 Staunton in 2011 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Stephen Staunton[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1969-01-19)19 January 1969 (age 56)[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Drogheda, Ireland | ||
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)[1] | ||
| Position | Defender | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1985–1986 | Dundalk | ||
| 1986–1991 | Liverpool | 65 | (0) |
| 1987 | →Bradford City (loan) | 8 | (0) |
| 1991–1998 | Aston Villa | 208 | (16) |
| 1998–2000 | Liverpool | 44 | (0) |
| 2000 | →Crystal Palace (loan) | 6 | (1) |
| 2000–2003 | Aston Villa | 73 | (0) |
| 2003–2005 | Coventry City | 70 | (4) |
| 2005 | Walsall | 7 | (0) |
| Total | 481 | (21) | |
| International career | |||
| 1987–1989 | Republic of Ireland U21 | 4 | (0) |
| 1988–2002[2] | Republic of Ireland | 102 | (8) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2006–2007 | Republic of Ireland | ||
| 2009–2010 | Darlington | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Stephen Staunton (born 19 January 1969) is an Irish football manager, scout and former professional footballer.
He played as adefender with two separate spells each withPremier League sidesAston Villa andLiverpool. He also played in theFootball League forBradford City,Crystal Palace,Coventry City andWalsall. He earned 102caps for theRepublic of Ireland national football team,[3] captained his team to the knock-out stage of the2002 FIFA World Cup and earned his place in theFIFA Century Club.
After retiring, he served asRepublic of Ireland national team coach prior toGiovanni Trapattoni. He also spent five months as manager ofDarlington inFootball League Two and has worked on the coaching staff atLeeds United andSunderland.
Born inDrogheda,County Louth,[1] Staunton was an accomplished all-round sportsman. He grew up inDundalk, also in County Louth, and attendedthe De La Salle College in the town. As well as playing soccer for his home club ofDundalk, he playedGaelic football, appearing forLouth's U-16 team and winning aLouth Senior Championship medal withClan na Gael. He also played for his local team St Dominic's at underage level.
Staunton was spotted by Liverpool playing in Ireland for his home club of Dundalk as a 17-year-old and was signed on 2 September 1986 by managerKenny Dalglish for a fee of £20,000.
He spent the first two seasons in the reserves and even went on loan toBradford City for eight games during the1987–88 season as cover for the injuredKarl Goddard. He made his Liverpool debut on 17 September 1988 in the 1–1 league draw withTottenham Hotspur atAnfield. As a result of his impressive performance he remained in the side for the rest of the season, despite him being vastly inexperienced compared to the players around him who were defending a League championship title won the year before. Following on from his impressive debut he scored his first goal three days later on 20 September; however, his 80th-minute strike wasn't enough to preventArsenal winning theCentenary Trophy semi-final 2–1.
An injury to captainAlan Hansen meant that regular left backGary Ablett had to be shifted across to the centre of defence. Staunton was therefore given his chance and proved an impressive and consistent performer in a team of strong players, playing his part as Liverpool challenged for the title again.
In the aftermath of theHillsborough disaster, which ultimately claimed the lives of 97 fans at theFA Cup semi-final on 15 April 1989, Staunton was among the players who comforted bereaved families and attended many of the funerals. He also put in an outstanding performance when the fateful FA Cup semi-final was rescheduled a month later, with Liverpool beatingNottingham Forest 3–1.
Staunton played in theFA Cup Final atWembley – he was substituted at the start of the extra-time period – as Liverpool defeatedMerseyside rivalsEverton 3–2. However, the season ended with disappointment when Liverpool lost the League title ina decider againstArsenal at Anfield. The Gunners needed to win by two clear goals and were 1–0 up with just seconds remaining. With virtually the last kick of the seasonMichael Thomas broke through the centre of the Reds defence to score, thus stopping Liverpool gaining a second league and FA Cupdouble – something which no English club had yet achieved.
