 | Thisbiography of a living personneeds additionalcitations forverification. Please help by addingreliable sources.Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced orpoorly sourcedmust be removed immediately from the article and its talk page, especially if potentiallylibelous. Find sources: "Steve Nicol" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(April 2007) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
.jpg) Nicol at the 2005 MLS SuperDraft | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Stephen Nicol[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1961-12-11)11 December 1961 (age 63) | ||
| Place of birth | Troon, Scotland | ||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)[2] | ||
| Position | Right back | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1970–1977 | Troon Thistle | ||
| 1977–1979 | Ayr United | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1979–1981 | Ayr United | 70 | (7) |
| 1981–1994 | Liverpool | 343 | (36) |
| 1994–1996 | Notts County | 32 | (2) |
| 1996–1998 | Sheffield Wednesday | 49 | (0) |
| 1998 | →West Bromwich Albion (loan) | 9 | (0) |
| 1998–1999 | Doncaster Rovers | 25 | (0) |
| 1999–2001 | Boston Bulldogs | 41 | (0) |
| Total | 569 | (45) | |
| International career | |||
| 1981–1984 | Scotland U-21 | 14 | (0) |
| 1984–1992 | Scotland | 27 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1995 | Notts County | ||
| 1999 | New England Revolution (interim) | ||
| 2000–2001 | Boston Bulldogs | ||
| 2002–2011 | New England Revolution | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Stephen Nicol (born 11 December 1961) is a Scottish retired professionalfootballer who mainly played as aright back and occasionally played in other positions across defence and midfield. He played for the successfulLiverpool teams of the 1980s. He was also a regular member of theScotland national team and represented his country at the1986 FIFA World Cup.
Nicol started his playing career with local clubAyr United, moving to Liverpool in 1981. He won fiveEnglish league championships, threeFA Cup winners medals, and the1984European Cup during 14 years with Liverpool. Nicol played for several other English teams after leaving Liverpool, includingNotts County,Sheffield Wednesday andDoncaster Rovers, before emigrating to the United States in 1999. He was most recently coach of theNew England Revolution and was the longest-tenured head coach inMLS to coach a single club. Nicol is now a commentator forESPN FC.
Nicol began his career with Troon Thistle at age 9, then joinedAyr United at age 16,[3] and started playing for the first team in 1979, where he spent just over two seasons with the Scottish side, racking up 70 league appearances, before Liverpool managerBob Paisley decided to pay what turned out to be a bargain price, £300,000, to bring Nicol toAnfield on 26 October 1981.
Nicol, who was signed byBob Paisley, had to wait almost an entire year to make his senior debut forLiverpool and two years for a regular first team place, arriving at the club halfway through a 20-year period of dominance.
He made hisReds debut on 31 August 1982 in a 0–0 league draw withBirmingham City atSt Andrew's and made a further three league appearances that season. The Reds finished as league champions for the 14th time, but Nicol did not make enough appearances to collect a title winner's medal.
Nicol became a regular in the1983–84 season under new bossJoe Fagan. He also scored his first goal for the club on 22 October 1983, in a 1–0 league victory overQueens Park Rangers atLoftus Road. He went on to win aLeague championship medal by the end of his first full season, having not appeared enough times the previous season to qualify for a medal. However, he was not picked for theLeague Cup final victory over fierceMerseyside derby rivalsEverton in the first-ever all-Merseyside final. He came on as a substitute forCraig Johnston in theEuropean Cup final againstRoma in theStadio Olimpico, Rome. After a 1–1 draw, the match went to apenalty shootout. Nicol missed his spot-kick, but Roma failed to score two of their penalties and Liverpool won the competition.
Nicol became a first-team regular for many subsequent seasons, winning the league championship andFA Cup "double" in 1986 under the guidance of Kenny Dalglish, pipping Everton to the title by just two points and then beating them 3–1 in the first-ever allMerseyside FA Cup final. He was also settling into an international career, which would ultimately yield 27 caps and a place in the1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico, withScotland. A versatile player, he played most often at right back following the departure ofPhil Neal in 1985, though he also featured at left back, in the centre of defence and as a midfield player. He even played up front on a couple of occasions. He earned the nickname 'Chopsy' because of how he pronounced the word 'chips'.
