Tony Alexander Adams MBE (born 10 October 1966) is an English former football manager and player. Adams played for Arsenal and England, captaining both teams. He spent his entire playing career of 19 years as a centre-back at Arsenal, making 672 total appearances and winning four English league titles. He is considered as one of Arsenal's greatest ever players,[2] and is also included in the Football League 100 Legends.
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Tony Alexander Adams[1] | ||
Date of birth | [1] | 10 October 1966||
Place of birth | Romford, London, England | ||
Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)[1] | ||
Position(s) | Centre-back | ||
Youth career | |||
1980–1983 | Arsenal | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
1983–2002 | Arsenal | 504 | (32) |
International career | |||
1987–2000 | England | 66 | (5) |
Managerial career | |||
2003–2004 | Wycombe Wanderers | ||
2008–2009 | Portsmouth | ||
2010–2011 | Gabala | ||
2016–2017 | Granada | ||
*Club domestic league appearances and goals |
With Arsenal, he won four top flight division titles, uniquely captaining a title-winning team in three different decades, three FA Cups, two Football League Cups, a UEFA Cup Winners' Cup and two FA Community Shields.[3] Adams is one of six people honoured with a statue outside the Emirates Stadium, Arsenal's home ground. He won 66 caps for England between 1987 and 2000, and played at four major tournaments.
When his playing career finished, Adams went into football management, spending periods in charge of Wycombe Wanderers, Portsmouth, Azerbaijani side Gabala and Spanish side Granada.
Early life
Born in Romford, Adams grew up in Dagenham and was a pupil at Hunters Hall Primary School from 1971 to 1978 and then Eastbrook Comprehensive School from 1978 to 1983.[4] His cousin is fellow professional footballer Steve MacKenzie.[5]
Club career
1983–1989: Early career and Anfield title
Adams signed for Arsenal as a schoolboy in 1980,[citation needed] and made his first-team debut on 5 November 1983 against Sunderland aged 17.[6][7] He accidentally put his shorts on back to front in the changing room before the match. Then, with virtually his first touch of the ball during the game, he gave it away, leading to Sunderland's opening goal. Additionally, Adams had a goal disallowed during his debut.[6] Adams became a regular player in the 1986–87 season, winning his first major trophy that season when playing in the Football League Cup Final win over Liverpool at Wembley.[7]
On 1 January 1988, he became Arsenal captain at the age of 21;[8] he would remain club captain for the next 14 years until his retirement.
Adams's strong discipline of the defence was considered a factor in Arsenal winning the League Cup in 1986–87 and then the First Division championship twice; the first in 1988–89 after a win over Liverpool in the final game of the season; the second in 1990–91, losing once all season.
1989–1996: Arsenal's famous back four
Together with Lee Dixon, Nigel Winterburn and Steve Bould, Adams was part of the "famous back four" that lined up in Arsenal's defence, which under George Graham was renowned for its well-disciplined use of the offside trap.[9] The backline achieved legendary status with its unyielding resilience, remaining formidable for over a decade. Arsenal notably conceded just 18 goals during their title-winning 1990–91 league season, and the four players amassed over 2,000 appearances for the club.[10]
In 1992–93 Adams gained the distinction of being the captain of the first English side to win the League Cup and FA Cup double.[11]
Despite this success, a battle with alcoholism, which started in the mid-1980s, increasingly blighted his life as he was reportedly often involved in fights in nightclubs. On 6 May 1990, Adams crashed his Ford Sierra into a wall in Rayleigh and when breathalysed his blood alcohol level was found to be more than four times the legal drink-drive limit. On 19 December that year, at Southend Crown Court,[8][12][13] he was sentenced to four months in prison, and freed after half of his sentence on 15 February 1991.[14] He became one of the most high-profile recovering alcoholics in the UK;[15] his battle with alcohol is detailed in his autobiography, Addicted, which was released in May 1998 to enormous critical acclaim.[15] A 2001 article in the BBC News reported that he is tee-total.[16]
In 1994, Adams led Arsenal to their first European trophy in 24 years by defeating favourites Parma 1–0 in the European Cup Winners' Cup final held in Copenhagen.[17]
1996–2002: Wenger's arrival and retirement
"When I first came to Arsenal, I realised the back four were all university graduates in the art of defending. As for Tony Adams, I consider him to be a doctor of defence."
