 13 First Division and Premier League titles and 10 FA Cups...
, as a player in the 1970s and then as manager from 1986 until 1995.
Early life
The youngest of seven children, Graham grew up in poverty in BargeddieBargeddie
Bargeddie is a village in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, just outside the suburban fringe of Glasgow, east of the city centre, and close to the junction of the M73 and M8 motorways. The nearest major town is Coatbridge, to the east...
, near Coatbridge
Coatbridge
Coatbridge is a town in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, about east of Glasgow city centre, set in the central Lowlands. The town, with neighbouring Airdrie, is part of the Greater Glasgow urban area. The first settlement of the area stretches back to the Stone Age era...
. He was raised by his mother, Janet, after his father, Robert Young Graham, died of tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
and heart failure on Christmas Day 1944, when George was not yet a month old. His elder sister also died of Tuberculosis at the age of 19, in 1951. When growing up, Graham showed considerable promise as a footballer, and Newcastle United
Newcastle United F.C.
Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End and Newcastle West End, and has played at its current home ground, St James' Park, since the merger...
, Chelsea
Chelsea F.C.
Chelsea Football Club are an English football club based in West London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Chelsea have been English champions four times, FA Cup winners six times and League Cup winners four...
and Aston Villa
Aston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...
displayed an interest in the young Graham.
Playing career
Despite being Scottish, Graham played exclusively in EnglandEngland
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. He signed for Aston Villa
Aston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...
in 1961, on his 17th birthday. He spent three seasons at the Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
club, but only made eight appearances – though one of them was the club's 1963
1963 Football League Cup Final
The 1963 Football League Cup Final, the third to be staged since the competition's inception, was contested between local rivals Birmingham City and Aston Villa over two legs. Aston Villa had won the inaugural competition in 1960–61, and had beaten Birmingham 4–0 in their most recent...
League Cup
Football League Cup
The Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
final loss to Birmingham City
Birmingham City F.C.
Birmingham City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, they became Small Heath in 1888, then Birmingham in 1905, finally becoming Birmingham City in 1943.They were relegated at the end of the...
. Chelsea
Chelsea F.C.
Chelsea Football Club are an English football club based in West London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Chelsea have been English champions four times, FA Cup winners six times and League Cup winners four...
signed him in July 1964 for £5000. Graham scored 35 goals in 72 league games for the club and won a League Cup medal in 1965 but he, along with several other Chelsea players, increasingly clashed with their volatile manager Tommy Docherty
Tommy Docherty
Thomas Henderson "Tommy" Docherty , commonly known as "The Doc", is a Scottish former footballer and football manager.-Playing career:...
. This culminated in Graham and seven others being sent home and disciplined by Docherty for breaking a pre-match curfew
Curfew
A curfew is an order specifying a time after which certain regulations apply. Examples:# An order by a government for certain persons to return home daily before a certain time...
in 1965.
Bertie Mee
Bertie Mee
Bertram "Bertie" Mee OBE was an English football player and manager, noted for managing Arsenal to their first Double win in 1971. He was the younger brother of fellow footballer Georgie Mee.-Early life:...
's Arsenal
Arsenal F.C.
Arsenal Football Club is a professional English Premier League football club based in North London. One of the most successful clubs in English football, it has won 13 First Division and Premier League titles and 10 FA Cups...
were looking for a replacement for Joe Baker
Joe Baker
Joseph Henry "Joe" Baker was an England international footballer. Born in Liverpool, England, he spent virtually his entire childhood growing up in Motherwell, Scotland...
, and paid £75,000 plus Tommy Baldwin
Tommy Baldwin
Thomas "Tommy" Baldwin is an English former footballer who played in the Football League for Arsenal, Chelsea, Millwall, Manchester United and Brentford. He was capped twice by England at under-23 level....
in 1966 to bring him to Highbury
Arsenal Stadium
Arsenal Stadium was a football stadium in Highbury, North London, which was the home ground of Arsenal Football Club between 6 September 1913 and 7 May 2006...
. He made his debut on 1 October 1966 at home to Leicester City
Leicester City F.C.
Leicester City Football Club , also known as The Foxes, is an English professional football club based at the King Power Stadium in Leicester...
, and although the result was a 4–2 defeat he immediately became a regular in the Arsenal side. He was Arsenal's top scorer in both 1966–67
1966-67 in English football
The 1966–67 season was the 87th season of competitive football in England.-Events:Queens Park Rangers won the Football League Cup on the first occasion it was played at Wembley, coming from 2-0 down at half-time to beat West Bromwich Albion 3-2....
and 1967–68
1967-68 in English football
The 1967–68 season was the 88th season of competitive football in England.-Honours:Notes = Number in parentheses is the times that club has won that honour. * indicates new record for competition-FA Cup:...
, having started out as a centre forward for the club, but later moved to inside forward
Inside forward
In football, the position of inside forward was popularly used in the late nineteenth and first half of the 20th centuries. The inside forwards would support the centre forwards, running and making space in the opposition defence, and, as the passing game developed, supporting him with passes...
with John Radford
John Radford
For the Canadian broadcaster see John Radford John Radford is a former English football player....
moving from the wing to up front.
With Arsenal, Graham was a runner-up in both the 1968
1968 Football League Cup Final
The 1968 Football League Cup Final took place on 2 March 1968 at Wembley Stadium. It was the eighth final and the second to be played at Wembley. It was contested between Arsenal and Leeds United....
and 1969
1969 Football League Cup Final
The 1969 Football League Cup Final took place on 15 March 1969 at Wembley Stadium. It was the ninth final and the third to be played at Wembley. It was contested between Arsenal and Swindon Town.-Pre-match:...
