Sheringham at The Den in 2011. |
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Edward Paul Sheringham | ||
| Date of birth | 2 April 1966 | ||
| Place of birth | Highams Park, London, England | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||
| Playing position | Striker | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Leytonstone & Ilford | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1983–1991 | Millwall | 220 | (93) |
| 1985 | → Aldershot (loan) | 5 | (0) |
| 1985 | → Djurgårdens IF (loan) | 21 | (13) |
| 1991–1992 | Nottingham Forest | 47 | (14) |
| 1992–1997 | Tottenham Hotspur | 166 | (76) |
| 1997–2001 | Manchester United | 104 | (31) |
| 2001–2003 | Tottenham Hotspur | 70 | (22) |
| 2003–2004 | Portsmouth | 32 | (9) |
| 2004–2007 | West Ham United | 76 | (28) |
| 2007–2008 | Colchester United | 19 | (3) |
| Total | 760 | (289) | |
| National team | |||
| 1988 | England U21 | 1 | (0) |
| 1993–2002 | England | 51 | (11) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals). |
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Edward Paul "Teddy" Sheringham MBE (born 2 April 1966) is a retired English footballer, and the father of footballer Charlie Sheringham. Sheringham played as a striker, and had a successful career at the club level, winning almost every domestic honour available with his clubs, most notably the Treble with Manchester United in the 1998–99 season. The pinnacle of his career came when he scored the equaliser and provided the assist for Manchester United's winning goal in the 1999 UEFA Champions League Final against Bayern Munich. Sheringham also represented England at international level. He was given an MBE in June 2007.[1] He retired from competitive football at the end of the 2007–08 season with Colchester United, at the age of 42, after a career lasting 25 years.[2]
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Sheringham began his professional career at Millwall in 1982 at the age of 16, after impressing a scout when playing for non-league club Leytonstone & Ilford during a youth team game against Millwall. He was signed up, initially as an apprentice and scored on only his second appearance for the club in a match away at Bournemouth in January 1984. After being loaned out by the club twice in 1985 to Aldershot and later a Swedish side, Djurgården, he quickly became a first choice selection at Millwall and during the late 1980s formed a striking partnership with Tony Cascarino. He was the club's top goalscorer in four seasons (1986–87, 1987–88, 1988–89 and 1990–91) and played in every game of the season twice, in 1986–87 and 1990–91.[3]
The 1987–88 season saw the club promoted to the First Division, then the highest tier of English league football, for the first time. Sheringham scored the first goal in Millwall's first home game in Division One. Millwall briefly topped the table at the start of October 1988 and the goals of Sheringham (15) and Cascarino (15) kept Millwall in the top four for most of the season before fading after Easter to finish in 10th position. Sheringham said in his autobiography that, "It was a crazy exhilarating time. There we were, little Millwall, in our first season in the First Division and topping the table until about March. Everybody said it couldn't last and of course it couldn't and it didn't, but we gave them all a good run for their money. We were beating the best teams when we shouldn't and getting away draws to which we had no right."[5][6]
Millwall's spell in the top flight was not to last as they were relegated in the following season, finishing bottom of the Division after briefly topping the table again early in the season. Sheringham was again top scorer for Millwall with twelve goals, having missed ten league games through injury.[7] The club had an opportunity to bounce straight back up at the end of the 1990–91 season, reaching the semi-finals of the Division Two play-offs, but they were beaten by Brighton & Hove Albion and remained in the Second Division. Sheringham's outstanding form during the 1990–91 season saw him finish as the league's highest scorer with 37 goals, a haul which included four hat-tricks. With Millwall failing to return to the top flight, a departure for Sheringham looked inevitable.[8] In his final season at Millwall, Sheringham broke all of the club's goalscoring records, scoring a total of 111 goals in all competitions in his eight years at the club.[9]
The 25-year-old Sheringham was sold to Nottingham Forest in a £2 million deal in July 1991[10] to play alongside Nigel Clough. He did well for Forest and helped them finish eighth in the First Division at the end of the 1991–92 season as well as to reach the League Cup final, where they lost to Manchester United. Sheringham scored Forest's first Premiership goal against Liverpool in August 1992 (which was also the first ever live goal shown on Sky Sports) but a week later he was sold to Tottenham Hotspur for £2.1 million.[10] Forest went on to be relegated in 1992–93, having failed to adequately replace Sheringham in attack.
