The Man
We currently have two articles about "Big Chris" here. Click either of the two links below to select one.
Revolving Door Out - Chris Sutton
Birth date: 03/10/1973
Birth place: Nottingham
Height: 191 cm
Weight: 86 kg
Position: Forward
Chris Sutton gained a place in British football's history books as the subject of the first £5million transfer between two British clubs. This occurred in July 1994 when he joined Kenny Dalglish's big spending Blackburn Rovers. Blackburn were not the only side willing to pay this sum of money for Sutton's striking talents in 1994. Arsenal, Tottenham, Manchester United, Liverpool, Rangers and Inter Milan were all linked to him via the back pages of the tabloids. The News of the World reported on October 26th 2003 that Man United manager Alex Ferguson even deployed a team of SAS trained detectives to watch Sutton to see if there were any unsavoury elements in his home life that would jeopardise his playing career. United's former head of security, Michael "Ned" Kelly spent 11 years in the elite "Who Dares Wins" regiment before moving to Old Trafford. He is set to release details of every operation he carried out in "Manchester United: The Untold Story" — a book the club tried to ban. Kelly, 55, claimed in his book that Sutton, one of the heroes of Norwich City's UEFA cup side which beat Bayern Munich in Germany 10 years ago, was followed by spies while playing for the Canaries. He claimed that at the time, Manchester United were considering trying to sign Sutton. Mr Kelly said, "He'd never have been aware that, for two weeks of his life, he was watched 24 hours a day. The then head-scout at United, Les Kershaw, wanted a report. Chris played for Norwich at the time and the surveillance team went over there, "picked him up" after a City home game, then followed and photographed his every move and checked out his associates." Mr Kelly said that four people, including one woman, followed Sutton wherever he went. He said, "The team was led by two SAS guys who'd previously been with the Army's 14th Intelligence Company in Northern Ireland — an elite unit that specialised in undercover surveillance". Although Sutton was given the all clear by the spies who tracked his every move, Mr Ferguson decided not to sign Sutton, who left Norwich for Blackburn Rovers in the summer of 1994 for a then British transfer record of £5 million. Why then was Sutton such hot property ?
The answer must be the 43 goals that he scored for Norwich in 127 games. This figure is all the more impressive when you consider that 14 of these appearances were as substitute and that Chris had often been deployed as a central defender. His tally of 28 goals in the 1993/94 season was the highest ever achieved by a Norwich player in the top flight. Sutton enjoyed a meteoric success rate, making his first team debut against Queen's Park Rangers in May 1991 at the age of 18. This was just two years after his Norwich youth debut against Millwall in April 1989. He gained England Under 21 and England B caps whilst with the Canaries but his international career faltered whilst at Blackburn. In addition to Sutton's obvious ability, he was seen as wise and level headed player following in his father's footsteps. Mike Sutton played 54 games for Norwich between 1963 and 1966. Chris' level-headedness was not always in control and the night before he signed his contract with Blackburn was spent in police cells following a fracas in Norwich city centre. All in all, £5 million for Sutton was an excellent fee for a player who had only just topped 100 first team appearances. The shame is that chairman Robert Chase did not invest this sum into the side. The loss of Mike Walker, Ruel Fox and Sutton saw Norwich relegated from the Premiership the following season.
In his first season with Rovers, he formed a formidable partnership with Alan Shearer and this "SAS" (Sutton and Shearer) partnership led to the Premiership championship. His second season at Ewood park was marred by injury whilst his third was spent without Shearer who had joined Newcastle United for £15 million in the summer of 1996. He began the 1997/98 season in blistering form scoring a hat-trick in a 4-0 demolition of Aston Villa at Villa Park. This was followed by a brace in the 7-2 thrashing of Sheffield Wednesday. Tabloid newspapers linked him with a move to Arsenal to replace the aging Ian Wright. Sutton's performances won him selection into the England squad for the friendly international against Cameroon on 15th November 1997 and he made his international debut coming on as a substitute for Paul Scholes in the last ten minutes of the 2-0 victory.
