Michael Thomas (soccer player, 1967)
| Michael Thomas | ||
 Thomas (2008)
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| Personnel | ||
|---|---|---|
| Surname | Michael Lauriston Thomas | |
| birthday | August 24, 1967 | |
| place of birth | Lambeth / London , England | |
| size | 179 cm | |
| position | Right midfield | |
| Juniors | ||
| Years | station | |
| Arsenal FC | ||
| Men's | ||
| Years | station | Games (goals) 1 |
| 1984-1986 | Arsenal FC | 12 (0) |
| 1987 | → Portsmouth FC (loan) | 3 (0) |
| 1987-1991 | Arsenal FC | 151 (24) |
| 1991-1997 | Liverpool FC | 135 (10) |
| 1998 | → Middlesbrough FC (loan) | 10 (0) |
| 1998-1999 | Benfica Lisbon | 18 (1) |
| 1999-2000 | Liverpool FC | 0 (0) |
| 2000-2001 | Wimbledon FC | 8 (0) |
| National team | ||
| Years | selection | Games (goals) |
| England U-21 | 12 (3) | |
| 1988-1989 | England | 2 (0) |
| 1 Only league games are given. | ||
Michael Lauriston Thomas (born August 24, 1967 in Lambeth , London , England ) is a former English football player . He was known primarily for his decisive goal to 2: 0 of Arsenal at Liverpool FC in the 1988/89 season, which secured his club at the last minute the English Championship. This game was later recreated in detail in the film Fever Pitch - based on the novel by Nick Hornby .
Athletic career
Born in the London borough of Lambeth, Thomas joined Arsenal as a schoolboy in 1982 and became a professional player in 1984. From there, the junior international, who was in the English U-20 World Cup squad in 1985, was loaned to Portsmouth FC at the beginning of 1987 , where he played in three games and returned to the "Gunners". Shortly thereafter, he made his debut on February 8, 1987 for Arsenal in the League Cup semi- final first leg against Tottenham Hotspur , which he lost 1-0. After a successful second leg, the team then won the trophy.
In the following years Thomas became more and more a regular player and mostly played as a right full-back during the 1987/88 season to 37 games. When Lee Dixon was signed, Thomas moved to midfield in the 1988/89 season and also came to his first of two international matches for the English national team against Saudi Arabia .
On May 26, 1989 Thomas experienced the peak of his career. The championship game between Liverpool FC and Arsenal FC was postponed to the end of the season due to the Hillsborough disaster . Liverpool had won the FA Cup a short time before and had the chance to win the second double in the club's history in this last league game . Arsenal was runner-up with 73 points and 71:36 goals, three points and two goals behind Liverpool with 76 points and 65:26 goals and therefore needed one - due to the additional rule that if the points and goal difference were equal, the more goals scored decided Win with two hits difference. This endeavor was considered particularly difficult, as Liverpool had not lost by two goals at home for nearly four years at the home Anfield .
After a goalless first half, Alan Smith scored the opening goal for Arsenal shortly after the restart after a free-kick from Nigel Winterburn . When the 90 minutes were almost up, Thomas pushed in a final attack from midfield - after a pass from Smith - on the offensive, played the opposing Steve Nicol and overcame Liverpool's Bruce Grobbelaar with a slightly raised shot. His club won the game 2-0 and the first championship in 18 years.
Two more seasons followed for Thomas at Arsenal FC. Shortly after he had become English champions again in the 1990/91 season, he fell out with coach George Graham in the fall of that year and was then sold to Liverpool FC. There he immediately won the FA Cup in 1992 and scored the first goal in the final against Sunderland FC . Nevertheless, injuries ensured that he could not assert himself permanently in the regular formation of his new club and mostly only served as a substitute for Jamie Redknapp . He later worked briefly for Middlesbrough FC before moving to the Portuguese club Benfica Lisbon in 1998 , which was coached by Graeme Souness at the time. However, this phase was not very successful either; after Souness was dismissed and replaced by Jupp Heynckes , Thomas found himself only in the reserve team. In 2000 he returned to England, joined Wimbledon FC and ended his football career a year later.
successes
- English champion (2): 1988/89 , 1990/91
- FA Cup : 1992
- English league cup winner : 1995
Web links
- Michael Thomas in the database of soccerbase.com (English)
- Forgotten Heroes on Thisisanfield.com
- Photo by Michael Thomas
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Thomas, Michael |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Thomas, Michael Lauriston |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | English soccer player |
| DATE OF BIRTH | August 24, 1967 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Lambeth , London |