![]() ![]() They stunned the world by unveiling former England manager Sven Goran Eriksson as their director of football and were soon linked with a host of famous internationals, including David Beckham, Luís Figo and Roberto Carlos. In June 2009, Middle Eastern consortium Munto Finance completed a multi-million pound takeover of Notts County and announced their ambition to lead the club to the Premier League in just a matter of years. The former Spurs and Arsenal defender had enjoyed an illustrious career, winning two Premier League titles and playing in six international tournaments for England.Īfter leaving Portsmouth at the end of 2008-09, Campbell rejected offers from several Premier League clubs, but nobody could have predicted his next move. But it was a good one.These days most top footballers finish their careers with one last big payday in America or China – but in 2009 Sol Campbell took a slightly different route. Might not have been the easiest decision. ![]() I doubt many players or fans have ‘forgiven’ Campbell for doing this, though it speaks to the brutality of football as well as the size of the cojones on the man. Yet, with the hatred between the clubs as strong and distasteful as ever, Sol Campbell made the tummy-dropping decision to join Arsenal for free directly from Tottenham in 2001. ![]() Only with Sol, the one club that attracted his attention more than others were the one club any Spurs fan would hold against him if he decided to join: Arsenal. … well, it can only be a Bosman free transfer, can’t it! And we all know what happens when contracts are left up in the air by this point, right … Not only were they coming to the end of the 2000/01 season, but Campbell’s contract situation hadn’t been agreed ahead of time. Though this wasn’t the only coming-together between the two men, it was rather poorly timed from a financial point of view. Speaking almost in direct disdain to the sensibilities of those like Campbell – whom he believed ‘worked hard anyway’. That is, until George Graham stepped into the Spurs fold a few years after he took hold of that status …Ĭheck out another one of our features on George Graham’s career by clicking HERE.įollowing a rather unfortunate pairing of words by the new manager, Sol Campbell was unsettled by his new boss’ desire for him expecting those below him to ‘work hard’. He gradually progressed from ‘that young lad from the academy’ to the club captain and had a penchant for key moments either end of the pitch while adorning that treasured armband on his bicep. Though they were able to attract the odd transfer here and there – David Ginola from Newcastle immediately springs to mind here – their long-term stability was constantly scrutinised.įor a while, Sol Campbell was a shining beacon of hope and prosperity in a sea of uncertainty. The stadium was in disarray, the backroom staff in constant disagreement and it all festered into a more-than-inconsistent return on the pitch. Something Claude Littner discusses in great depth in his book – which I highly recommend, btw! Right from the boardroom, to the dugout, which then permeated its way onto the pitch, life as a Spurs fan was perhaps even more rough ‘n’ tumble than it appears to be today. ![]() I still hold him high in that ‘greatest Premier League defenders of all time’ discussion – because he deserves it!īy the turn of the millennium, Sol Campbell was nearing enough a round decade in the heart of Tottenham Hotspur’s plans – whereby he was playing a major role in what was a turbulent time for his favourite club. Especially when compared with what we expect from centre-backs today.ĭominating in the air, comfortable with the ball at his feet … and even with a tendency to burst through the lines and get his side going, there really wasn’t much that this guy couldn’t do. Both in the white of the Three Lions shirt … and a similarly pale one for Tottenham Hotspur.īursting through the academy in the early ’90s, Sol Campbell is one of those players who I personally look back on and think were ‘ahead of their time’. I’ll always condemn the mistreatment of our game’s players, and though I can appreciate why certain fans were peeved off, this stuff was just uncalled for.īefore the words ‘Sol Campbell’ became ensconced within the same sentence as ‘Judas’ – and other equally delightful terms – he was making a name for himself as one of England’s most prized possessions in the centre-back role. ![]()
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