In the early part of the 1998/99 season Tottenham were linked in early September for a double bid for Sutton and his Blackburn teammate Tim Sherwood. Spurs' interest in Sherwood was maintained with bids rejected by Blackburn manager Roy Hodgson. On 7th October 1998, the national press reported that Aston Villa manager John Gregory was willing to splash out on Sutton from the money received from Manchester United for Dwight Yorke. Gregory's bid varied from paper to paper with "The Independent" stating a total of £11million whilst "The Mirror" suggested £10million and "The Telegraph" opting for £8million. However, Blackburn issued a curt statement that Sutton was not for sale and that he was under contract until June 2003. Blackburn also revealed that there had been no formal contact rather that John Gregory had made a private phone call to Roy Hodgson.
"The News of the World" speculated on 28th February 1999 that Chris was the primary target of Chelsea who were willing to spend £10million on Sutton. However, he publicly denied that there is any truth in the rumours linking him with Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea eventually got their man in July 1999 signing Sutton for £10million with approximately £500,000 going to the Canaries as part of the sell-on clause. Chris made his Chelsea debut in a pre-season friendly at Birmingham City on 17th July 1999. There is little doubt considering the return of goals in his first 6 months with Chelsea, that Chris' spell in West London was not productive. The arrival of former African Player of the Year George Weah, on loan from AC Milan until the end of the season, on January 11th sealed the end of Sutton's spell at Stamford Bridge. Weah became an instant hero. Sutton, who ironically joined the game at the same time as Weah, was linked with Leeds where Chairman Peter Risdale and manager David O'Leary were said to be interested and considering a £5million bid. On February 13th 2000, "The Sunday People" claimed that Celtic were interested in signing Chris prior to the sacking of John Barnes but that a bid might still happen.
On 15th March 2000, it was suggested that then Leicester City manager Martin O'Neill would be spending some of the £11million received from the sale of Emile Heskey to Liverpool, on a new striker and that Chris was in the frame for a move to Filbert Street. Reports in the "Evening Standard" around transfer deadline day suggested that George Graham was keen on bringing Chris to Spurs and that a bid may be made that summer. This story resurfaced on 26th March 2000 with the "Sunday Mirror" claiming that Spurs were preparing a £16m bid for Sutton and Man Utd's Ole Gunnar Solksjaer. Chris was frozen out of Chelsea' victorious FA Cup final squad on a day that the Blues were linked with a £17m move for Chilean striker Marcelo Salas as a direct replacement for Sutton. Another destination for Chris was suggested on 6th June 2000 when it was suggested that he might return to the North West and join Manchester City who had made enquiries about a £5million transfer. On 14th June 2000, two more names were added to the equation. Everton were reported to have had a £5million bid rejected whilst Aston Villa and Chelsea were said to be considering a straight swap between Sutton and Villa's England international defender Gareth Southgate. By the weekend of 17/18th June, Chelsea had agreed a £6million transfer with Middlesbrough for Sutton's services but Celtic's new manager Martin O’Neill also submitted a bid of the same value for a player he had long admired. Chelsea accepted both offers and it was down to Sutton to decide his destination.