In the1987–88 season, he was in a good goal scoring form, despite playing in a position not naturally conducive to attacking. This form included a memorablehat-trick atNewcastle United and a phenomenal long-range header to win atArsenal on the opening day of the season.[4][5] Nicol's defensive qualities were also much admired as Liverpool coasted to the league title, but missed out on another "double" whenWimbledon surprisingly beat them 1–0 in theFA Cup final atWembley. Nicol was the last Liverpool player to have a chance to equalise and force extra-time, but his diving header in injury time flew narrowly over the crossbar.
A year later, Nicol played his part as Liverpool won theFA Cup against Everton, winning 3–2 after extra time, but lost theLeague title in adecider against Arsenal with virtually the last kick of the season. The campaign ended on a personal high for Nicol as he was namedFootballer of the Year by football writers.
Nicol accompanied his teammates to many of the funerals and memorial services of the 96 fans who died at theHillsborough disaster. Like many others in the Liverpool squad, Hillsborough was the second tragedy Nicol had witnessed. Four years earlier, just before the 1985 European Cup final at theHeysel Stadium,Brussels, Liverpool fans had charged a section of, mainly,Juventus supporters, causing a retaining wall to collapse, killing 39 people. As a result of the Heysel disaster, a five-year ban was placed on English clubs in European competitions, with Liverpool being banned for six years. Nicol would be one of the few players still with Liverpool when their ban from European competitions was finally lifted.
When Liverpool beatCrystal Palace9–0 during the 1989–90 season to accumulate the club's biggest-ever League victory, Nicol was the only player to score twice, getting the first and last goals of the game in the seventh and 90th minutes. Liverpool regained the league title that season – their last until2019–20 – and, two years later, Nicol was in the team which, underGraeme Souness, won theFA Cup again in 1992, this time beatingSunderland 2–0.
He remained a regular player for Liverpool until the start of the1994–95 season, when he was forced onto the sidelines with the arrival of new defendersPhil Babb andJohn Scales. His final appearance for the club was a League Cup tie againstBurnley in October 1994.[6]
In 13 years atAnfield, he had played a total of 343 league games and scored 36 goals. At the time of leaving, he was the club's most senior player in terms of unbroken service. AlthoughIan Rush had joined the club more than a year before Nicol, Rush's service had been disrupted by a year-long spell atJuventus.
Nicol stayed at Liverpool until 20 January 1995 when he took on a player-assistant coach role atNotts County after being recruited by County's formerEverton managerHoward Kendall. He stayed atMeadow Lane for just 10 months, playing 32 times. After Kendall was sacked, Nicol received his first taste of management when he took charge of the club with two other players for the final months of the Magpies' disastrous1994–95 campaign. But his efforts were not enough to save Notts County from relegation to Division Two.
Following the end of the season, Nicol next moved toSheffield Wednesday in November 1995, where he made his debut against former derby rivals Everton atGoodison Park on 25 November in a game which ended in a 2–2 draw. However, probably Nicol's best memory of his time atHillsborough happened on 7 December 1996 when his Wednesday side traveled to his old stomping ground of Anfield. TheSheffield side completely nullified the Liverpool attack, which contained the likes ofRobbie Fowler,Steve McManaman andJohn Barnes, and came away with a 1–0 victory with Nicol playing a major part in the Wednesday defence.
Nicol went on to make 49 league appearances before spending a spell on loan atWest Bromwich Albion during the1997–98 season where he played nine games. He then had a short spell withDoncaster Rovers before heading to the U.S. to take a player-coach position with theBoston Bulldogs of theA-League in 1999.
In September of that year, he took over as interim player-coach (he did not make any playing appearances[7]) with theNew England Revolution ofMajor League Soccer for the final two games of the season, winning both. He returned to the Boston Bulldogs as player-coach for the 2000 and 2001 seasons before re-joining the Revs in 2002 as an assistant coach.