The following year, Staunton was a frequent presence again as Liverpool reclaimed the League title. His first goals for Liverpool came in remarkable fashion on 4 October 1989 when he came on as a substitute in aLeague Cup tie againstWigan Athletic and scored a hat-trick.[4] The following season he scored twice more; againstCrewe Alexandra in the League Cup[5] andBlackburn Rovers in theFA Cup.[6] However 1990–91 was his final season with Liverpool before being astutely signed up byAston Villa on 7 August 1991 for £1.1 million. New managerGraeme Souness was accused[by whom?] of misjudging the player's abilities, though the ruling for European ties possibly had a bearing, with Staunton being classed as aforeigner, of which no team was allowed to field more than four; theBosman ruling (which included the abolishment of quotas forEU citizens on teams in member countries) was not passed until 1995.
Staunton made a good impression on the Villa fans by marking his debut on 17 August with a goal in the 3–2 win overSheffield Wednesday atHillsborough. He soon became a regular in Villa's defence, alongside the likes of the legendary Villan Paul McGrath, as they finished seventh during the1991–92 season. The following year he played an important role in the club's push for the title in the firstPremier League season. Villa, in the end, lost out toManchester United and had to settle for second place.
The following season, he won aLeague Cup winners medal when he helped a wounded Villa gain revenge on Manchester United by beating them 3–1 (denying them a domestic treble). The League Cup medal completed his domestic medal set. In the1994–95 season, despite the club's managerial problems, he had a fine season and regularly captained the side. The1995–96 season was a mixed one for Staunton. He won another League Cup medal, this time as a non-playing substitute in the excellent 3–0 victory overLeeds United, but his playing time was limited due to a number of injuries.
Over the next two seasons he was once again a regular in defence, playing his part in Villa's run to theUEFA Cup quarter finals in 1996–97. He also scored from a corner during his time at Villa. Meanwhile, in the league, he helped a transitional Villa team to a fifth-place finish in1996–97 and seventh in1997–98.
With his contract set to expire at Villa, he gained a surprise move back to Liverpool on 3 July 1998 when joint managersRoy Evans andGérard Houllier signed him on a free transfer.On 27 September 1999, during theMerseyside derby againstEverton atAnfield, Staunton played the last 15 minutes of the game in goal afterSander Westerveld had been sent off for fighting withFrancis Jeffers after Liverpool had used all three substitutes. He scored once in his second spell at Liverpool, his goal coming in a League Cup tie against Hull City in September 1999.[7]
His second spell onMerseyside lasted two years before he was told he could leave on a free transfer. After a brief loan spell atCrystal Palace, where he made six league appearances and scored once against Tranmere Rovers,[8] he was recalled to Anfield to appear in his 148th and last game for the Reds: it came on 23 November 2000 in the 2–2 draw with Greek sideOlympiakos in theUEFA Cup.[9]
On 7 December 2000, he re-joined Aston Villa on another free transfer. He played in 14 of the club's remaining league fixtures and then featured regularly for a further two seasons. He scored once in his second spell at Villa, his goal coming in the Intertoto Cup against FC Zurich.[10]
Staunton continued to play club football, plying his trade withCoventry City, moving there on 15 August 2003 on another free transfer. He made his début on 16 August 2003 in the 0–0 league draw withWalsall atHighfield Road. He remained with the Sky Blues until the summer of 2005, clocking up 75 appearances.
Staunton decided not to renew his contract once it had expired, and instead joinedWalsall on 2 August 2005. He played just 10 times for Walsall and also held the post of assistant coach until 16 January 2006, when he was appointed manager of the Republic of Ireland senior international side. He was captain of the Walsall side that defeatedBlackpool 2–0 onNew Year's Eve 2005, in what was his final game as a professional footballer at the end of a 20-year career.
Staunton made his debut for the Republic of Ireland in the 4–0 friendly win overTunisia. He went to Italy withJack Charlton's squad as the Republic of Ireland competed in their first everFIFA World Cup finals. Staunton, the youngest member of the squad, played in every match at left back (though by now at club level he had also proved his usefulness as a central defender or midfield player) as the Republic of Ireland progressed to the quarter-finals, when they were beaten by the host nation.
He also represented the Republic of Ireland atFIFA World Cup 1994 in the United States. Again, he played in each game as the Republic of Ireland succumbed in the second round to theNetherlands.