League Cup finals, before finally winning a medal with the 1969–70
Inter-Cities Fairs Cup
The Inter-Cities Fairs Cup was a European football competition played between 1955 and 1971. The competition was the idea of Swiss pools supremo Ernst Thommen, Ottorino Barassi from Italy, and the English Football Association general secretary Stanley Rous, all of whom later became senior officials...
Inter-Cities Fairs Cup
Inter-Cities Fairs Cup
The Inter-Cities Fairs Cup was a European football competition played between 1955 and 1971. The competition was the idea of Swiss pools supremo Ernst Thommen, Ottorino Barassi from Italy, and the English Football Association general secretary Stanley Rous, all of whom later became senior officials...
. He followed it up with being an integral part of Arsenal's Double
The Double
The Double is a term in association football which refers to winning a country's top tier division and its primary cup competition in the same season...
-winning side of 1970–71
1970-71 in English football
The 1970–71 season was the 91st season of competitive football in England.-First Division:Arsenal won the league championship at the end of a season which would soon be followed by their FA Cup final tie with Liverpool. Arsenal secured the league title at White Hart Lane, the home of bitter rivals...
, and even had a claim to scoring Arsenal's equaliser in the FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
Final
1971 FA Cup Final
In the finale to the 1970-71 FA Cup season, the 1971 FA Cup Final was contested by Arsenal and Liverpool at Wembley on the 8 May 1971.Arsenal won 2–1 after extra time, with all three goals coming in the added half hour. Steve Heighway opened the scoring for Liverpool with a low drive past...
against Liverpool
Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups...
, although Eddie Kelly
Eddie Kelly
Edward Patrick "Eddie" Kelly is a Scottish former football player.Kelly played for local side Possilpark, before moving south to join English club Arsenal as an apprentice in July 1966; he turned professional 18 months later...
is officially credited with the goal.
Winning the Double brought the attention of Scotland
Scotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...
and Graham was selected for the national side for the first time against Portugal
Portugal national football team
The Portugal national football team represents Portugal in association football and is controlled by the Portuguese Football Federation, the governing body for football in Portugal. Portugal's home ground is Estádio Nacional in Oeiras, and their head coach is Paulo Bento...
on 13 October 1971. He would go on to win twelve caps over the next two years for Scotland, scoring three goals, his final one coming against Brazil
Brazil national football team
The Brazil national football team represents Brazil in international men's football and is controlled by the Brazilian Football Confederation , the governing body for football in Brazil. They are a member of the International Federation of Association Football since 1923 and also a member of the...
on 30 June 1973. By then, however, Graham was no longer an Arsenal player.
The arrival of Alan Ball
Alan Ball (footballer)
Alan James Ball, Jr., MBE was a professional English footballer and football club manager.He was the youngest member of England's 1966 World Cup winning team and played for various clubs, scoring more than 180 league goals in a career spanning 22 years...
midway through 1971–72
1971-72 in English football
The 1971–72 season was the 92nd season of competitive football in England.-FA Cup:Leeds United overcame holders Arsenal to win the 1972 FA Cup Final...
had made his place in the Arsenal side less assured and he therefore moved for £120,000 to Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
in December 1972. In total, he played 308 matches for Arsenal, scoring 77 goals. He spent two years at United, and was relegated to Division Two
Football League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
, before seeing out his career in England at Portsmouth
Portsmouth F.C.
Portsmouth Football Club is an English football club based in the city of Portsmouth. The club is nicknamed Pompey. Portsmouth's home matches have been played at Fratton Park since the club's formation in 1898. The team currently play in the Football League Championship after being relegated from...
and Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace F.C.
Crystal Palace Football Club are an English Football league club based in South Norwood, London. The team plays its home matches at Selhurst Park, where they have been based since 1924. The club currently competes in the second tier of English Football, The Championship.Crystal Palace was formed in...
. He played the summer of 1978 in America for the California Surf
California Surf
The California Surf were a soccer club based in Anaheim, California who played in the North American Soccer League from 1978 to 1981. Their home field was Anaheim Stadium.They originally were the St. Louis Stars...
.
Millwall
After retiring from playing, he became a coach at Crystal PalaceCrystal Palace F.C.
Crystal Palace Football Club are an English Football league club based in South Norwood, London. The team plays its home matches at Selhurst Park, where they have been based since 1924. The club currently competes in the second tier of English Football, The Championship.Crystal Palace was formed in...
and then later Queens Park Rangers
Queens Park Rangers F.C.
Queens Park Rangers Football Club is an English professional football club, based in White City, Hammersmith and Fulham, west London. As the 2010-11 Football League Championship champions, they now play in the top tier of English football the Premier League, for the first time in 15 years...
. On 6 December 1982 Graham was appointed manager of Millwall
Millwall F.C.
Millwall Football Club is an English professional football club based in South Bermondsey, south east London, that plays in the Football League Championship, the second tier of English football. Founded as Millwall Rovers in 1885, the club has retained its name despite having last played in the...
, who were then bottom of the old Third Division
Football League Third Division
The Football League Third Division was the 3 tier of English Football from 1920 until 1992 when after the formation of the Football Association Premier League saw the league renamed The Football League Division Two...