Sheringham had a successful start to his career at the club by being the Premier League's top goalscorer in its inaugural season, scoring 22 goals (21 with Tottenham and one with Forest).[10] His strike partners at White Hart Lane included Gordon Durie, Ronny Rosenthal, Jürgen Klinsmann and finally Chris Armstrong. In 1993–94, he was Tottenham's top scorer with 14 Premiership goals but played in just 19 games due to injury and this impacted negatively on Tottenham's league form. Spurs finished 15th and were not completely safe from relegation until the penultimate game of the season. They have not finished lower than this ever since.
The following season was better, as he helped Spurs finish seventh in the Premiership and reach the semi-final of the FA Cup, just missing out on European football for the 1995–96 season.
Jürgen Klinsmann, who partnered Sheringham during the 1994–95 season, was later quoted as claiming that Sheringham was the most intelligent strike partner he had ever had.[11]
Sheringham was hugely popular with the Tottenham fans and by the mid 1990s was recognised as one of the best strikers in the Premiership. However, despite his prolific strike rate by the end of the 1996–97 season he was 31 years old and had yet to win a major trophy in a career which had so far spanned 15 years; many pundits considered him past his best and likely to finish his career without major honours.
In June 1997, Sheringham agreed to join Manchester United in a £3.5million deal. He was signed to replace the iconic Eric Cantona whose retirement had left the Old Trafford faithful demanding a big name to fill the gap. His first competitive game for the club was against his former employers, Tottenham, at White Hart Lane. Throughout the game, Sheringham suffered jeers and boos from his former fans, who had been angered by the fact that Sheringham had accused Tottenham of lacking ambition when he made his transfer. In the 60th minute with the score at 0–0, Sheringham missed a penalty, although ended up on the winning side as two late goals gave United the win.
Sheringham's first season at Old Trafford was difficult, although he scored 14 goals in all competitions he failed to meet expectations as the 1997–98 season ended without a trophy. Towards the end of the 1997–98 season, during a game at Bolton, an incident occurred that furthered the animosity with fellow striker Andy Cole. When Bolton scored, Sheringham blamed Cole, his strike partner and Cole then refused to talk to him. The breakdown in their relationship was never resolved, and reputedly they never spoke again.[12] This had started three years previously when Sheringham had snubbed Cole as the latter made his international debut.[13]
Speculation that Sheringham would leave United increased just after the 1998–99 season got underway, when Dwight Yorke moved to Old Trafford from Aston Villa. Sheringham's first-team chances were relatively limited but he still managed to get enough Premiership games to qualify for a title winner's medal at the end of the season — at the age of 33 he had finally won a major trophy. A week later he scored one of United's two goals in the FA Cup final to yield his second honour.[14] Four days after the FA Cup triumph, Sheringham scored a dramatic stoppage-time equaliser against Bayern Munich in the Champions League final, having come on as a substitute earlier in the game. With seconds of stoppage-time remaining, Ole Gunnar Solskjær scored from Sheringham's headed flick-on, and United won a treble of the Premiership, FA Cup and European Cup with Sheringham – having not won a major honour in his 15 year career on leaving Spurs – now having won every top-level trophy in the club game.
Sheringham did not get as many first-team chances as he might have hoped for during 1999-00, but he still played enough times to merit another Premiership title medal. In 2000–01, Sheringham played some of the best football of his career as he was United's top goalscorer, displacing Dwight Yorke as the preferred first-team player, as well as being voted Player of the Year by both the PFA and FWA.[15][16] His fine form ensured that he was still involved with the national side despite being in his 35th year, being named in the squad for the 2002 World Cup. He still maintains a legendary status with the Old Trafford faithful, appearing as a special half-time guest at Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's testimonial match.