Chris finally signed for Celtic on 10th July 2000 for £6million, a Scottish record and a sum that Martin O'Neill described as a snip considering his belief in Sutton's abilities. Chris certainly made his mark with a goal on his league debut and a sending-off the following week. A double in the 6-2 victory over Rangers in the Old Firm derby on 27th August 2000 will ensure Chris' place in Celtic folklore. Sutton's early form led to suggestions that he might be called up into the injury hit England squad for the 2nd September 2000 friendly with France. Sutton's goals and partnership with Henrik Larsson played a major role in Celtic's 2000/01 Scottish Championship and League Cup victory. His form at the beginning of the 2001/02 season suggested a return to the England squad. In April 2003, it was suggested by a number of sources that Sutton might return to the Premiership, with Tottenham Hotspur the likely destination. It was also suggested that Celtic would sign Ole Gunnar Solksjaer as his replacement. The following month saw "The Sunday People" claim on May 4th 2003 that Everton were preparing a £3million swoop for Sutton to accompany Wayne Rooney up front. Celtic's failure to win any trophies in 2002/03 rankled with Sutton especially as they lost out on goal difference to arch-rivals Rangers on the final day of the Scottish Premiership. In the first week of 2004, Chris was linked with two return trips to England. First of all, Sven Goran Eriksson's assistant Tord Grip said he was impressed with Sutton's performances for Celtic and would suggest a return to the England squad, possibly in a central, holding midfield role. Secondly Blackburn manager Graeme Souness revealled that if he had £1.5million, he would love to bring Sutton back to Ewood Park. Chris was then linked with a switch to Fulham who were looking for a new striker to replace Louis Saha who had joined Manchester United for £12million. Staying at Ibrox, Celtic won the Scottish Premiership for a third time under O'Neill on April 18th 2004. A week later, Chris was named Scottish Player of the Year.
Season 2004/05 Chris signs a new contract for Celtic to confirm his future will be at Parkhead.
© John Dempster 2004. Reproduced with kind permission.
Revolving Door Out - Chris Sutton
Now that the obligatory mid-season festivities are firmly out of the way, we can once again start to turn the focus back to the serious business of football. The footie season waits for no man, and with the arrival of January, the vast majority of enquiring minds find their attentions drawn to the complexities of the Transfer Window - and all of the associated dramas that come with it. That inevitably means a whole lot of talk in the Redtops, an outpouring of rumour and innuendo in pubs throughout the land, and in general, more speculation than you can poke a particularly pointy stick at.
At Celtic, all the current talk seems to be concentrated on the rebuilding task presently confronting Gordon Strachan, and it would appear that the word "Evolution" is currently the one most in vogue with Celtic supporters (aside from "geditrightupye" obviously). There is no escaping it, and evolution is, after all, just the natural way of things. Players come and players go. But the demands of the support pretty much stay the same - come what may. Silverware or not, season 2005/06 will one day be recalled as the one that marked the final stages of the break-up of a quite extraordinary Celtic side.
With Chris Sutton's earlier-than-anticipated departure to Premiership strugglers Birmingham City this week, just six of Martin O'Neill's 2003 18-strong squad of European Finalists now remain at the club. And at least three of those players are living on borrowed time; A war-ravaged Alan Thompson is surely bound for the exit anytime soon - especially now that his bestest mate has just shot through. Didier Agathe's situation appears to be all over the shop at present, the smart money though would be banking on an exit for Didi given how little action he's seen this term. Regards Neil Lennon… well, we can still enjoy him for now but let's just say that Old Faither Time can be a brutal stalker and no mistake.
Of the remaining three players still with us, Bobo Balde hasn't had his contract dramas to seek in recent months, and his long-term future in many respects still remains unclear. Stan Petrov, the thread who actually ties together several Celtic Park eras, looks about to have us embarking on another excruciatingly painful game of contract poker - unless something conclusive is about to be revealed (as hinted at recently by Spiers in The Herald). While lastly, and perhaps most surprisingly, Shaun Maloney – who endured the most dreadful of brief cameos that fateful night in Seville - might just about be the hottest thing in Paradise as we speak. Good for him.
(John Hartson, a prominent figure currently, as he was for most of 2002/03, was cruelly denied a place in the Seville squad due to injury).
Henrik Larsson exited stage left in 2004, as did his rock solid compatriot Johan Mjallby. Rab Douglas, Joos Valgaeren, Paul Lambert, Jackie McNamara, and Ulrik Larsson all trekked off to various destinations – with varying subsequent degrees of success - last summer. Of the fringes on the bench in Seville, Jamie Smith made the move on 2004; Hedman, Sylla, and Fernandez all hanging on 12 months or so longer.