. Graham turned the side around in a short space of time—they avoided relegation that season and in 1984–85
1984-85 in English football
The 1984–85 season was the 105th season of competitive football in England.-Bradford City disaster:56 spectators died and more than 200 were injured when a fire ripped through the Main Stand at Valley Parade during Bradford City's Third Division fixture with Lincoln City on 11 May...
they were promoted to the old Second Division
Football League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
. After he left the club in 1986, they went on to win the Second Division and win promotion to the First in 1987–88
1987-88 in English football
The 1987–88 season was the 120th season of competitive football in England.- First Division :Liverpool won the league title with a comfortable nine-point margin and just two defeats all season....
.
Arsenal
Graham's achievements at Millwall attracted attention from bigger clubs, and with the dismissal of Don Howe as Arsenal manager in March 1986, the Arsenal directors were interested in appointing Alex FergusonAlex Ferguson
Sir Alexander Chapman "Alex" Ferguson, CBE is a Scottish association football manager and former player, currently managing Manchester United, where he has been in charge since 1986...
, the Aberdeen
Aberdeen F.C.
Aberdeen Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Aberdeen...
manager, as their new manager with Graham as his assistant. However, Ferguson (then in temporary charge of the Scotland national football team
Scotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...
following the death of Jock Stein
Jock Stein
John 'Jock' Stein CBE was a Scottish association football player and manager. He became the first manager of a British side to win the European Cup, with Celtic in 1967...
the previous September) had decided to wait until after the World Cup
1986 FIFA World Cup
The 1986 FIFA World Cup, the 13th FIFA World Cup, was held in Mexico from 31 May to 29 June. The tournament was the second to feature a 24-team format. Colombia had been originally chosen to host the competition by FIFA but, largely due to economic reasons, was not able to do so and officially...
that summer before deciding on his future, and so the Arsenal directors appointed Graham as their new manager on 14 May 1986.
A month after arriving at Arsenal, Graham was linked with the job as manager of the Scotland
Scotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...
national team, but the job went to Andy Roxburgh
Andy Roxburgh
Andy Roxburgh is a former Scottish football player and coach. He has been UEFA Technical Director since 1994.- Playing career :...
instead.
Arsenal had not won a trophy since the FA Cup in 1978–79, and were drifting away from the top teams in the League. Graham cleared out much of the old guard and replaced them with new signings and players promoted from the youth team, while imposing much stricter discipline than his predecessors, both in the dressing room and on the pitch. Arsenal's form immediately improved, so much so that the club were top of the League at Christmas 1986, the club's centenary, for the first time in a decade.
Arsenal finished fourth in Graham's first season in charge, and they went on to win the 1987 League Cup
1987 Football League Cup Final
The 1987 Littlewoods Cup Final was a football match played on 5 April 1987 between Arsenal and Liverpool. The match, played in front of 96,000 spectators at Wembley Stadium, was won by Arsenal 2–1. Ian Rush opened the scoring for Liverpool, before Charlie Nicholas equalised, turning in a...
. While Arsenal lost the League Cup final the following year (a shock 3–2 defeat to Luton Town
Luton Town F.C.
Luton Town Football Club is an English professional football club based since 1905 at Kenilworth Road, Luton, Bedfordshire. The club currently competes in the fifth tier of English football, the Conference National, for the third consecutive season during the 2011–12 season.Formed in 1885, it was...
), their League form steadily improved. Graham's side featured tight defensive discipline, embodied by his young captain Tony Adams
Tony Adams (footballer)
Tony Alexander Adams, MBE is an English football manager and former player.Adams spent his entire playing career of 22 years as a defender at Arsenal. He is considered one of the greatest Arsenal players of all time by the club's own fans and was included in the Football League 100 Legends...
, who along with Lee Dixon
Lee Dixon
Lee Michael Dixon is a former English professional footballer born in Manchester.He formed part of the Arsenal defence from the late 1980s, through till 2002. He was capped 22 times for England, scoring once....
, Steve Bould
Steve Bould
Stephen Andrew Bould is an English former football player and current coach. He played professionally for Stoke City, Torquay United, Arsenal and Sunderland.-Stoke City:...
and Nigel Winterburn
Nigel Winterburn
Nigel Winterburn is a retired English footballer who played at left-back for Arsenal. He is best known for his role alongside Tony Adams, Martin Keown and Lee Dixon, forming a celebrated defensive line in the Premier League and European football during the 1990s.-Early career:Winterburn was born...
, formed the basis of the club's defence for over a decade. However, contrary to popular belief, during this time Graham's Arsenal were not a purely defensive side; Graham also employed capable midfielders such as David Rocastle, Michael Thomas and Paul Merson
Paul Merson
Paul Charles Merson is a retired English football player, and former player-manager of Walsall. His playing career has included spells at Arsenal, Middlesbrough, Aston Villa, Portsmouth and finishing his playing career at Tamworth. He also played for England 21 times...
, and striker Alan Smith
Alan M. Smith
Alan Martin Smith is an English former football striker. He played for Leicester City and Arsenal at professional level, and won thirteen caps for England.-Leicester City:...
, whose prolific goalscoring regularly brought him more than 20 goals per season.
At the end of Graham's third season (1988–89
1988-89 in English football
The 1988–89 season was the 109th season of competitive football in England.-Hillsborough disaster:On 15 April, a crowd crush at the FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest at Hillsborough killed 94 people and injured more than 300. A 95th Liverpool supporter died in hospital...
), the club won their first League title since 1971, in highly dramatic fashion, in the final game of the season
Liverpool 0–2 Arsenal (26 May 1989)
The final match of the 1988–89 English Football League season was contested on 26 May 1989, between Liverpool and Arsenal, at Liverpool's Anfield ground. By sheer coincidence, it was the match between the top two teams in the First Division and the teams were close enough on points for the match to...
against Liverpool at Anfield
Anfield
Anfield is an association football stadium in the district of Anfield, Liverpool, England, with a seating capacity of 45,522. It has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since their formation in 1892 and was originally the home of Everton F.C. from 1884 to 1892, before they moved to Goodison Park...