At the end of the 2000–01 season, Sheringham's four-year contract at Old Trafford expired. He was facing stiffer competition than ever for the places up front, most of all from United's new Dutch striker Ruud van Nistelrooy. He refused United's offer of a 12-month contract[17] and returned to Tottenham on a free transfer as one of new manager Glenn Hoddle's first signings.[18] In his first season back, Sheringham helped Tottenham to a 9th place finish, their highest in 6 years, and to reach the League Cup final where they lost 2–1 to Blackburn Rovers, with Sheringham being brought down in the penalty area in the last minute for what he believed to be a penalty.[19] 2002–03 brought a similar mid table finish, although Tottenham had topped the Premiership three games into the season. Sheringham made 80 appearances in all competitions for Tottenham in this period, scoring 26 goals.[20]
Sheringham and Clive Allen were inducted into the Tottenham Hotspur Hall of Fame on 8 May 2008.[21]
On the expiry of his Tottenham contract at the end of the 2002–03 season, Tottenham decided not to offer Sheringham a new contract[22] and he joined Portsmouth in their first season in the Premier League.[23] Sheringham became the oldest Premiership player to score a hat-trick when he netted three against Bolton early in the season.[24] Despite this, he was only contracted to the club for one season and, despite scoring in his final game (a 5-1 win victory over Middlesbrough with the club already secure in the top flight),[25] at the end of the 2003–04 season, Portsmouth decided not to offer the 38-year-old striker another contract but he insisted that he wanted to continue his top flight career at another club.[26] Sheringham made 38 appearances for Portsmouth, scoring ten goals.[10]
Sheringham then dropped down a division to Championship West Ham United,[27] and was the division's third-highest goalscorer with 20 goals (21 in all competitions) - one of the highest scoring seasons of his career. He won the Championship Player of the Season award,[28] and helped them reach the playoff final where they beat Preston to return to the Premiership after a two-year exile. At the end of the 2004–05 season, Sheringham's one-year contract expired and he agreed to sign on for another season, this time back in the Premiership, at Upton Park.[29] After a second-half appearance against Charlton Athletic on 2 April 2006, Sheringham joined a small group of footballers, including Les Sealey, John Burridge and Gordon Strachan, who have played top-flight football while in their forties.[30] On 19 August 2006, he became the oldest outfield player in the history of the division, at 40 years 139 days.[31] Sheringham signed a contract to play for West Ham until the end of the 2006–07 season,[32] and was a player at the club after his 41st birthday. On 13 May 2006, Sheringham became the third oldest player to appear in an FA Cup final, at 40 years and 41 days old. On 26 December 2006, at the age of 40 years and 266 days, he beat his own record for oldest Premiership scorer, with the goal in a 2–1 defeat to Portsmouth. On 30 December 2006 he broke the record for oldest Premiership outfield player once more, starting in the 1–0 defeat against Manchester City, aged 40 years and 270 days. Sheringham also appeared in 11 FA Cup, League Cup, and UEFA Cup games for West Ham scoring two goals.
After being released by West Ham, Sheringham signed for Colchester United in July 2007 and was given the number 8 shirt vacated by Jamie Cureton.[33] He started Colchester's first game of the season, away at Sheffield United,[34] and scored the first goal in a 2–2 home draw against Barnsley a week later.[35] 7 days later he scored again, in a 3–0 win at Preston North End.[36] Having just served a three match suspension after being sent off against Coventry, Sheringham was once again amongst the scorers in Colchester's 2–1 win at Hillsborough over Sheffield Wednesday.[37] He scored his fourth and final Colchester goal in a 3–1 FA Cup defeat to Peterborough on 5 January 2008.[38] Sheringham made only 3 league appearances in 2008, the last of which came against Stoke City on 26 April 2008, the last ever game at Layer Road.[39]
Whilst at Colchester, Sheringham was the oldest player in all four divisions of the Football League, and is now part of the elite list of players who have achieved more than 700 League appearances in their career. He retired at the end of the 2007–08 season, his career ending on a low note as Colchester were relegated from the Championship – their first relegation for 18 years.[40]
Sheringham stayed out of the public eye during his retirement until July 2009, when non-League side Beckenham Town announced that they were in talks to sign the former England international. Beckenham, who play in the Kent League, revealed that they had intentions to bring in Sheringham for their FA Vase campaign of 2009–10.[41] The signing was completed on 9 September 2009,[42] but the following week it was confirmed by the club that Sheringham was not to play in Beckenham's next FA Vase game, admitting that it was a publicity stunt to promote the club's return to the tournament.
