Stan Collymore
He could have been the greatest striker of his generation
| Full name: | Stanley Victor Collymore |
|---|---|
| Date of birth: | January 22, 1971 |
| Clubs played for: | Crystal Palace, Southend, Nottingham Forest, Liverpool, Aston Villa, Fulham, Leicester, Bradford, Real Oviedo |
Club Career
Stan Collymore began his career at Crystal Palace, but it was at Southend where his incredible talent was first recognised. He continued that development after moving to Nottingham Forest and, after two years at the City Ground, Liverpool paid a British record £8.5million for him.
He scored at a rate of almost a goal every other game at Anfield, before Aston Villa broke their transfer record to sign him for £7million in 1997. Much was expected of the big striker, but poor form coupled with off-field problems meant he played just 46 league games in three years in the Midlands.
He then had brief spells at Leicester and Bradford - scoring on his debuts for both - before an ill-fated move to Spain signalled the end of a frustrating career.
Club Stats
| Years | Clubs | App | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990-92 | Crystal Palace | 20 | 1 |
| 1992-93 | Southend | 30 | 15 |
| 1993-95 | Nottingham Forest | 65 | 41 |
| 1995-97 | Liverpool | 63 | 28 |
| 1997-00 | Aston Villa | 46 | 7 |
| 1999 | Fulham (loan) | 6 | 0 |
| 2000 | Leicester | 11 | 5 |
| 2000-01 | Bradford | 7 | 2 |
| 2001 | Real Oviedo | 3 | 0 |
International Career
Terry Venables gave Collymore his first cap against Japan in 1995, starting him alongside Alan Shearer in the Umbro International at Wembley. A week later, he was used as a last-minute sub against Brazil in the same tournament, but his only other outing for England came in the 1997 World Cup qualifier, this time under Glenn Hoddle, in a 4-0 win over minnows Moldova.
International Career Stats
| Years | Clubs | App | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995-97 | England | 3 | 0 |
Key Games
Liverpool 4-3 Newcastle (Premier League, April 3, 1996)
Arguably the best Premier League game ever saw Liverpool twice come from behind to beat leaders Newcastle in an Anfield thriller. Robbie Fowler scored twice for the Reds, but goals from Les Ferdinand, David Ginola and Faustino Asprilla gave the Magpies the lead with 20 minutes remaining. Enter Collymore to steal the show as he scored twice - the second in the dying seconds - to seal a stunning last-gasp victory and have Kevin Keegan sagging over the advertising hoardings.
Aston Villa 2-1 Liverpool (Premier League, February 28, 1998)
The striker was on top form against his old club, firing a brace that sealed all three points. The hosts were trailing to a Michael Owen penalty before Collymore took control.
Leicester 5-2 Sunderland (Premier League, March 5, 2000)
After a goal drought lasting the best part of a year, Collymore found the net three times as Martin O'Neill's Foxes crushed Sunderland on a memorable afternoon at Filbert Street. Collymore opened the scoring after 17 minutes, and completed his hat-trick with further strikes in the 60th and 87th minutes. Leicester's other goals came from Emile Heskey (34) and Stefan Oakes (90).
Did You Know...?
In 2005, Collymore played the character Kevin Franks in the film Basic Instinct 2 alongside Sharon Stone. Spoiler alert: He dies in the first five minutes
The first footballer to really embrace social networking, Stan has 3,500 followers on Twitter
Collymore collaborated with US rapper Ice Cube on an album, but it was never released.
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