– Wenger hailing Adams' experience in 1997.[18]
Six weeks into Adams's sobriety, Arsène Wenger arrived as Arsenal manager in October 1996. Adams reflected in 2020 that Wenger understood his psychology, and knew of the dangers of alcohol, as his parents ran a pub.[19] Adams rewarded his manager's understanding handsomely, captaining the club to two Premiership and FA Cup Doubles, in 1997–98 and 2001–02.[7]
In August 2002, just before the start of the 2002–03 season, Adams retired from professional football after a career spanning almost 20 years, his last match being the 2002 FA Cup Final.[20] He played 674 matches for Arsenal (only David O'Leary has played more) and was the most successful captain in the club's history. The number 6 shirt that Adams wore when playing was not used again until the 2006–07 season, when it was assigned to Philippe Senderos.[21]
Just before his retirement as a player, Adams had applied to become manager of Brentford (who had just missed out on promotion to Division One) after the resignation of Steve Coppell, but his application was rejected.[22]
Nicknamed "Mr Arsenal", he was honoured by Arsenal with a testimonial game against Celtic in May 2002 with many Arsenal legends playing, including Ian Wright, John Lukic and Adams's fellow back four stalwarts, Dixon, Winterburn and Bould. The game finished 1–1 with Lee Dixon, in his final appearance for the Gunners, getting their goal.[23] In March 2003, just seven months after his retirement and with Arsenal BBC Sport named Adams as the former Arsenal player that the club would most benefit from returning.[24]
In 2004, Adams was inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame in recognition of his impact on the English game, and in 2008 he was placed third in the 50 Greatest Gunners poll on the club's website.
A statue of Adams was placed outside Emirates Stadium in celebration of the club's 125th anniversary on 9 December 2011. Manager Herbert Chapman and Arsenal's all-time top goal scorer Thierry Henry,[25] and later Dennis Bergkamp, were also immortalised with statues outside the ground.[26]
International career
Adams made his debut for England against Spain in 1987,[7] and played in UEFA Euro 1988. England lost all three games, but Adams scored one of England's two goals in the tournament in a 3–1 defeat to the Soviet Union. He was the first player to represent England who had been born after the 1966 World Cup win.
After a highly promising start to his international career, Adams suffered a series of setbacks during the early 1990s. He was surprisingly left out of the 1990 FIFA World Cup squad by manager Bobby Robson,[7] missed UEFA Euro 1992 due to injury, whilst England failed to qualify for the 1994 FIFA World Cup. England reached the semi-finals of UEFA Euro 1996, before losing on penalties to Germany.
Adams appeared at the 1998 FIFA World Cup. Later that year, he made headlines for several statements in his autobiography Addicted, criticising manager Glenn Hoddle for his management of David Beckham and Paul Gascoigne, and for making Alan Shearer captain instead of Adams; he also called Gascoigne an alcoholic, which was denied by the player's representatives. Hoddle told the press that he had no problems with Adams's opinions from the book.[27]
His international swansong was England's unsuccessful UEFA Euro 2000 campaign. With Shearer retiring from international football after the tournament, Adams regained the captaincy. However, within months, England lost a World Cup qualifier to Germany in October 2000, the match being the last to be staged at Wembley Stadium, before the stadium was torn down for rebuilding. That match was Adams's 60th Wembley appearance, a record. With Sven-Göran Eriksson eventually taking the helm and under increasing pressure for his place from the emerging and improving Rio Ferdinand, Adams retired from international football, having made 66 appearances,[28] before Eriksson picked his first squad. He was the last England player to score at the old Wembley Stadium when he scored England's second goal in a 2–0 friendly win over Ukraine on 31 May 2000. This was also his first goal since he scored in a friendly against Saudi Arabia in November 1988, thus making the record for the longest gap between goals for England.