And now Sutty. One of the biggest unsung heroes of them all, at least in terms of the nature of his exit. An often talismanic servant departing without fanfare or trimming. While it is slightly disappointing to see such a proven performer and WINNER depart in the way that he has, the gut keeps telling me that the timing of this particular exit is much better than it otherwise might have been. Besides, mid-season evolution has scant regard for tradition and formalities. 'Tis the season for poaching and gamekeeping extremes.
When Martin O'Neill first arrived the club one of the first things he did was rescue Sutton from his MiserableAnus-thingymewotsit at Chelsea. He was spending what was generally regarded as the 'Viduka money' and I have to confess, £6million on Chris Sutton did not exactly fill me with encouragement about the pedigree of our new management regime. Boy, do I not know how to pick 'em or what.
In my defence, I generally applauded the O'Neill appointment, but I harboured grave concerns about his ability in the wider transfer market. Sutton's recruitment did little to allay those fears at the time. Due to my rather limited previous exposure to Sutton's now undisputed talents, I blindly viewed him as something of a one-trick pony initially, and not the brilliant goalscoring all-rounder he quickly proved to be.
Even after Sutton had scored the winning goal on debut in the 2000/01 SPL opener at Tannadice, a match that doubled as O'Neill's first competitive fixture in charge, I assumed Big Chris was merely demonstrating in favour of the time-honoured argument that it's always easier to score goals in Scotland when you've been playing at the sort of altitude that Sutton was more familiar with. In other words, nothing exceptional.
However, it's fair to say that by the end of the 6-2 game a few weeks later, I was a fully paid-up member of the Chris Sutton No.9 CSC. His combination during the Treble season with Larsson will long be remembered - two quite exceptional talents working to maximum effect, and just as Sutton's colossal physical presence did much to propel Alan Shearer to another level at Blackburn, his work on behalf of Larsson helped ensure that the Super Swede would rewrite most of the goalscoring records available to him over the next four seasons or so…
Then there are those all-rounder qualities. Chris Sutton is not the most naturally-gifted footballer going, but such is the size of his heart and so enormous is his capacity for hard work, he is without doubt one of the most versatile players ever to have graced Paradise. Even if his frequently awkward looking gait would have any uninformed observer seriously doubting his much-touted ability to play just about any role on the pitch. And seldom can there have been a footballer able to turn the use of his arms into one of the most formidable components of an already extensive arsenal.
Whether it was up front as Ghod's right-hand man, or sitting deeper, defending from the front as the so-called man-in-the-hole, or grafting his arse off as the hub in more of a holding post, Sutton rarely gave less than 100%. Every last ounce of his ability summoned to respond on demand. He even covered, more than occasionally, the central defensive beat - although the general consensus suggested that he was wasted there. I always felt that criticism of Sutton after playing as a central defender in the 2002 Scottish Cup Final loss to TFOD was a little harsh given his spectacular contributions when charged with playing in his more familiar role as a striker and arch-provider of assists.
But most of all Sutton demonstrated - consistently, if not on the odd occasion when he appeared to chuck his toys - the mentality of a winner. He ranks alongside that solid core/spine of Mjallby, Lambert, Lenny, Petrov, and Larsson as one of those players who never accepted anything less than total commitment and honesty of performance within the team.
I'm reminded of a conversation I had with an ex-pat Canadian Tim of my drinking acquaintance when that very spine was at its peak around the time of Seville, and the point was made that the overwhelming majority of domestic opponents just couldn't hope to even start to compete against such a battle-hardened and yet still immensely talented group of players. There was a collective mental toughness there that quite simply couldn't be matched by any other Scottish side.
Rangers?… at the time, according to my wee Canadian friend: "they bastards are too scared to even try and kick us." He was doing so well up until that point too - the reality being that they ALWAYS tried to kick us - but his point remains and it does accurately reflect the sheer will to win, and the all-encompassing mental AND physical power evident within O'Neill's most favoured line-up. Those six individuals (Sutton included) represented a solid core, one that knew nothing of the word compromise when it came to stamping their authority on proceedings.
