Dion Dublin

At 55 years old, Dion Dublin has this physical status:

Club career

Born in Leicester, while attending school, Dublin played for many Leicestershire youth clubs, including Wigston Fields and Thurmaston Magpies. After leaving school in 1985, Dublin went on to begin his professional football with Norwich City, but he never made a first-team appearance and was released from the club in 1988.

He joined Cambridge United as a center-forward on a free transfer in August 1988, which had been his position at Norwich City. However, he did have to make a number of appearances at center-half due to injury. United's prolific goalcoring has helped the club gain successive promotions. Dublin was then loaned out for short stretches with Barnet and Wycombe Wanderers during the 1988-1989 season. When Dublin became the first ever scorer in a Wembley play-off final, Cambridge was promoted from the Fourth Division via the play-offs.

The club was champions of the Third Division in 1990-91, and the club also reached the quarterfinals of the FA Cup in both seasons, with Dublin scoring at Arsenal in 1991. He helped Cambridge win promotion to the top flight in the old Second Division in 1991–92, but when Cambridge failed to win promotion to the top flight via the play-offs, Dublin was up for auction. He has since expressed his admiration for Cambridge United.

Manchester United boss Alex Ferguson, who had seen Dublin in a cup tie, agreed to a £1 million contract on August 7, 1992, beating Chelsea and Everton in the fight for a trophy tie. Ferguson had hoped to sign Alan Shearer from Southampton but failed out to Blackburn Rovers, making it a surprise purchase for the team.

He scored in United's fourth Premier League game of the 1992-93 season, beating Southampton 1–0 in United's first Premier League game of the 1992–93 season. However, he suffered a broken leg against Crystal Palace in a 1–0 victory at Old Trafford on September 2nd, after Eric Young's tackle, and he was out of action for six months. United had signed Eric Cantona and the Frenchman was clearly established as the first choice strike partner to Mark Hughes by the time he recovered, but by the time he recovered, he had solidified himself as the first choice strike partner to Mark Hughes. United won the league for the first time since 1967, but Dublin didn't make the 10 Premier League appearances required to earn a championship champion's medal. However, he was given a medal as a result of the Premier League's special dispensation.

Dublin recovered his fitness in the 1993–94 season, but his first team opportunities were hampered by Cantona and Hughes' success. Ferguson and Everton manager Howard Kendall agreed to a pact with Dublin City Manager Howard Kendall in December 1993, but a member of Everton's board of directors, evidently feeling that the transfer was not worth the money Kendall had promised in Dublin, caused Kendall's resignation as boss. Dublin will remain a United player for another nine months, but he never managed to land a regular spot in the first team.

He made five appearances in the league this season, scoring once in a 3–2 home victory over Oldham Athletic in early April, his goal assisting in a crucial win in the title run-in during a stretch when United started to lose points and Blackburn Rovers were closing in on them. United United beat Stoke City 2–1 at the Victoria Ground, and he also scored a second goal in the Football League Cup second leg. Dublin's only competitive goal against Oldham was against them at Old Trafford. He was left out of the FA Cup winning squad and failed to make enough appearances to earn another Premier League title, and also one of Manchester United's highest fees ever received in September 1994.

Dublin established himself as one of the Premier League's finest strikers during his four-year tenure with Coventry, winning the first of his four full England caps in 1997-98. With 23 goals in all competitions this season, he tied for the most goals in a top division season.

Following Phil Neal's departure in 1995, Ron Atkinson and Gordon Strachan's arrival in Dublin would have Dublin fit into an attacking team in the typical Atkinson mould. It featured Noel Whelan, John Salako, and Darren Huckerby to complement Peter Ndlovu's already offensive minded view. Following UEFA Euro 1996, Gary McAllister should have provided mid-table stability, but the team's defensive frailties often undermined Dublin's scoring at the other end. In May 1997, a single player in Premier League history made it to what was possibly one of the greatest escapes in Premier League history. Despite winning away from Liverpool (Dublin scored in the dying seconds) and Chelsea at home in their previous two games, Coventry City went into the final day second from bottom of the table, needing not only to beat Tottenham Hotspur away from home but also for results elsewhere in the league to help them avoid relegation. Coventry defeated White Hart Lane by 21-0, with both Middlesbrough and Sunderland losing, and Coventry ended one point behind the relegation zone.

The Sky Blues improved at home and enjoyed a season of mid table defense in the following season. Dublin formed an excellent partnership with Darren Huckerby that not only delivered some memorable goals but also led the Sky Blues to the FA Cup Sixth Round against Sheffield United; a match that was barely salvaged due to a penalty shootout. Dublin's Chris Sutton and Michael Owen earned their respective league top scorer in the 1997-98 season, with Blackburn's Chris Sutton and Liverpool's Michael Owen scoring 18 goals. Blackburn chief Roy Hodgson tabled a bid that Dublin turned down during the season. He stayed at Highfield Road and was instrumental in Coventry's highest finish in the Premiership to date (11th).

Despite being the Premier League's joint top-scoring player in the 1997–98 season, Dublin was controversially dropped from the England 1998 FIFA World Cup squad, alongside Michael Owen and Chris Sutton. However, his sporting exploits were still attracting burgeoning interest, and in the fall of 1998, he moved to Aston Villa for £5.75 million. He will score seven goals against Southampton, including a dramatic hat-trick in only his second game for the Villa in his first four games for the team. As a result, he is one of only six players to score in the first four games for a Premier League club in a row.