Adams was the first, and remains to date the only, England player to make tournament appearances in three separate decades.
Style of play
Described as a "stopper" (or man–marking defender) by Tom Sheen of The Guardian in 2014, Adams played as a centre-back. A tall, brave, rugged, physical, and committed defender, his main traits were his leadership, aerial prowess, and his ability to read the game and time his tackles. While initially he was not known to be the most gifted player on the ball from a technical standpoint, he developed this aspect of his game under Wenger, and he later excelled as a ball-playing centre-back, in which he became known for his ability to carry the ball out from the back, as well as his penchant for undertaking individual runs.[23][29][30][31][32][33][34][35] However, he was also known for his lack of pace.[36][37]
Managerial and coaching career
Wycombe Wanderers
After starting a sports science degree at Brunel University, Adams became the manager of Wycombe Wanderers on 5 November 2003. He took over the team that were in last place in the Football League Second Division (third tier).[38] On his debut three days later, he won 4–1 at home to Swindon Town in the first round of the FA Cup.[39] After a 2–1 loss at Tranmere Rovers on 12 April 2004 left the Chairboys 12 points inside the relegation zone with four games remaining, Adams said that his team would carry on fighting; unbeknown to the club, they were already relegated as two teams above them still had to play each other.[40]
Wycombe began 2004–05 in the fourth tier, renamed League Two. Although the club were top of the table in August 2004, a loss of form saw them fall down the table. Adams resigned from Wycombe on 9 November 2004, with the club in 17th, citing personal reasons.[41]
Feyenoord
In July 2005, Adams accepted a trainee coaching role with Dutch side Feyenoord with special responsibility for its Jong team, which is a reserve/junior side. Adams later had a short spell seconded to Utrecht as a first team trainee coach in January and February 2006. While at Feyenoord he also worked part-time as a scout for Arsenal, watching games in Italy, France and the Netherlands.[42]
Portsmouth
Adams joined Portsmouth as assistant manager to Harry Redknapp in June 2006, a position left vacant by the departure of Kevin Bond. In his first season as assistant, Portsmouth finished ninth in the Premier League – their highest standing since the 1950s and won the 2007–08 FA Cup. Adams was appointed caretaker manager of Portsmouth in October 2008, alongside Joe Jordan,[43] following the departure of Harry Redknapp to Tottenham Hotspur. He was subsequently appointed full-time manager.[43][44] He was sacked in February 2009 after just 16 games in charge in which Portsmouth picked up only 10 points.[45]
Gabala
In May 2010, Adams signed a three-year contract to manage Azerbaijani club FC Gabala of the Azerbaijan Premier League.[46] He departed as coach of Gabala due on 16 November 2011, before the end of the 2011–12 season.[47]
In October 2012, Adams returned to Gabala in the capacity of Sporting Director.[48]
Granada
On 10 April 2017, Adams was named as manager of La Liga strugglers Granada CF until the end of the 2016–17 season.[49][50] At the end of the season, Granada were relegated from La Liga ending their six-year stay in the top division. Adams lost all seven games as manager and was subsequently sacked.[51]
Outside football
In September 2000, as a result of his own experiences with alcoholism and drug addiction, Adams founded the Sporting Chance Clinic, a charitable foundation aimed at providing treatment, counselling and support for sports men and women suffering from drink, drug or gambling addictions.[52] The clinic, which works to the twelve-step programme philosophy of Alcoholics Anonymous is based near Liphook in Hampshire and includes Kate Hoey, Alex Rae and Elton John as patrons, and is supported by the Professional Footballers' Association. Adams's former Arsenal and England teammate Paul Merson, himself a recovering alcoholic, is also a patron of the charity. His Arsenal testimonial match also helped raise £500,000 for his charity, the Sporting Chance Clinic.[23]
Adams is a Patron for NACOA—a charity that provides information, advice and support for anyone affected by their parents' drinking.[53] He is also a Patron for charity School-Home Support (SHS). SHS helps disadvantaged children and young people overcome barriers to education such as poverty, domestic abuse and housing issues.[54]
On 30 December 2009, Adams was the guest editor on BBC Radio 4's Today programme.