And although, as hinted at above, there was one occasion, possibly two, when Sutton appeared to let his head go down in the heat of battle against TFOD (both at Ibrox?), it was often against Rangers that Sutton's best qualities shone brightest. His earliest duels with The Lorenzo and The Konterman became so one-sided that both big dafties were finally, and laughably, exposed for the journeymen we always knew they were.
Sutty was no mean competitor in Europe either, and at some point during the best days of 2002 and 2003, Sutton must surely have re-registered himself on the England international radar. I think I recall him dismissing calls that he was due a recall, the total disregard he held for international recognition seemingly at odds with his strive-to-be-the-best mentality at club level. In the end he appeared utterly nonchalant about the prospect of an England return. That he earned just the one cap is hard to believe when you consider the vast number of inferior forwards who have worn the England jersey during Sutton's career-span.
Injury was a frequent foe for Sutton during his time at Celtic, and although he had his share of struggles with officialdom (especially prior to John Hartson's arrival to help bear the brunt), and missed a few games on account of suspension, it was more often issues with fitness that saw Sutton sidelined for longish periods. Often freakish wee niggles or unusual injuries as well - wrist, facial etc. Indeed, the omens for Sutton's 2005/06 season were bleak when a collision with Neil Lennon's knee resulted in a cheek fracture during the opening match of the term, the ill-fated reverse in Bratislava. One wonders whether the team that night would have collapsed in quite the heap they did had Sutton managed to stay on the pitch beyond the opening quarter.
Subsequent to this Sutton has been alternating between the starting XI, the bench, and the treatment room for most of the season. More of the latter than either of the former it must be said. Darned hamstrings can be a right old beast at the best of times. The evidence is now mounting that he also failed to fully embrace the summer regime change at the club, and it was most notable that Sutton has made few complimentary references - if any – to Gordon Strachan when speaking in the immediate wake of his departure. The sort of guy who, if he can't be nice, is better not saying very much at all. Whether or not the friction with Strachan was anything more than the standard "clash of personalities" remains a matter for some debate and all will undoubtedly be revealed over the fullness of time.
It seems that Sutton (fast approaching his 33rd birthday) was in the process of having his £28k per week (ffs!) terms reduced at Celtic and the call to the Premiership - and incredibly enough, a somewhat larger pay packet - proved too difficult for to resist. Strachan obviously appreciates Chris Sutton's talents more than most, but that doesn't mean he should go all soft in the head when presented with the stark reality that he (Strachan) is the one charged with the big picture demands of rebuilding the football club. Sutton's absences have become more obvious this season, and as stated earlier, now is surely the right moment to end what has been a special spell with the club. Always good to sever those ties before circumstances sour everything else around them.
Unforgettable Sutton goals: The 6-2 double (obviously), the Helsinki extra-time away goal clincher during that first Euro campaign (for its significance), the one that came with stated intent against Ajax in Amsterdam a year or so later, the Celtic Park double in the 4-3 against Juventus, the one in Blackburn on the road to Seville, and of course, that wonderful whitewashing effort (among others) against Rangers. Plus dozens of others really…
After 86 goals for Sutton in 199 games (127 SPL starts, 16 strikes in 42 European starts), yet another bell tolls for the side generally regarded and often-quoted as the "best Celtic team of my generation". Chris Sutton was an integral part of that, his strike-rate of course, although very good, barely demonstrates his true and wider value to that team.
Farewell Chris - when you arrived you uttered words to the effect that it was time to put Rangers firmly in their place. Congratulations, on the whole, on a job well done. Although you would be one of the last to ever admit it or outwardly confirm it in any way, in fact you'll no doubt argue that you were just doing a job, I feel quite confident in saying that…in a purely manly Vinny Jones-esque kinda way … it's been emotional.
Reproduced from ETims (Contributed by Kiwi Mick) Tuesday 10th January 2006.