The Republic of Ireland failed to qualify for bothEuro 96 in England and the1998 World Cup in France, though Staunton was still selected regularly for the team.
The Republic of Ireland qualified for the2002 World Cup held in Japan and South Korea following a playoff againstIran. Staunton captained the Irish team in the second leg inTehran. CoachMick McCarthy, who had been Staunton's captain at the country's first World Cup 12 years earlier, selected him for the squad and named him captain following the departure ofRoy Keane from the squad.
Again, Staunton played in every Republic of Ireland game of the tournament, with the 1–1 group match draw againstGermany on 5 June proving to be a very special and historic occasion as he became the first Irishman to make 100 appearances for his country. Together withGary Breen, he formed an impressive central defensive partnership in front ofShay Given. Staunton was the first footballer to have reached a century of caps for the Republic of Ireland national team, and as of the end of Ireland's qualifying campaign for the2010 FIFA World Cup he was still the joint record holder with former teammates Shay Given andKevin Kilbane, though both players (along withRobbie Keane) have since emulated Staunton's appearance record.
Ireland's competition ended once more in the second round when they lost agonizingly toSpain in apenalty shoot-out after the game had finished 1–1. Staunton announced hisretirement from international football immediately afterwards after setting a national record of 102 appearances. He is the only player to have played in every single one of Ireland's 13World Cup finals games.
On two occasions he scored directly from corner-kicks. The first of which came in a 2–0 victory over Portugal on 7 June 1992, during a US Cup game inBoston and the second came in a 3–0 defeat ofNorthern Ireland on 31 March 1993 during a World Cup qualifier inDublin.
Following theRepublic of Ireland's failure to reach the2006 FIFA World Cup, the tenure of managerBrian Kerr came to an end. A three-manFootball Association of Ireland (FAI) subcommittee spearheaded by its former treasurer John Delaney was formed with the remit of appointing a capable successor to Kerr. Delaney assured the Irish public that a "world class" management team[11] would be appointed to oversee Ireland's qualification campaign for the 2008 European Championship. After an initial flurry of rumours linking names of the calibre of Alex Ferguson,[12] Terry Venables[13] andBobby Robson[14] with the post, Staunton was released from his player/assistant manager role forWalsall on 12 January 2006 and was officially named as Kerr's replacement the following day, with formerEnglandmanagerSir Bobby Robson supporting him in the role of International Consultant and with former Aston Villa teammate Kevin MacDonald as coach.[15] Staunton was something of a shock appointment given the names that had been circulated and his own limited coaching and managerial experience.[16][17]
"I know that the calibre of the team I have will bring a huge range of experience and talent to the challenges that lie ahead ... I'm the boss. I'm the gaffer. At the end of the day what I say goes, the buck stops with me ..."
His international management career enjoyed a dream start, something Staunton called "a bit of a fairytale", when he led Ireland to an impressive 3–0 victory overSweden on 1 March 2006 withDamien Duff,Robbie Keane (captaining the Republic of Ireland for the first time) andLiam Miller getting onto the score sheet. The victory over Sweden was followed by two friendly defeats, the first a disappointing 1–0 loss againstChile on 23 May 2006 and then a 4–0 thrashing byHolland atLansdowne Road, Ireland's worst home reverse in 40 years.
Prior to the Holland game, Staunton was confronted and threatened by a man outside the team hotel on Monday 14 August with a gun that turned out to be an imitationUzimachine gun.[19] The 31-year-old assailant was arrested at a nearby beach and released by police the following day. No physical harm was caused but the event was a public relations disaster for both Staunton and the FAI (this was not the first time an assailant had attacked members of the squad at that particular hotel).[20] Shortly after this incident further embarrassment was caused by the revelation that the FAI had sent news of Ireland midfielderAndy Reid's recall to the national side to the player's former clubTottenham despite the fact that he was by then aCharlton player.[21]
It was against this backdrop that Staunton oversaw his first competitive match in charge as Republic of Ireland manager; a 1–0 defeat againstGermany inStuttgart, Ireland losing despite a battling performance. Staunton himself was sent off by the referee for kicking a water bottle onto the pitch in frustration during the second half. Worse was swiftly to follow. On 7 October 2006, in their secondUEFA Euro 2008 qualifier, Ireland suffered a demoralising 5–2 defeat by lowlyCyprus inNicosia. Staunton was watching from the stands, having been given a touchline ban for his sending-off in Germany. The defeat by Cyprus heaped additional pressure on the already beleaguered Staunton, who even at this early stage of his leadership was already facing calls for his resignation,[22] ahead of Ireland's next game which was at home to theCzech Republic on 11 October. The FAI, when pressed on the matter, refused to deny that a poor result would result in the manager's immediate dismissal.[23] An improved performance against the Czechs resulted in a 1–1 draw, a result that eased the pressure on Staunton to some extent.