He suffered a life-threatening broken neck while playing for Aston Villa against Sheffield on Wednesday, as a result of which he still has a titanium plate holding three neck vertebrae together. Just days before suffering this injury, it was announced in the News of the World that Dublin will be sold by Aston Villa for around £6 million as the club continued to fund a drop in the club's share value as a result of manager John Gregory's heavy investment in players.

However, the crash did not end Dublin's career, and he was back in action three months later.

He helped Aston Villa win their first FA Cup final in 43 years, losing 1–0 against Chelsea in the semi-final shoot-out against Bolton Wanderers in April 2000, a week after returning to the team. Dublin stayed on the Villa Park payroll until 2002, having regained his fitness.

Dublin spent several weeks on loan at First Division Millwall, facing competition for a first team spot by Juan Pablo ngel and Peter Crouch. Millwall defeated Birmingham City 2–1 on aggregate in his first two league games against Stockport County and Grimsby Town to advance them into the play-offs, where despite Dublin's goal in the first leg of the semi finals. He returned to Villa and found himself as a first-choice striker, partnering Darius Vassell up front. In the Birmingham derby match, which ended 2–0 to Birmingham City, Dublin was sent off for a headbutt on Robbie Savage.

He was given a free transfer when his deal came to an end in the summer of 2004. He had been drafted by Leicester City, who had been promoted from the Premier League to the Championship. He scored only four goals in 38 competitive games during his first season with the club. Dublin's main striker was out for his role during the 2005–06 season, but he continued to play as a defender. He was dismissed by mutual agreement on January 30, 2006.

He was snapped up quickly by Celtic boss Gordon Strachan, who was hired to cover for Chris Sutton's departure on a season-long deal until the end of the season. Dublin's two successes at Celtic culminated in the Scottish League Cup and the Scottish Premier League champion's medals, respectively. Celtic defeated Dunfermline 3–0 on March 19, 2006, with Dublin taking the final goal as a replacement and winning the Scottish League Cup final, while Celtic also played enough games with Celtic to earn a gold medal. He made three league debuts and eight substitute appearances for Celtic, scoring once against Kilmarnock on April 9, 2006 in a 4–1 victory at Rugby Park. Despite one or two good performances for the Parkhead outfit, Strachan announced Dublin in May 2006.

Norwich City reported on September 20, 2006, that Dublin had remained with them until the end of the 2006–07 season. It was a return to Dublin, almost 20 years after leaving, to the club where he began his career. He made his debut against Plymouth Argyle on September 23, 2006. In a 3–3 draw against Queens Park Rangers on October 14, 2006 at Loftus Road, he scored his first competitive goal in Norwich City colours. Norwich's 4–1 FA Cup 3rd Round victory over Tamworth, which saw the striker score two goals and set up several chances for other teammates, was cited by Steve Wilson.

Dublin was instrumental in Norwich's promotion from relegation to League One, and supporters celebrated his contribution by voting him in second place in the Norwich City player of the year award on May 23, 2007, extending his stay at the club until the end of the 2007–08 season. Dublin said on September 2nd, 2007, when working as a pundit for a match between Aston Villa and Chelsea, that this season would be his last as a professional footballer, citing the fact that his "bones have begun to talk to him" as the reason, indicating that his body will not recover from another season.

Jimmy Quinn, then-manager of Cambridge United, approached Dublin in the spring of 2008 to join his old club for the 2008–09 season. However, the player will not change his mind about retiring. In his final season as a footballer and on his last game at Carrow Road, he was named Player of the Year and awarded the Barry Butler trophy on April 26, 2008. Dublin played his last game on May 4th, 2008, defeating Norwich's 4–1 loss to Sheffield on Wednesday in front of 36,208 supporters at Hillsborough, the highest Championship attendance that season. Dublin's 66th minute was met with a standing ovation from both groups of supporters and participants, as well as referee Mark Clattenburg.

International career

Dublin played the entire 90 minutes in the 2–0 friendly loss to Chile at Wembley Stadium on January 11, 1998, giving him his first cap for England. Dublin participated in the King Hassan II International Cup Tournament in May, beginning with a 1–0 win over Morocco and a 0–0 draw with Belgium, a game in which England lost on penalties. Despite being consistent and versatile in the Premier League this season, including finishing joint top scorer in the top scorers with 18 goals, Glenn Hoddle retained Les Ferdinand in his 22-man squad for the tournament in France. In the 2–0 friendly victory over the Czech Republic at Wembley Stadium on October 18, he got off to a 2-0 victory. This was Dublin's last cap for his country. He earned four caps for England but not scored any goals.

Television career

Since leaving football, Dublin has been working in television as a pundit for Sky Sports. Dublin has commented on a variety of games, including the UEFA Champions League games with Martin Tyler, as well as appearing on Ford Super Sunday with Richard Keys. He has also been a member of BBC Radio 5 Live's Battle Talks. He has appeared on BBC Radio 5 Live, Match of the Day 2, as well as being a regular on BBC One's Late Kick Off in the East region. In 2015, he joined Lucy Alexander and Martin Roberts on Homes Under the Hammer.

He has also appeared on BBC Sport as a regular pundit, whether on Football Focus, Match of the Day, or Final Score. He also serves as a co-commentary on live televised FA Cup games.

Dublin will be a competitor on BBC's Celebrity MasterChef in August 2021. He made it to the final.

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