David Platt

David Andrew Platt (born 10 June 1966) is an English retired football coach and player who played as a midfielder.

Born in Chadderton, Lancashire, Platt began his career as an apprentice at Manchester United before moving to Crewe Alexandra, where he began building a reputation as a goal-scoring midfielder.

At the age of 22, he signed for Aston Villa and gained the attention of the England manager Bobby Robson, with whom he soon made his debut.

He was a frequent goalscorer for Villa, helping re-establish them in the First Division at the end of the 1980s, and in 1989–90 took them to the brink of the league title.

Although they had to settle for runners-up spot behind Liverpool, Platt was voted PFA Players' Player of the Year.

Platt signed for Manchester United as an apprentice on leaving school in 1982, having been spotted playing for Chadderton.

He accepted manager Ron Atkinson's offer of a professional contract at the start of the 1984–85 season, but was given a free transfer on 23 February 1985 without ever playing for the Manchester United first team.

Dario Gradi then signed Platt for Crewe Alexandra in the Fourth Division.

He quickly established himself in the first team at Gresty Road as a strong-running, free-scoring midfielder.

He played 156 games in the Fourth Division, and scored 56 goals, over the next three years.

In the FA Cup he played three games, scoring one goal.

In the League Cup he played four games, scoring four goals.

In February 1988, Platt left Crewe - still a Fourth Division side - to join Aston Villa for £200,000 and helped his new club earn an instant return to the First Division that season, as runners-up in the Second Division.

At the 1990 World Cup, Platt increased his reputation with impressive performances, and by scoring goals with his head and feet.

According to Rob Bagchi in The Guardian, Platt "seized Bryan Robson's role with riveting aplomb."

The next season, 1990–91, he continued where he left off.

In a game against Arsenal he famously went in goal when Nigel Spink was injured in a 5–0 defeat to Arsenal.

Platt's success with Villa was evident in his goal-scoring record.

In more than three years at Villa Park, he played 121 League games, scoring 50 goals.

In the FA Cup he scored two goals in four games, while in the League Cup he scored 10 goals in 14 games.

Almost from the moment Platt – the 1990 PFA Players' Player of the Year at Aston Villa and one of Bobby Robson's shining lights at the World Cup finals of the same year – left England in a transfer-record move to Serie A club Bari, Mancini saw the asset he would be at Sampdoria, where the Italian was captain.

His performances in the World Cup earned him a move to Serie A club Bari in 1991.

On 21 July 1991, Platt moved to Italy to play in Serie A.

He signed for A.S. Bari for £5.5 million where he was given the captain's armband and the number 10 shirt.

He played 29 games in his first season, scoring 11 goals.

In the Italian league, where goals were difficult to come by owing to the more defensive tactics adopted by most clubs, particularly for a midfielder, this was considered an impressive achievement.

Unfortunately, the 1991–92 Serie A season ended in relegation for Platt and Bari.

In 1992, Platt moved to Juventus, where he spent one season.

Platt continued scoring goals for England, playing in Euro 92 and 96.

During his time at Bari, Platt received a phone call from Roberto Mancini in January 1992, who pressed him to come to Sampdoria.

Platt's first telephone call from Mancini came as a surprise in January 1992.

"We'd played Sampdoria a few times and I'd faced Robbie," Platt recalls.

"But I didn't know him and he'd tracked my number from somewhere. He said: 'I know you've got a good relationship with your president, I'm sure you could push through a move to us.'" In the end, Platt chose Juventus.

In June 1992, Platt was signed for Juventus for £6.5 million.

In domestic competitions Platt struggled to maintain a first-team place in the Juventus team that season, which possessed many stars.

(England failed to qualify for the 1994 FIFA World Cup.) In 1993, he moved to Sampdoria where he stayed for two seasons before he returned to England to join Arsenal.

Platt was at the London club for three years, featuring in the Arsenal side that won the Premier League and FA Cup Double in 1998.

Platt went on to manage Sampdoria and Nottingham Forest, as well as England's Under-21 team.

He later became a coach with Manchester City.

However, his final season at Villa saw the club finish a disappointing 17th in the league, and he was already being linked with a move to Italy.