.jpg) Mabbutt in 2009 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Gary Vincent Mabbutt[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1961-08-23)23 August 1961 (age 63)[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Bristol, England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Defender | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1978–1982 | Bristol Rovers | 131 | (10) |
| 1982–1998 | Tottenham Hotspur | 477 | (27) |
| Total | 608 | (37) | |
| International career | |||
| 1979–1980 | England Youth | 11 | (2) |
| 1982–1986 | England U21 | 7 | (2) |
| 1982–1992 | England | 16 | (1) |
| 1984–1992[2] | England B | 9 | (1) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Gary Vincent MabbuttMBE (born 23 August 1961) is an English formerfootballer who made more than 750 professional appearances, first playing forBristol Rovers and going on to play 619 games forTottenham Hotspur, despite being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at 17.[3] During his career he also won 16caps for theEngland national team.[4][5] He mostly played incentral defence but was a versatile player who excelled also inmidfield, winning both the1984 UEFA Cup and1991 FA Cup.
Mabbutt is best remembered for his 16-year spell atTottenham Hotspur, where he played from 1982 until 1998, and was the club captain for 11 years from 1987 to 1998.[6]
He became one of the best known defenders in English football in the 1980s, playing initially forBristol Rovers before joining the first division clubTottenham Hotspur, where he became captain and won 16caps forEngland, scoring against Yugoslavia in 1986.[2]
He scored on his Tottenham debut in a 2–2 draw withLuton Town atWhite Hart Lane. With Spurs, he won theUEFA Cup in 1984, and captained them to victory in the1991 FA Cup Final. In the1987 FA Cup Final againstCoventry City, Mabbutt had an eventful game where he scored Spurs' second goal to put them 2–1 up but, after Coventry had equalised to force extra time, he scored an own goal to give Coventry a 3–2 win. This incident led to him being held as something of a folk hero at Coventry City, with a fanzine being namedGary Mabbutt's Knee.[7][8][9]
Having sustained afractured skull andeye socket in November 1993 from Wimbledon strikerJohn Fashanu's elbow in an aerial challenge,[10] an injury after which he became the first player to wear a protective mask on the pitch even after a three-month absence,[11] he suffered a broken leg on the opening day of the1996–97 season and did not return until thefollowing campaign, at the end of which he retired from playing after 16 years atWhite Hart Lane. By this stage, he was the club's second longest-serving player. His final appearance for the club came against Southampton on the last day of the 1997–98 season.[12]
Mabbutt was born inBristol.[1] His father wasRay Mabbutt and his brother isKevin Mabbutt.[13]He is married to Kathy, and has two daughters.Mabbutt hastype 1 diabetes, and became an icon for many children with the condition. He famously appeared on theBBC's children's television programmeBlue Peter where he demonstrated injectinginsulin into an orange to show how he dealt with his condition on a daily basis.[14] In 2013, Mabbutt had surgery to save his left leg, following a bout ofperipheral arterial disease, brought on by his diabetes.[15] Following the surgery, he can no longer run or kick a ball.[15]
Mabbutt was appointed aMember of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the1994 New Year Honours for services to football.[16]Mabbutt was awarded an Hon. Master of Science degree from the University of Hertfordshire in 1998, an Hon. Doctor of Health degree from the University of Bath in 2018 and an Hon. Doctor of Law degree from the University of Bristol in 2019.He served as an ambassador for the2010 World Cup Finals in South Africa. He is also working with the DeloitteStreet Child World Cup, training and encouraging street children and ex-street children in football and for street children's rights in Durban, South Africa. This is run by theAmos Trust. He is currently a Global Club Ambassador for Tottenham Hotspur and the English Football Association, an Ambassador for the Prince's Trust and Hon. Vice-President of Diabetes UK.[17]
In 2018, Mabbutt had part of his foot eaten by a rat. While on holiday with his daughter in theKruger National Park, in South Africa, Mabbutt, who has little feeling in his feet due to diabetic neuropathy, awoke to find a rat had eaten part of his foot and had bitten one toe to the bone. He was forced to fly back to the UK for surgery and spent a week in hospital.[18]
Tottenham Hotspur
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