Nicol was first capped at the senior level forScotland on 12 September 1984, soon after becoming a first-team regular for Liverpool.Jock Stein gave Nicol his international debut in a friendly withYugoslavia. His debut was a memorable one, as he helped Scotland beatYugoslavia 6–1 in a friendly atHampden Park in front of a crowd of 18,512. Helping Nicol settle in with the national team were club matesKenny Dalglish andcaptainGraeme Souness, who both scored. The last of his 27 full caps for Scotland came on 11 September 1991 in a 2–2 draw inSwitzerland during theEuro 92 qualifiers. He was in Scotland's squad for the1986 World Cup.[8]
Nicol's began his coaching career atNotts County F.C. as an assistant-coach / player forHoward Kendall.[9] Following Kendall's dismissal, Nicol took over as club manager on an interim basis.[10] He returned to playing following the appointment of formerShelbourne F.C. bossColin Murphy.[11]
In 1999, Nicol moved to the United States to play for theBoston Bulldogs, and became player-manager following the departure ofJohn Kerr.[12]
On 30 September 1999, Nicol took over interim coaching duties for theNew England Revolution ofMajor League Soccer following the dismissal of then-player-coachWalter Zenga.[13]
At the conclusion of the 1999 season, Nicol returned to the Boston Bulldogs,[14] but would rejoin the Revolution as an assistant toFernando Clavijo on 10 January 2002.[13] On 23 May 2002, Nicol was again named interim manager, this time following Clavijo's dismissal.[13]
In his first year as head coach, Nicol lead the Revolution to its first-everMLS Cup final and was subsequently namedMLS Coach of the Year.[15] He was officially named head coach of the Revolution on 6 November 2002.[16]
Nicol would go on to become one of the most successful coaches in MLS history,[17] and the most successful manager in Revolution history,[18] bringing a period of "sustained excellence" to the club during his MLS-record ten year tenure as head coach.[19]
Under Nicol's leadership, the Revolution advanced to theMLS Eastern Conference Finals every year until2008 and returned to the MLS Cup final in2005,2006 and2007, making the playoffs every year over a seven-season stretch.[20] He was a finalist for MLS Coach of the Year in 2005, but lost toDominic Kinnear.[20]
In 2007, Nicol also delivered the first silverware in Revolution history, winning theU.S. Open cup final overFC Dallas.[21] The following season Nicol guided the Revolution to their first-ever international trophy, as they won the2008 North American SuperLiga overHouston Dynamo FC.[22]
While coaching the Revolution, Nicol was selected to represent Major League Soccer on multiple occasions as well. On 11 August 2005, MLS announced Nicol ascoach of the "MLS Select Team" to faceReal Madrid CF onAugust 23 in Spain.[23] The league also selected Nicol to coach the MLS All-Stars on two occasions, in2007 vs.Celtic F.C., and in2008 vs.West Ham United F.C.[24][25]
In2010, Nicol guided the Revolution back to theSuperLiga final, where the club lost toAtlético Morelia.[26] The Revolution also failed to qualify for the playoffs for the first time under Nicol's tenure in 2010,[27] and would again miss the playoffs during the2011 season.[28] On 24 October 2011, Nicol and the Revolution mutually decided to part ways, ending his 10-season tenure.[29] Nicol departed the Revolution as the club's longest tenured manager, leading the club in games coached, wins, and playoff appearances.[20]
On November 4, 2012, Nicol was inducted into the New England Soccer Hall of Fame.[30]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Liverpool | 1982–83 | First Division | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 1983–84 | First Division | 23 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 4[a] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 38 | 7 | |
| 1984–85 | First Division | 31 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6[a] | 2 | 3[b] | 0 | 48 | 7 | |
| 1985–86 | First Division | 34 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | – | 6[c] | 0 | 47 | 4 | ||
| 1986–87 | First Division | 14 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | – | 2[c] | 1 | 21 | 5 | ||
| 1987–88 | First Division | 40 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 1 | – | 0 | 0 | 50 | 7 | ||
| 1988–89 | First Division | 38 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0 | – | 2[d] | 0 | 52 | 2 | ||
| 1989–90 | First Division | 23 | 6 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 0 | – | 1[e] | 0 | 33 | 9 | ||
| 1990–91 | First Division | 35 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | 44 | 3 | ||
| 1991–92 | First Division | 34 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7[f] | 0 | – | 52 | 1 | ||
| 1992–93 | Premier League | 32 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2[g] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 39 | 0 | |
| 1993–94 | Premier League | 31 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | – | 35 | 1 | |||
| 1994–95 | Premier League | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 5 | 0 | |||
| Career total | 343 | 36 | 50 | 3 | 42 | 4 | 19 | 2 | 14 | 1 | 468 | 46 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scotland[32] | 1984 | 3 | 0 |
| 1985 | 4 | ||
| 1986 | 4 | ||
| 1987 | 2 | ||
| 1988 | 6 | ||
| 1989 | 4 | ||
| 1990 | 1 | ||
| 1991 | 3 | ||
| Total | 27 | 0 | |
Liverpool
New England Revolution