Staunton was seen to be emotional after the 5–0 victory overSan Marino; it was to be the last match to be played on the old Lansdowne Road pitch. In the return fixture, a poor performance ensured the team needed a goal from Stephen Ireland four minutes into injury time to secure the three points with a final score of 2–1. Coming so close to dropping points against a team ranked 195th in the world at the time of the match immediately sparked further calls for the manager's resignation.[24]
Ireland returned to form with two successive 1–0 home victories overWales andSlovakia which brought them close to contention for second place in Group D of the UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying groups. Such was the surprise that greeted the results that RTÉ presenter Bill O'Herlihy concluded the coverage of the Slovakia game with the comment, "Ireland are now in contention for qualification for Euro 2008. Who would have thought it?" The upswing in form continued on 22 August 2007 with a 4–0 win in a non-competitive match againstDenmark inAarhus. Staunton was delighted with the results[25] and headed into the next set of fixtures with Ireland placed third in the qualifying group.
The victories, however, proved to be something of a false dawn as, over the space of five days in September, an injury-hit Ireland dropped five points from two games and saw their qualifying campaign effectively come to an end. Leading 2–1 away to Slovakia the team would emerge with just one point after an injury-time strike from Marek Cech cancelled their advantage. Staunton was disappointed by the performance but four days later, on 12 September, a 1–0 defeat to the Czech Republic inPrague crippled the qualifying campaign. A 0–0 draw with Germany on 13 October atCroke Park and a 1–1 draw at home to Cyprus in the same stadium four days later (during which a chorus of boos greeted the final whistle)[26] secured qualification for both Germany and the Czech Republic. Ireland would not be competing in the 2008 European Championship.
Amid the fans' dissatisfaction, many pundits commented that Staunton was now effectively on borrowed time[16] and the FAI announced that an emergency meeting was to be called to discuss Staunton's position on 23 October.[27] Prior to this, John Delaney gave an interview toRTÉ where he refused to publicly back the beleaguered manager and attempted to extricate himself from any responsibility for his role in Staunton's initial appointment.[28] Staunton, for his part, refused to resign and publicly stated that he intended to see out the remainder of his four-year contract.[26]
On the evening of 23 October 2007, after initially indicating to reporters that the FAI meeting would take place in Dublin's Crowne Plaza Hotel, where two executive rooms had been hired for use by the FAI, it emerged that Staunton had met the FAI in secret in the Radisson Hotel at Dublin airport where he made his case to be retained in the job. The FAI subsequently met in private discussion for six hours[29] after which it was confirmed that Staunton's turbulent 21-month reign as international manager had come to an end.[30] He was replaced byDon Givens who temporarily took charge of the national team untilGiovanni Trapattoni's appointment as manager.[31]
On 4 February 2008, Staunton joined up with recently appointedLeeds United managerGary McAllister for a training session, with a view to becoming McAllister's assistant manager at the club. He was given the post later that day.[32] In his first month at Leeds, the club did not win a game, until a 1–0 victory on 1 March againstSwindon Town. When McAllister was sacked by Leeds United in December 2008 after five consecutive defeats, Staunton also left the club.[33]
Staunton was appointed as ascout atWolverhampton Wanderers under managerMick McCarthy. In May 2009, it was reported that he had applied for the then vacant manager's seat atPort Vale. On 5 October 2009, he was announced asDarlington manager, to take over officially two days later following aFootball League Trophy game against his previous club Leeds United. His contract was initially to take him to the end of the season, withKevin Richardson appointed as his assistant manager.[34][35] Staunton lost his first game in charge, 2–0 toDagenham & Redbridge.[36] On 21 March 2010, with Darlington bottom of the league and facing relegation to theFootball Conference, Staunton was sacked as the Darlington manager.[37] He had won just four games from his 23 league matches in charge, although his sacking was also put down to a record low crowd for a league game at theDarlington Arena of 1,463 againstBarnet in Staunton's final match in charge.[38]