; Arsenal needed to win by two goals to take the title; Alan Smith scored for Arsenal early in the second half to make it 1–0, but as time ticked by Arsenal struggled to get a second, and with 90 minutes gone on the clock, Arsenal still needed another goal. With only seconds to go, a Smith flick-on found Michael Thomas surging through the Liverpool defence; the young midfielder calmly lifted the ball over Bruce Grobbelaar
Bruce Grobbelaar
Bruce David Grobbelaar is a former football goalkeeper and manager.He played for a number of clubs in a career which spanned for more than 20 years at professional level, most notably Liverpool during their dominant period in the 1980s and early 1990s.-Early years:In his teenage years, Grobbelaar...
and into the net, and Arsenal were League Champions.
Unable to retain the league title the following season, Graham signed goalkeeper David Seaman
David Seaman
David Andrew Seaman MBE is a former English football goalkeeper who played for several clubs, most notably Arsenal. He retired from the game on 13 January 2004, following a recurring shoulder injury...
and Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
winger Anders Limpar
Anders Limpar
Anders Erik Limpar is a Swedish former footballer of Hungarian origin, who played as a winger...
in the close season; both players proved vital as Arsenal won a second title in 1990–91
1990-91 in English football
The 1990–91 season was the 111th season of competitive football in England.- First Division :Arsenal won the league. Runners-up spot was achieved by Liverpool, who had led the table for much of the first half of the season but had been shell-shocked in February by the sudden resignation of manager...
and reached the FA Cup semi-finals, losing to arch-rivals Tottenham Hotspur.
Arsenal had finished ahead of runners-up Liverpool
Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups...
in the race for the league title that season, and in February of that season Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish
Kenny Dalglish
Kenneth Mathieson "Kenny" Dalglish MBE is a Scottish former footballer and the current manager of Liverpool F.C.. In a 22-year playing career, he played for two club teams, Celtic and Liverpool, winning numerous honours with both. He is the most capped Scottish player, with 102 appearances, and...
had suddenly announced his resignation as manager – and Graham's name was among those mentioned by the media as a possible successor to Dalglish. However, Graham was quick to rule himself out of the running, and the job went to Graeme Souness
Graeme Souness
Graeme James Souness is a Scottish former professional football player and manager.Souness was the captain of the successful Liverpool team of the early 1980s and player-manager of Rangers in the late 1980s as well as captain of the Scottish national team. He also played for Tottenham Hotspur,...
instead.
Graham went on to sign striker and eventual second all-time top scorer Ian Wright
Ian Wright
Ian Edward Wright, MBE is a retired English footballer turned television and radio personality.Wright enjoyed success with London clubs Crystal Palace and Arsenal, spending six years with the former and seven years with the latter. With Arsenal he has lifted the Premier League title and both major...
from Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace F.C.
Crystal Palace Football Club are an English Football league club based in South Norwood, London. The team plays its home matches at Selhurst Park, where they have been based since 1924. The club currently competes in the second tier of English Football, The Championship.Crystal Palace was formed in...
in October, and the club's first entry in the European Cup since 1971–72. The European venture went badly; Arsenal were knocked out by S.L. Benfica in the second round and failed to make the lucrative group stage. The season went from bad to worse when the Gunners were knocked out of the FA Cup by lowly Wrexham, though Arsenal recovered to finish fourth in the League.
After this season, Graham changed his tactics; he became more defensive and turned out far less attack-minded sides, which depended mainly on goals from Wright rather than the whole team. Between 1986–87
1986-87 in English football
The 1986–87 season was the 107th season of competitive football in England.- First Division :The First Division championship went to Everton in their final season under the management of Howard Kendall before his departure to Athletic Bilbao. His side overcame a spate of injuries to fight off...
and 1991–92
1991-92 in English football
- First Division :The last-ever league championship before the creation of the Premier League was won by Leeds United who overhauled Manchester United thanks to the efforts of, among others, Gordon Strachan, Lee Chapman, David Batty, Gary Speed and Gary McAllister...
Arsenal averaged 66 League goals a season (scoring 81 in 1991–92), but between 1992–93
1992-93 in English football
The 1992–1993 season was the 113th season of competitive football in England.-Overview:This season saw the birth of the FA Premier League. This meant a break-up of the 104-year-old Football League that had operated until then with four divisions....
and 1994–95
1994-95 in English football
-Premiership:Blackburn Rovers ended their 81-year wait for the league title thanks to the strike partnership of Alan Shearer and Chris Sutton which scored a total of more than 50 league goals. Manchester United would have made it three league titles in a row if they had been able to turn a 1-1 draw...
only averaged 48; this included just 40 in 1992–93, when the club finished 10th in the inaugural season of the FA Premier League
FA Premier League
The Premier League is an English professional league for association football clubs. At the top of the English football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with The Football League. The Premier...
, scoring fewer than any other team in the division.
Graham's Arsenal became Cup specialists, and in 1992–93 Arsenal became the first side to win the FA Cup and League Cup double, both times Arsenal beating Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield Wednesday F.C.
Sheffield Wednesday Football Club are a football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, who are currently competing in the Football League One in the 2011-12 season, in England. Sheffield Wednesday are one of the oldest professional clubs in the world and the fourth oldest in the...