Something of a late developer on the international scene, Sheringham did not win his first England cap until the age of twenty-seven in 1993. Under the reign of manager Terry Venables (1994–96) Sheringham came to be favoured as the preferred strike partner for Alan Shearer. During this time England had a wealth of strikers with the likes of Andrew Cole, Ian Wright, a young Robbie Fowler and Les Ferdinand all battling to partner Shearer in the England team.
The two formed a famous partnership at international level, as they complemented each other's strengths: Shearer the out-and-out goalscorer, big, strong and powerful, Sheringham just 'dropping off' his strike partner, finding spaces, creating play and providing key passes, forming the link between Shearer and the England midfield. The pairing came to be known as 'The SAS' ('Shearer And Sheringham' and Shearer was a member of another SAS at club level: Shearer And Sutton) and their most successful time together came in the 1996 European Championships, held in England. Their most famous contribution was in the 4–1 victory over Holland, a game in the opening group stages in which they both scored twice against one of the strongest teams in the tournament. Though England were eventually knocked out in the semi-finals, many believed that that squad of players such as Sheringham and his contemporaries including Paul Gascoigne, Steve McManaman, Tony Adams and Paul Ince, had done the nation proud. Unfortunately, the England squad were also criticised heavily in the media for their part in several off the field incidents during the lead up to the tournament, where Sheringham, McManaman and Gascoigne were photographed drinking heavily and playing "dentist chair" drinking games as well as destroying the first class cabin of a Cathay Pacific flight,[43] which went down poorly with the public.
Sheringham continued to be a first choice selection under new England manager Glenn Hoddle (1996–99) until the emergence of new teenage superstar Michael Owen during the course of 1998 saw him overshadowed. Although Sheringham began the 1998 FIFA World Cup as a starting player with Owen on the bench, after Owen replaced him and almost turned around a defeat against Romania in England's second game of the tournament, it seemed likely that Sheringham's front line international career had come to an end.
He was not selected at all for the 2000 European Championships by then manager Kevin Keegan, but the retirement of Shearer (despite being four years younger than Sheringham) from international football after that tournament and the arrival of new manager Sven-Göran Eriksson in 2001 saw a return to international favour for him. He was often deployed as a tactical substitute late in games by Eriksson, valued for his ability to hold the ball up and create intelligent play. In 2001, Sheringham scored an important goal for England against Greece in a World Cup qualifying match within 15 seconds of coming on as a substitute, although this event is overlooked by the 93rd minute equalising free-kick by David Beckham. Sheringham had won the free kick scored by Beckham, and had even suggested to the England captain that he take it as Beckham had missed several already in the match, but Beckham decided to take the kick himself.
He was selected as part of Eriksson's 2002 FIFA World Cup squad after impressing throughout the 01–02 season for club,and played in the famous 1–0 win against Argentina, almost scoring a goal with a shot that was well saved by the Argentine goalkeeper, and made his final England appearance as a substitute in the 2–1 quarter-final defeat to Brazil in Japan. His twelve appearances for Eriksson were all as a substitute.[44]
At the age of thirty-six, that defeat signalled the final end of Sheringham's international career, during which he had earned fifty-one caps and scored eleven times for England.
