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Wednesday, December 08, 2010

Cult Player Profile : Stan Collymore

Yes that's right Stanley Victor Collymore... In my eyes one of the biggest talents lost in English football. He may have been a joke to many at the end of his career but in his heyday he was one of the deadliest forwards in the Premier League.

He started of at Crystal Palace but with Mark Bright and Ian Wright ahead of him in the pecking order he made the move to Southend where he kicked of his career scoring 18 goals in 31 games.

His goal scoring exploits caught the eye of top division side Nottingham Forest. This is where many believe Collymore was at his trouble free best. He helped them to a place in the UEFA Cup and 3rd place in the First Division. These exploits meant he became a target of some of the big guns in English football. Manchester United were rumoured to want him but this move never materialised. At the end of his time with Forest Collymore had racked up 41 goals in 65 league games. With this record it was just a matter of time before a bigger side snapped him up. In this case it was Liverpool who came up with 8.5 Million to sign him.



Collymore was at Liverpool for 2 years, forming a lethal partnership with a young Robbie Fowler. He ended up scoring 26 goals in 61 league appearances. This wasn't as good as his rate for Forest but at Liverpool he wasn't the main goalscorer and provided numerous assists for his strike partner Fowler. In their first season together they scored a combined amount of 55 goals and 47 goals in their second season.



Unfortunately he was diagnosed with clinical depression after his stint at Liverpool which led to a serious decline in his career. Unlike the knee injury that ended Dean Ashton's career or the broken leg ended Alf Inge Haaland's career Collymore's injury was mental and not taken note of like the physical injuries players suffer. But I thought I'd give everyone a reminder of one best players England could've had...

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