 Thomas playing a charity match forLiverpool in 2008 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Michael Lauriston Thomas[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1967-08-24)24 August 1967 (age 58)[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Lambeth,[1] London, England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)[2] | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1982–1984 | Arsenal | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1984–1991 | Arsenal | 163 | (24) |
| 1986 | →Portsmouth (loan) | 3 | (0) |
| 1991–1998 | Liverpool | 124 | (9) |
| 1998 | →Middlesbrough (loan) | 10 | (0) |
| 1998–1999 | Benfica | 18 | (1) |
| 1999 | Benfica B | 1 | (0) |
| 2000–2001 | Wimbledon | 8 | (0) |
| Total | 327 | (34) | |
| International career | |||
| 1984–1985 | England U17 | 8 | (0) |
| 1984–1986 | England Youth | 7 | (0) |
| 1985 | England U20 | 3 | (0) |
| 1987–1989 | England U21 | 12 | (3) |
| 1989–1992 | England B | 5 | (0) |
| 1988–1989 | England | 2 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Michael Lauriston Thomas (born 24 August 1967) is an English former professionalfootballer who played as amidfielder from 1986 to 2001.
During his time atArsenal, he scored alast-minute goal in injury time duringthe final match of the1988–89 season, which allowed the club to claim theFirst Division title overLiverpool. Two years later, Thomas joined Liverpool and scored the club's opening goal in a 2–0 win in the1992 FA Cup Final. He also had spells atBenfica andWimbledon before retiring in 2001, after a career that saw him win medals in all of English football's top three domestic football trophies. He was capped twice byEngland.
Michael now works as a pundit and media personality, writing a column for Just Arsenal, amongst other things.[3]
Thomas was born inLambeth,London. After growing up as aTottenham Hotspur fan,[4] he signed for rivals Arsenal as a schoolboy in 1982, turning professional on 31 December 1984 at the age of 17, just months after leaving school. He was loaned out toPortsmouth in early 1987, playing three times, before returning to Arsenal. His Gunners career started with a baptism of fire, as Thomas made his debut in the first leg of aLeague Cup semi-final againstTottenham Hotspur atHighbury on 8 February 1987.
Thomas soon became a regular in the Arsenal side, making his league debut in place of the suspendedViv Anderson on 14 February 1987 in a 1–1 draw withSheffield Wednesday atHillsborough. But, for his next appearance, he was drafted into midfield role atOxford United. The switch was a quick success, and Thomas extra versatility boosted his chances of a first team place. Just to prove his adaptability he stood in for injuredKenny Sansom and by the end of that campaign he had played 12 league games as Arsenal finished fourth and had aLeague Cup winners medal, coming on as a late substitute as Arsenal defeated Liverpool atWembley.[5]
In1987–88 season, Thomas missed only five league games. He started off as right back following Andersons departure, then switched to midfield for the League Cup semi-final first leg win atEverton in February, and kept that role the rest of the season and finished with 9 goals in the league (2 of them were penalties).Steve Williams February suspension was the perfect opportunity for Thomas to be shifted into central midfield in order to add more energy and dynamism to this area.[6][7] Arsenal reached theLeague Cup final again in April 1988, only to lose 3–2 toLuton Town, Thomas also wonArsenal Player of the Season.
The highlight of Thomas's Arsenal career came in the1988–89title decider, on 26 May 1989.[8] The First Division match between Liverpool and Arsenal at Anfield had been postponed due to theHillsborough Disaster, and as a result was moved to the very end of the season, after theFA Cup final. Liverpool had won the FA Cup, and thus had a chance of completing an historicdouble.[9] Arsenal had been top of the First Division table for most of the season, but Liverpool had overtaken them a few matches before the end of the campaign. Coming into the match, Arsenal were on 73 points with 71 goals for and 36 against (agoal difference of +35), while Liverpool were 3 points ahead on 76 points with 65 goals for and 26 against (a difference of +39).[9] That meant that Arsenal needed to win by at least two goals to take the title (with points and goal difference equal, the team who had scored the most goals would be awarded the title).[9] Liverpool had not lost by two goals atAnfield for nearly four years. After a goalless first half,Alan Smith scored soon after the restart, heading in afree kick fromNigel Winterburn. But as full-time approached it looked as if Arsenal were not going to score the second goal they needed. However, ininjury time, in Arsenal's last attack, Thomas surged forward from midfield, running onto a Smith flick-on, evaded a challenge bySteve Nicol, and chipped the advancing goalkeeperBruce Grobbelaar to score Arsenal's second and win the title, Arsenal's first in eighteen years.[10] The match was later featured in detail ina 1997 film based on theNick Hornby bookFever Pitch.[11] Thomas started in 33 league games in the title winning season, and scored 7 goals. He formed a brilliant midfield partnership withKevin Richardson. The goal is often considered one of the greatest moments in Arsenal's entire history.
