| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Anthony Stewart Woodcock | ||
| Date of birth | (1955-12-06)6 December 1955 (age 69) | ||
| Place of birth | Eastwood, Nottinghamshire, England | ||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)[1] | ||
| Position | Striker | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Priory Celtic | |||
| Nottingham Forest | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1974–1979 | Nottingham Forest | 129 | (36) |
| 1976 | →Lincoln City (loan) | 4 | (1) |
| 1977 | →Doncaster Rovers (loan) | 6 | (2) |
| 1979–1982 | 1. FC Köln | 81 | (28) |
| 1982–1986 | Arsenal | 131 | (56) |
| 1986–1988 | 1. FC Köln | 49 | (11) |
| 1988–1990 | Fortuna Köln | 37 | (5) |
| Total | 437 | (139) | |
| International career | |||
| 1977–1978 | England U21 | 2 | (5) |
| 1980 | England B | 1 | |
| 1978–1986[2] | England | 42 | (16) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Anthony Stewart Woodcock (born 6 December 1955) is an English retired internationalfootballer who played professionally in both England and Germany as astriker forNottingham Forest,FC Köln andArsenal.[3] Woodcock won theEuropean Cup (now known as theUEFA Champions League) in 1979 withNottingham Forest.
Born inEastwood, Nottinghamshire, Woodcock trained withAlan andSteve Buckley as a child, coached by their father, and played for Priory Celtic.[4] He started his career atNottingham Forest, signing a contract in January 1974.[5][6] After loan spells atLincoln City andDoncaster Rovers, Woodcock broke into the Forest first team in1976–77, helping the team to promotion to theFirst Division.[7] Woodcock later credited the Lincoln move and the leadership ofGraham Taylor as being instrumental to his development.[7] UnderBrian Clough, Forest went on to win the First Division title andFootball League Cup in 1978 with Woodcock winning thePFA Young Player of the Year award that year as well, and theEuropean Cup in1979.[8] He also scored in Forest's victory over Southampton in the1979 Football League Cup Final.[9]
Woodcock was signed byWest German sideFC Köln for a fee of £600,000 (equivalent to £3,830,000 in 2023),[7] in time for the1979–80 season. He spent three seasons there. He scored 28 goals in 81 matches for theCologne club.[1]
He returned home after the 1982 World Cup, signing forTerry Neill'sArsenal[8] for £500,000. Woodcock was Arsenal's top scorer for the next three seasons, his best tally being 21 in1983–84; he hit five in a single game againstAston Villa, a post-war record for the club,[8] he also scored the final goal in the lastBritish Home Championship. He helped Arsenal reach the semi-finals of both domestic cups in hisfirst season, and remained in favour with new managerDon Howe, who was appointed in December 1983 following the dismissal of Terry Neill after a dismal first half of theseason. He also contributed to a strong start to the1984–85 season for the Gunners, which saw them top the league in the autumn of 1984.
However, he suffered a serious injury in March 1985, which disrupted his career. With the arrival ofGeorge Graham as Arsenal manager in May 1986, the 30-year-old Woodcock was told he was surplus to requirements.[8]
In all, Woodcock scored 68 goals in 169 matches for the Gunners.[8]
Woodcock then returned to FC Köln for a fee of "about £200,000".[10] During his second spell there, he made 49 appearances and scored 11 goals. He finished his career playing forFortuna Köln, making 37 appearances and scoring five goals, before retiring from playing in 1990.[1]
Woodcock made two appearances for theEngland under-21s, scoring five goals; a hat-trick on his debut against Finland in a record 8–1 win and two againstItaly under-21s.[11][12]
Woodcock was first called up to the full England squad for the match againstHungary.[13] He made his début forEngland in 1978 againstNorthern Ireland.[14] He would go on to win 42 caps for his country[8] (scoring 16 goals), and play in theUEFA Euro 1980 and the1982 FIFA World Cup. He also played in the1986 FIFA World Cup qualifiers but was left out of the final squad.
Nottingham Forest
Individual
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