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 June 1995 | Elland Road, Leeds | Sweden | 1–0 | 3–3 | Friendly match (Umbro Cup) |
| 2 | 15 November 1995 | Wembley Stadium, London | Switzerland | 2–0 | 3–1 | Friendly match |
| 3 | 18 June 1996 | Wembley Stadium, London | Netherlands | 2–0 | 4–1 | UEFA Euro 1996 |
| 4 | 18 June 1996 | Wembley Stadium, London | Netherlands | 4–0 | 4–1 | UEFA Euro 1996 |
| 5 | 9 November 1996 | Boris Paichadze Stadium, Tbilisi | Georgia | 1–0 | 2–0 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 6 | 29 March 1997 | Wembley Stadium, London | Mexico | 1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly match |
| 7 | 30 April 1997 | Wembley Stadium, London | Georgia | 1–0 | 2–0 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 8 | 31 May 1997 | Silesian Stadium, Chorzów | Poland | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 9 | 22 April 1998 | Wembley Stadium, London | Portugal | 2–0 | 3–0 | Friendly match |
| 10 | 25 May 2001 | Pride Park, Derby | Mexico | 4–0 | 4–0 | Friendly match |
| 11 | 6 October 2001 | Old Trafford, Manchester | Greece | 1–1 | 2–2 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| Club performance | League | Cup | League Cup | Continental | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Club | League | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| England | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 1983–84 | Millwall | Third Division | 7 | 1 | - | - | - | 7 | 1 | |||
| 1984–85 | 0 | 0 | - | 1 | 0 | - | 1 | 0 | ||||
| 1984–85 | Aldershot | Fourth Division | 5 | 0 | - | - | - | 5 | 0 | |||
| Sweden | League | Svenska Cupen | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 1985 | Djurgården | Division 1 | 21 | 13 | - | - | - | 21 | 13 | |||
| England | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 1985–86 | Millwall | Second Division | 18 | 4 | - | - | - | 18 | 4 | |||
| 1986–87 | 42 | 13 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 2 | - | 48 | 15 | |||
| 1987–88 | 43 | 22 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | - | 48 | 22 | |||
| 1988–89 | First Division | 33 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3 | - | 38 | 15 | ||
| 1989–90 | 31 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 1 | - | 37 | 12 | |||
| 1990–91 | Second Division | 46 | 33 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | - | 52 | 37 | ||
| 1991–92 | Nottingham Forest | First Division | 39 | 13 | 4 | 2 | 10 | 5 | - | 53 | 20 | |
| 1992–93 | Premier League | 3 | 1 | - | - | - | 3 | 1 | ||||
| 1992–93 | Tottenham Hotspur | Premier League | 38 | 21 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | - | 47 | 28 | |
| 1993–94 | 19 | 14 | - | 2 | 2 | - | 21 | 15 | ||||
| 1994–95 | 42 | 18 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 | - | 50 | 23 | |||
| 1995–96 | 38 | 16 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 3 | - | 47 | 24 | |||
| 1996–97 | 29 | 7 | - | 3 | 1 | - | 32 | 8 | ||||
| 1997–98 | Manchester United | Premier League | 31 | 9 | 3 | 3 | - | 7 | 2 | 41 | 14 | |
| 1998–99 | 17 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 26 | 5 | ||
| 1999–2000 | 27 | 5 | - | - | 9 | 1 | 36 | 6 | ||||
| 2000–01 | 29 | 15 | 2 | 1 | - | 11 | 5 | 42 | 21 | |||
| 2001–02 | Tottenham Hotspur | Premier League | 34 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 2 | - | 42 | 13 | |
| 2002–03 | 36 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | - | 38 | 13 | |||
| 2003–04 | Portsmouth | Premier League | 32 | 9 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 | - | 38 | 10 | |
| 2004–05 | West Ham United | Championship | 33 | 20 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | 36 | 21 | |
| 2005–06 | Premier League | 26 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | 31 | 7 | ||
| 2006–07 | 17 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 20 | 2 | ||
| 2007–08 | Colchester United | Championship | 19 | 3 | 1 | 1 | - | - | 20 | 4 | ||
| Total | England | 734 | 275 | 56 | 30 | 55 | 27 | 32 | 9 | 877 | 341 | |
| Sweden | 21 | 13 | - | - | - | 21 | 13 | |||||
| Career total | 755 | 288 | 56 | 30 | 55 | 27 | 32 | 9 | 898 | 354 | ||
| England national team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Apps | Goals |
| 1993 | 2 | 0 |
| 1994 | 3 | 0 |
| 1995 | 7 | 2 |
| 1996 | 9 | 3 |
| 1997 | 8 | 3 |
| 1998 | 8 | 1 |
| 1999 | 1 | 0 |
| 2000 | 1 | 0 |
| 2001 | 4 | 2 |
| 2002 | 8 | 0 |
| Total | 51 | 11 |
Upon his retirement from professional football in 2008, Sheringham has been a noticeable figure on the world poker scene, playing in various competitions worldwide. He made the final table in the € 5,000 No Limit Hold'em Main Event in the EPT Vilamoura, finishing 5th out of a field of 384 players, winning € 93,121. He vowed to donate his winnings to charity, though later admitted to the Daily Mail he decided to put the money towards a new Aston Martin DB9 he had been shown at a local dealer.[47]
Djurgården
Millwall
Nottingham Forest
Manchester United
West Ham United
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