In1989-90, Thomas only missed six league games, but because of an ankle injury against Tottenham Hotspur 20 January 1990, his form suffered. He was in the England squad, and among the substitutes, whenBrazil came to Wembley 28 March 1990, but the injury wrecked his chances of going to the World Cup Finals.[12][13]
In1990-91, Thomas played in 31 league games and was an important part of the League Championship winning side. Thomas dynamism in the centre of the park was the perfect combination toPaul Davis, strengthening Arsenal in the process. Thomas and Davis was one of the best central midfield partnerships Arsenal have ever had and each game they had played together, the bond became stronger. Such was their all-encompassing grasp on midfield. It was Thomas movement, stamina and ability to make runs on and off the ball that caused the damage. Seeing as he was constantly in motion, it meant that he was always pivotal in matches.[14][15]
David Rocastle, who was back from his injuries, was switched into central midfield. However, after playing in only ten league games in1991-92, Thomas lost his place to the more defensiveDavid Hillier. During the championship run-in Thomas appeared in theDaily Mirror, under the headline "My Highbury Hell", criticising Arsenal managerGeorge Graham.The Football Association took stern action and fined Thomas £3,000, and his relationship with Graham was beyond repair, reflected in a 1-0 loss in his final Arsenal match againstWest Ham United 2 November 1991 at Highbury.[16]
As a result, he was sold to Liverpool, with their managerGraeme Souness paying the Gunners £1.5 million for Thomas's services on 13 December 1991.[17][18] In all, Thomas played 206 matches, scoring 30 goals for Arsenal, and was named the 37th greatest player in the history of Arsenal in an online poll on the Arsenal website in June 2008.[19]
Thomas made his Liverpool debut five days after signing, on 18 December 1991. In a repeat of his Arsenal debut, his first match for Liverpool was against Tottenham Hotspur (though this time atWhite Hart Lane), coming on as a substitute forJan Mølby in the 56th minute of a 2–1 victory.
Thomas scored his first goal for the Reds on 18 January 1992 in league victory overOldham Athletic atBoundary Park. His first season at the club culminated with anFA Cup victory atWembley againstSunderland. After a goalless first 45, Thomas scored the opening goal of the final after 47 minutes with a spectacular shot from aSteve McManaman cross. An assist forIan Rush's second goal sealed Thomas' contribution for his first silverware with Liverpool. However, after that, injuries began to blight Thomas's time at Anfield. He became a squad player who was largely used as cover for the likes ofJamie Redknapp andJohn Barnes.
The1994–95 season saw Thomas claim his only other winner's medal during his time at Anfield, when the Reds won theLeague Cup final againstBolton Wanderers. Thomas was an unused substitute on the bench during that game, which saw McManaman scoring both the team's goals as Liverpool won 2–1. Thomas then helped Liverpool reach the 1996 FA Cup final, where he saw five minutes of action after coming on as an 85th-minute substitute forRob Jones. He couldn't help the Reds prevent a 1–0 defeat at the hands ofManchester United.1996–97 was a disappointing campaign for a Liverpool side who finished fourth in the Premier League after leading it during the winter, but Thomas re-emerged as a first team regular following the absence ofJamie Redknapp due to injury problems. However, when Redknapp was fully fit for the1997–98 season, Thomas found himself on the sidelines again.
An £800,000 bid fromCoventry City was accepted in early December 1997, but the transfer never happened.[20] On 2 February 1998, Thomas was allowed to go out on loan toMiddlesbrough, and made his debut two days later on 4 February in a 3–0 league win overTranmere Rovers at theRiverside Stadium. He played 10 times for the Boro before he returned to Anfield. By this time managerRoy Evans was fieldingØyvind Leonhardsen andDanny Murphy ahead of Thomas, which led to him being surplus to requirements at Anfield. Thomas's impression on the Anfield faithful during his time at the club was confirmed when he was voted in at No. 83 in100 Players Who Shook The Kop, a poll conducted by Liverpool FC's official website in 2006 with over 110,000 fans voting.
Portuguese sideBenfica, then managed by former Liverpool bossGraeme Souness, took Thomas to theEstádio da Luz on 1 August 1998, but his stay inLisbon was an unsuccessful one as he found himself banished to the reserves after Souness was replaced byJupp Heynckes. After two years with Benfica, he returned to England on 29 July 2000 to joinWimbledon, but after a single season in which he played nine times he retired from playing on 31 May 2001.
Thomas was first called up to theEngland squad under managerBobby Robson.
His debut came on 16 November 1988, at the age of 21, in the 1–1 friendly draw againstSaudi Arabia inRiyadh, thus becoming the first player in Arsenal's history to play at five different levels for his country.[21] Thomas made his second and final England senior appearance just over a year later, on 13 December 1989 in a 2–1 friendly win overYugoslavia.[4]
After retiring from football, Thomas set up his own security service. He plays for the Liverpool legends team and resides inLiverpool.[22]
In 2019, Thomas featured as a guest substitute player in series one of theITV showHarry's Heroes, which featured former football managerHarry Redknapp attempting get a squad of former England international footballers back fit and healthy for a game against Germany legends.[23]
Arsenal
Liverpool
Individual
General
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