, 2–1 in the League Cup Final
1993 Football League Cup Final
The 1993 Coca Cola Cup Final took place on 18 April 1993 at Wembley Stadium, and was played between Arsenal and Sheffield Wednesday. Arsenal won 2–1 in normal time, in what was the first of three Wembley finals between the two sides that season; Arsenal and Wednesday also met in the FA Cup...
and 2–1 after a replay in the FA Cup Final
1993 FA Cup Final
The 1993 FA Cup Final was contested by Arsenal and Sheffield Wednesday at Wembley. The original match, played on 15 May 1993 finished 1–1, with Arsenal winning the replay on 20 May; 2–1 after extra-time....
replay. The next season they continued in the same vein, winning the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup
The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a football club competition contested annually by the most recent winners of all European domestic cup competitions. The cup is one of the many inter-European club competitions that have been organised by UEFA. The first competition was held in the 1960–61 season—but...
, their second European trophy; in the final Arsenal beat favourites and holders Parma 1–0 with a tight defensive performance and Alan Smith's 21st minute goal from a left foot volley.
The 1994 Cup Winners' Cup proved to be George Graham's last trophy at the club; the following February he was sacked after nearly nine years in charge, after it was discovered he had accepted an illegal £425,000 payment from Norwegian agent Rune Hauge
Rune Hauge
Rune Hauge is a Norwegian football agent.In English football, Hauge is best known as the agent who represented John Jensen and Pål Lydersen during their transfers to Arsenal in the early 1990s. This would lead to Arsenal manager George Graham becoming embroiled in allegations that Hauge paid him a...
following Arsenal's 1992 acquisition of John Jensen and Pål Lydersen, two of Hauge's clients. Graham was eventually banned for a year by the Football Association for his involvement in the scandal, after he admitted he had received an "unsolicited gift" from Hauge.
Leeds United
After serving his ban, George Graham's return to football management came with Leeds United in September 1996. He took over a Leeds team that was struggling against relegation at the time and his first priority was the defence; although Leeds scored fewer goals than any other PremiershipFA Premier League
The Premier League is an English professional league for association football clubs. At the top of the English football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with The Football League. The Premier...
club (28) they still finished in a secure 13th place. Bringing in players such as Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink
Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink
Jerrel Hasselbaink usually known as Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink is a Dutch former football striker who played for various clubs in the Netherlands, Portugal, England, and Spain, as well as the Dutch national team. He scored more than 200 career goals...
in the close season, 1997–98
1997-98 in English football
The 1997-1998 season was the 118th season of competitive football in England.-Premier League:Arsenal overhauled Manchester United's lead during the final weeks of the season to win the Premiership title...
saw Leeds score twice as many goals as the previous season finish fifth in the Premiership and secure UEFA Cup
UEFA Cup
The UEFA Europa League is an annual association football cup competition organised by UEFA since 1971 for eligible European football clubs. It is the second most prestigious European club football contest after the UEFA Champions League...
qualification.
Tottenham Hotspur
In October 1998 Graham's two-year spell as Leeds manager came to an end when he was appointed manager of Tottenham HotspurTottenham Hotspur F.C.
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club , commonly referred to as Spurs, is an English Premier League football club based in Tottenham, north London. The club's home stadium is White Hart Lane....
. Just five months after taking charge he guided the club to victory over Leicester City
Leicester City F.C.
Leicester City Football Club , also known as The Foxes, is an English professional football club based at the King Power Stadium in Leicester...
in the 1999 League Cup Final
1999 Football League Cup Final
The 1999 Worthington Cup Final was played between Tottenham Hotspur and Leicester City, at Wembley on Sunday 21 March 1999. Tottenham won the game, and their third League Cup, with an injury-time diving header from Allan Nielsen...
, and with it a place in the 1999–2000 UEFA Cup
UEFA Cup 1999-00
The UEFA Cup 1999-2000 season was won by Galatasaray of Turkey, who defeated Arsenal of England in the final. The game was scoreless through the first ninety minutes and stayed that way through thirty minutes of extra time. The game went on to penalty kicks in which Gheorghe Popescu, the Romanian...
. He was sacked on 15 March 2001, soon after the club had been purchased by ENIC
ENIC Group
ENIC International Ltd is a British investment company ultimately controlled and owned by Joseph Lewis .Focused on sports, media and investment, the group is chaired by Daniel Levy....
, for alleged breach of contract. The club stated that Graham had been issued "several written warnings prior to his sacking for giving out what was deemed by the club as being private information" before, earlier that week, apparently informing the media he had "a limited budget" for new players and expressing his disappointment with it. This led to his being summoned to a meeting with Spurs executive vice-chairman David Buchler, after which he was dismissed. Buchler subsequently questioned whether Graham had the interests of the club at heart and described his conduct in the meeting as "aggressive and defiant". Graham's legal representatives issued a statement expressing he was "shocked and upset to have been sacked and could not believe such a flimsy excuse was given". It went on to say that Graham "believes ENIC always intended to sack him."
Despite guiding the club to its first trophy in eight seasons, Graham could not achieve a finish higher than tenth in the Premiership and remained unpopular with a large section of the supporters, because of his previous role at Arsenal, Tottenham's most bitter rivals.
Since 2001
He has been out of management ever since, concentrating on his career as a football pundit for Sky SportsSky Sports
Sky Sports is the brand name for a group of sports-oriented television channels operated by the UK and Ireland's main satellite pay-TV company, British Sky Broadcasting. Sky Sports is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland...
.
However, he was linked with several managerial vacancies after leaving Tottenham. In October 2001, following the dismissal of Peter Taylor at Leicester City
Leicester City F.C.