Staunton was then handed a job as ascout atSunderland on 22 August 2011.[39] However, he was relieved of his role in 2013.[40]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Continental | Other[a] | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Bradford City (loan) | 1987–88 | Second Division | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | 1 | 0 | 11 | 0 | |
| Liverpool | 1987–88 | First Division | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1988–89 | First Division | 21 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | – | 1 | 0 | 29 | 0 | ||
| 1989–90 | First Division | 20 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 3 | – | – | 28 | 3 | |||
| 1990–91 | First Division | 24 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 1 | – | – | 33 | 2 | |||
| Total | 65 | 0 | 16 | 1 | 8 | 4 | – | 1 | 0 | 90 | 5 | |||
| Aston Villa | 1991–92 | First Division | 37 | 4 | – | – | 37 | 4 | ||||||
| 1992–93 | Premier League | 42 | 2 | – | – | 42 | 2 | |||||||
| 1993–94 | Premier League | 24 | 3 | – | – | 24 | 3 | |||||||
| 1994–95 | Premier League | 35 | 5 | – | – | 35 | 5 | |||||||
| 1995–96 | Premier League | 13 | 0 | – | – | 13 | 0 | |||||||
| 1996–97 | Premier League | 30 | 1 | – | – | 30 | 1 | |||||||
| 1997–98 | Premier League | 27 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8[b] | 0 | – | 39 | 2 | ||
| Total | 208 | 16 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | – | 220 | 17 | |||
| Liverpool | 1998–99 | Premier League | 31 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6[b] | 0 | – | 40 | 0 | |
| 1999–2000 | Premier League | 12 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | – | – | 16 | 1 | |||
| 2000–01 | Premier League | 1 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | 1[b] | 0 | – | 2 | 0 | |||
| Total | 44 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 7 | 0 | – | 58 | 1 | |||
| Crystal Palace (loan) | 2000–01 | First Division | 6 | 1 | – | – | – | 6 | 1 | |||||
| Aston Villa | 2000–01 | Premier League | 14 | 0 | 3 | 0 | – | – | – | 17 | 0 | |||
| 2001–02 | Premier League | 33 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | 38 | 0 | ||
| 2002–03 | Premier League | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 1 | – | 32 | 1 | ||
| Total | 73 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 1 | – | 87 | 1 | |||
| Coventry City | 2003–04 | First Division | 35 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 38 | 3 | ||
| 2004–05 | Championship | 35 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 37 | 1 | |||
| Total | 70 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | – | 75 | 4 | ||||
| Walsall | 2005–06 | League One | 7 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 1 | 0 | 10 | 0 | |
| Career total | 481 | 21 | 31 | 2 | 22 | 5 | 20 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 557 | 29 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Republic of Ireland | 1988 | 2 | 0 |
| 1989 | 6 | 0 | |
| 1990 | 13 | 1 | |
| 1991 | 7 | 0 | |
| 1992 | 8 | 1 | |
| 1993 | 7 | 3 | |
| 1994 | 11 | 0 | |
| 1995 | 7 | 1 | |
| 1996 | 3 | 0 | |
| 1997 | 9 | 0 | |
| 1998 | 4 | 0 | |
| 1999 | 5 | 1 | |
| 2000 | 4 | 1 | |
| 2001 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2002 | 8 | 0 | |
| Total | 102 | 8 | |
| Team | From | To | Record | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | Win % | |||
| Republic of Ireland | January 2006 | October 2007 | 17 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 035.29 |
| Darlington | October 2009 | March 2010 | 25 | 4 | 2 | 19 | 016.00 |
| Total | 42 | 10 | 8 | 24 | 023.81 | ||
Liverpool
Aston Villa
Individual
Republic of Ireland squads | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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