Leicester City Football Club , also known as The Foxes, is an English professional football club based at the King Power Stadium in Leicester...
, he was linked with that vacancy, but it was filled by Dave Bassett
Dave Bassett
David Bassett , also frequently known by his nickname of Harry, is an English football manager and a former player....
instead.
The following season
2002-03 in English football
The 2002-03 season was the 123rd season of competitive football in England.-Most Memorable rise:*Wigan Athletic marked their 25th season of Football League membership by winning the Division Two championship and reaching the league's second tier for the very first time.-Most Memorable...
, with Glenn Roeder
Glenn Roeder
Glenn Victor Roeder is an English football manager and former player, most recently in charge at Norwich City. As a player, Roeder represented England B on 7 occasions...
under fire at the helm of a West Ham United
West Ham United F.C.
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London. They play in The Football League Championship. The club was founded in 1895 as Thames Ironworks FC and reformed in 1900 as West Ham United. In 1904 the club relocated to their current...
side heading for Premier League relegation, Graham's name was mentioned as a possible replacement, but Roeder actually lasted until the opening weeks of the 2003–04 season
2003-04 in English football
The 2003-04 season was the 124th season of competitive football in England.-Overview:Arsenal completed the entire campaign without losing a single league game....
and this time there was little mention of Graham's name in the hunt for a successor, which ended with the appointment of Alan Pardew
Alan Pardew
Alan Scott Pardew is an English football manager and former player, currently the manager of Newcastle United....
. In the 2003 close season, the resignation of Graham Taylor at Aston Villa
Aston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...
saw Graham's name mentioned by the media as a possible successor, but again nothing came of it, with this vacancy being filled by David O'Leary
David O'Leary
David Anthony O'Leary is an Irish football manager and former player. His managerial career began at Leeds United and later he managed Aston Villa. He most recently worked as the manager of Al-Ahli Dubai...
, who had played under Graham at Arsenal and worked as his assistant at Leeds. He and O'Leary had both been mentioned as candidates for the job at Sunderland
Sunderland A.F.C.
Sunderland Association Football Club is an English association football club based in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear who currently play in the Premier League...
twice during the 2002–03 season following the departure of Peter Reid
Peter Reid
Peter Reid is an English football manager, pundit and retired player, who is currently without a club since his departure from Plymouth Argyle.A defensive midfielder in his playing days, Reid enjoyed a long and successful career...
in October and Howard Wilkinson
Howard Wilkinson
Howard Wilkinson is a former English football player and manager, and has recently stepped down as a Non-Executive Director at Sheffield Wednesday after formerly relinquishing the chairman role to Milan Mandaric...
in March.
Graham has revealed that he suffers from arthritis. "I love my golf but because of my arthritis, I've not played much in the last two years, if any. When I was a player, when I had a lot of time on my hands, I got down to an eight handicap. But when I was manager, I went back to 12. I've just taken up tennis and have to say I'm not very good." [Read more: http://www.metro.co.uk/showbiz/interviews/691-george-graham#ixzz1OR4mTb2m]
Career statistics
|-|1961–62
The Football League 1961-62
-Overview:The 1961–1962 season was the 63rd completed season of The Football League.-Final league tables :The tables below are reproduced here in the exact form that they can be found at website and in Rothmans Book of Football League Records 1888–89 to 1978–79, with home and away statistics...
||rowspan="3"|Aston Villa
Aston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...
||rowspan="3"|First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
||0||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1962–63
The Football League 1962-63
-Overview:The 1962–1963 season was the 64th completed season of The Football League.-Final league tables :The tables below are reproduced here in the exact form that they can be found at website and in Rothmans Book of Football League Records 1888–89 to 1978–79, with home and away statistics...
||2||1||||||||||||||||
|-
|1963–64
The Football League 1963-64
-Overview:The 1963–1964 season was the 64th completed season of The Football League.-Final league tables :The tables below are reproduced here in the exact form that they can be found at website and in Rothmans Book of Football League Records 1888–89 to 1978–79, with home and away statistics...
||6||1||||||||||||||||
|-
|1964–65
The Football League 1964-65
-Overview:The 1964–1965 season was the 65th completed season of The Football League.-Final league tables :The tables below are reproduced here in the exact form that they can be found at website and in Rothmans Book of Football League Records 1888–89 to 1978–79, with home and away statistics...
||rowspan="3"|Chelsea
Chelsea F.C.
Chelsea Football Club are an English football club based in West London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Chelsea have been English champions four times, FA Cup winners six times and League Cup winners four...
||rowspan="3"|First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
||30||17||||||||||||||||
|-
|1965–66
The Football League 1965-66
-Overview:The 1965–1966 season was the 66th completed season of The Football League.This season is notable for Liverpool winning the title with only 14 squad players.-Final league tables :...
||33||17||||||||||||||||
|-
|1966–67
The Football League 1966-67
-Overview:The 1966–1967 season was the 67th completed season of The Football League.-Final league tables :The tables below are reproduced here in the exact form that they can be found at website and in Rothmans Book of Football League Records 1888–89 to 1978–79, with home and away statistics...
||9||1||||||||||||||||
|-
|1966–67
The Football League 1966-67
-Overview:The 1966–1967 season was the 67th completed season of The Football League.-Final league tables :The tables below are reproduced here in the exact form that they can be found at website and in Rothmans Book of Football League Records 1888–89 to 1978–79, with home and away statistics...
||rowspan="7"|Arsenal
Arsenal F.C.
Arsenal Football Club is a professional English Premier League football club based in North London. One of the most successful clubs in English football, it has won 13 First Division and Premier League titles and 10 FA Cups...
||rowspan="7"|First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
||33||11||||||||||||||||
|-
|1967–68
The Football League 1967-68
-Overview:The 1967–1968 season was the 68th completed season of The Football League.- First Division :For the first time since 1937 Manchester City won the league title, finishing two points clear of their local rivals Manchester United. Fulham finished bottom of the league and were relegated along...
||38||16||||||||||||||||
|-
|1968–69
The Football League 1968-69
-Overview:The 1968–1969 season was the 69th completed season of The Football League.- First Division :Leeds United won the League for the first time in their history, finishing six points ahead of Liverpool...
||26||4||||||||||||||||
|-
|1969–70
The Football League 1969-70
The 1969–1970 season was the 70th completed season of The Football League.Everton won their seventh title, finishing nine points clear of Leeds United with Chelsea in third and newly promoted Derby County in fourth. Sheffield Wednesday and Sunderland were both relegated.Huddersfield Town claimed...
||36||7||||||||||||||||
|-
|1970–71
The Football League 1970-71
-Overview:The 1970–1971 season was the 71st completed season of The Football League.-First Division:Arsenal won the league championship at the home of their bitter rivals, Tottenham Hotspur, with Ray Kennedy scoring the winner. This would soon be followed by their FA Cup final tie with Liverpool...
||37||11||||||||||||||||
|-
|1971–72
The Football League 1971-72
-Overview:The 1971–1972 season was the 72nd completed season of The Football League.-First Division:Brian Clough, 37, won the first major trophy of his managerial career by guiding Derby County to their first ever league championship. They overcame Leeds United to win a four-horse race also...
||40||8||||||||||||||||
|-
|1972–73
The Football League 1972-73
-Overview:The 1972–1973 season was the 73rd completed season of The Football League.-First Division:Liverpool cruised to another championship triumph in Bill Shankly's penultimate season as manager despite competition from Arsenal, Leeds United, Ipswich Town and Wolverhampton Wanderers.Manchester...
||16||3||||||||||||||||
|-
|1972–73
The Football League 1972-73
-Overview:The 1972–1973 season was the 73rd completed season of The Football League.-First Division:Liverpool cruised to another championship triumph in Bill Shankly's penultimate season as manager despite competition from Arsenal, Leeds United, Ipswich Town and Wolverhampton Wanderers.Manchester...
||rowspan="3"|Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
||rowspan="2"|First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
||18||1||||||||||||||||
|-
|1973–74
The Football League 1973-74
-Overview:The 1973–1974 season was the 74th completed season of The Football League.-First Division:Don Revie marked his last season as Leeds United's manager by guiding them to league championship glory, before taking over from Sir Alf Ramsey as the England national football team manager, with...
||24||1||||||||||||||||
|-
|1974–75
The Football League 1974-75
-Overview:The 1974–1975 season was the 75th completed season of The Football League.-First Division:David Mackay guided Derby County to their second league title in four years having overcome strong competition from Liverpool, Ipswich Town, Everton, Stoke City, Sheffield United and Middlesbrough in...
||Second Division
Football League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
||1||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1974–75
The Football League 1974-75
-Overview:The 1974–1975 season was the 75th completed season of The Football League.-First Division:David Mackay guided Derby County to their second league title in four years having overcome strong competition from Liverpool, Ipswich Town, Everton, Stoke City, Sheffield United and Middlesbrough in...
||rowspan="3"|Portsmouth
Portsmouth F.C.
Portsmouth Football Club is an English football club based in the city of Portsmouth. The club is nicknamed Pompey. Portsmouth's home matches have been played at Fratton Park since the club's formation in 1898. The team currently play in the Football League Championship after being relegated from...
||rowspan="2"|Second Division
Football League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
||19||3||||||||||||||||
|-
|1975–76
The Football League 1975-76
-Overview:The 1975–1976 season was the 76th completed season of The Football League.-First Division:Liverpool won their first major trophy under Bob Paisley by narrowly winning the league title after heated competition from Queens Park Rangers. They also lifted the UEFA Cup for the second time in...
||39||2||||||||||||||||
|-
|1976–77
The Football League 1976-77
-Overview:The 1976–1977 season was the 77th completed season of The Football League.As of this season, goal difference was used to separate the clubs finishing level on points. The earlier system, used from the season 1894–95 until the 1975–76 had been the so-called goal average , or more properly...
||Third Division
Football League Third Division
The Football League Third Division was the 3 tier of English Football from 1920 until 1992 when after the formation of the Football Association Premier League saw the league renamed The Football League Division Two...
||3||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1976–77
The Football League 1976-77
-Overview:The 1976–1977 season was the 77th completed season of The Football League.As of this season, goal difference was used to separate the clubs finishing level on points. The earlier system, used from the season 1894–95 until the 1975–76 had been the so-called goal average , or more properly...
||rowspan="2"|Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace F.C.
Crystal Palace Football Club are an English Football league club based in South Norwood, London. The team plays its home matches at Selhurst Park, where they have been based since 1924. The club currently competes in the second tier of English Football, The Championship.Crystal Palace was formed in...
||Third Division
Football League Third Division
The Football League Third Division was the 3 tier of English Football from 1920 until 1992 when after the formation of the Football Association Premier League saw the league renamed The Football League Division Two...
||23||2||||||||||||||||
|-
|1977–78
The Football League 1977-78
-Overview:The 1977–1978 season was the 78th completed season of The Football League.-First Division:Brian Clough's Nottingham Forest side took on the First Division by storm, by winning the League Cup on 22 March and confirming themselves as league champions the following month...
||Second Division
Football League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
||21||0||||||||||||||||
454||106||||||||||||||||
454||106||||||||||||||||
Performance by club
| Team | From | To | Record | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | W | L | D | Win % | |||
| Millwall FC | 6 December 1982 | 13 May 1986 |
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| Arsenal FC | 14 May 1986 | February 1995 |
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| Leeds United FC | September 1996 | October 1998 |
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| Tottenham Hotspur FC | October 1998 | March 2001 |
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| Total | |||||||
As a player
Chelsea- League CupFootball League CupThe Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
(1): 1964–651965 Football League Cup FinalThe 1965 Football League Cup Final, the fifth to be staged since the competition's inception, was contested between Leicester City and Chelsea over two legs. Leicester, the holders, were aiming to become the first side to retain the trophy while Chelsea were seeking to become the first London side...
Arsenal
- First DivisionFootball League First DivisionThe First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
(1): 1970–71 - FA CupFA CupThe Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
(1): 1970–711971 FA Cup FinalIn the finale to the 1970-71 FA Cup season, the 1971 FA Cup Final was contested by Arsenal and Liverpool at Wembley on the 8 May 1971.Arsenal won 2–1 after extra time, with all three goals coming in the added half hour. Steve Heighway opened the scoring for Liverpool with a low drive past... - Inter-Cities Fairs CupInter-Cities Fairs CupThe Inter-Cities Fairs Cup was a European football competition played between 1955 and 1971. The competition was the idea of Swiss pools supremo Ernst Thommen, Ottorino Barassi from Italy, and the English Football Association general secretary Stanley Rous, all of whom later became senior officials...
(1): 1969–701970 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup FinalThe 1970 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup Final was the final of the twelfth season of the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup. It was played on 22 April and 28 April 1970 between Anderlecht of Belgium and Arsenal of England. Arsenal won the tie 4–3 on aggregate; after trailing 3–1 in the first leg, Arsenal mounted a...
As a manager
With MillwallWinner:
- Football League Trophy (1): 1982–83
- Third DivisionFootball League Third DivisionThe Football League Third Division was the 3 tier of English Football from 1920 until 1992 when after the formation of the Football Association Premier League saw the league renamed The Football League Division Two...
promotion (1): 1984–85
With Arsenal
Winner:
- First DivisionFootball League First DivisionThe First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
(2): 1988–89, 1990–91 - FA CupFA CupThe Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
(1): 1992–931993 FA Cup FinalThe 1993 FA Cup Final was contested by Arsenal and Sheffield Wednesday at Wembley. The original match, played on 15 May 1993 finished 1–1, with Arsenal winning the replay on 20 May; 2–1 after extra-time.... - League CupFootball League CupThe Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
(2): 1986–871987 Football League Cup FinalThe 1987 Littlewoods Cup Final was a football match played on 5 April 1987 between Arsenal and Liverpool. The match, played in front of 96,000 spectators at Wembley Stadium, was won by Arsenal 2–1. Ian Rush opened the scoring for Liverpool, before Charlie Nicholas equalised, turning in a...
, 1992–931993 Football League Cup FinalThe 1993 Coca Cola Cup Final took place on 18 April 1993 at Wembley Stadium, and was played between Arsenal and Sheffield Wednesday. Arsenal won 2–1 in normal time, in what was the first of three Wembley finals between the two sides that season; Arsenal and Wednesday also met in the FA Cup... - FA Charity ShieldFA Community ShieldThe Football Association Community Shield is English football's annual match contested between the champions of the previous Premier League season and the holders of the FA Cup at Wembley Stadium. If the Premier League champions also won the FA Cup then the league runners-up provide the opposition...
(1): 1991 (shared) - UEFA Cup Winners' CupUEFA Cup Winners' CupThe UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a football club competition contested annually by the most recent winners of all European domestic cup competitions. The cup is one of the many inter-European club competitions that have been organised by UEFA. The first competition was held in the 1960–61 season—but...
(1): 1994
Runner-up:
- League CupFootball League CupThe Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
(1): 1987–881988 Football League Cup FinalThe 1988 Littlewoods Cup Final,took place at Wembley Stadium on 24 April 1988, and was contested between Luton Town and Arsenal. Luton won the match, thanks to goals from Danny Wilson and Brian Stein . Goals from Alan Smith and Martin Hayes had seen Arsenal lead 2-1 before a late comeback from Luton... - FA Charity ShieldFA Community ShieldThe Football Association Community Shield is English football's annual match contested between the champions of the previous Premier League season and the holders of the FA Cup at Wembley Stadium. If the Premier League champions also won the FA Cup then the league runners-up provide the opposition...
(2): 19891989 FA Charity ShieldThe 1989 FA Charity Shield was the 67th Charity Shield, a football match contested by the winners of the previous season's Football League and FA Cup competitions...
, 19931993 FA Charity ShieldThe 1993 FA Charity Shield was the 71st FA Charity Shield, an annual football match played between the winners of the previous season's Premier League and FA Cup competitions. The match was played on 7 August 1993 at Wembley Stadium and contested by Manchester United, who had won the 1992–93... - UEFA Super Cup (1): 1994
With Tottenham Hotspur
Winner:
- League CupFootball League CupThe Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
(1): 1998–991999 Football League Cup FinalThe 1999 Worthington Cup Final was played between Tottenham Hotspur and Leicester City, at Wembley on Sunday 21 March 1999. Tottenham won the game, and their third League Cup, with an injury-time diving header from Allan Nielsen...