In 2015, Adams underwent heart surgery after suffering from chest pains. After the operation, he stated that it had probably saved his life.[55]
In December 2018, Adams was named as the 29th President of the Rugby Football League from summer 2019, replacing politician Andy Burnham;[56][57] he was succeeded in the honorary role by broadcaster Clare Balding a year later.[58]
In 2022, he took part as a celebrity contestant in the twentieth series of Strictly Come Dancing being partnered by dance professional Katya Jones, placing ninth.
Playing statistics
Club
Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
Arsenal | 1983–84[59] | First Division | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 3 | 0 | ||
1984–85[60] | First Division | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 18 | 0 | |||
1985–86[61] | First Division | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 10 | 0 | |||
1986–87[62] | First Division | 42 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 9 | 0 | — | — | 55 | 6 | |||
1987–88[63] | First Division | 39 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 0 | — | — | 51 | 2 | |||
1988–89[64] | First Division | 36 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | 3[a] | 1 | 46 | 5 | ||
1989–90[66] | First Division | 38 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 1[b] | 0 | 46 | 5 | ||
1990–91[67] | First Division | 30 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 2 | — | — | 37 | 4 | |||
1991–92[68] | First Division | 35 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4[c] | 0 | 1[b] | 0 | 44 | 2 | |
1992–93[69] | Premier League | 35 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 9 | 0 | — | — | 52 | 2 | |||
1993–94[70] | Premier League | 35 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 8[d] | 2 | 1[b] | 0 | 49 | 4 | |
1994–95[71] | Premier League | 27 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 10[e] | 0 | — | 42 | 4 | ||
1995–96[72] | Premier League | 21 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 2 | — | — | 28 | 3 | |||
1996–97[73] | Premier League | 28 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1[f] | 0 | — | 35 | 3 | ||
1997–98[74] | Premier League | 26 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2[f] | 0 | — | 36 | 3 | ||
1998–99[75] | Premier League | 26 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4[c] | 1 | 1[b] | 0 | 36 | 2 | |
1999–2000[76] | Premier League | 21 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 11[g] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 33 | 1 | |
2000–01[77] | Premier League | 26 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8[c] | 0 | — | 38 | 2 | ||
2001–02[78] | Premier League | 10 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 13 | 1 | ||
Career total | 504 | 32 | 54 | 8 | 59 | 5 | 48 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 672 | 49 |
- ^ Appearances in Football League Centenary Trophy[65]
- ^ a b c d Appearance in FA Charity Shield
- ^ a b c Appearances in European Cup/UEFA Champions League
- ^ Appearances in European Cup Winners' Cup
- ^ Eight appearances in European Cup Winners' Cup; two appearances in European Super Cup
- ^ a b Appearance(s) in UEFA Cup
- ^ Six appearances in UEFA Cup; five appearances in UEFA Champions League
International
National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
---|---|---|---|
England | 1987 | 6 | 1 |
1988 | 11 | 3 | |
1989 | 0 | 0 | |
1990 | 1 | 0 | |
1991 | 1 | 0 | |
1992 | 2 | 0 | |
1993 | 7 | 0 | |
1994 | 5 | 0 | |
1995 | 6 | 0 | |
1996 | 7 | 0 | |
1997 | 2 | 0 | |
1998 | 8 | 0 | |
1999 | 6 | 0 | |
2000 | 4 | 1 | |
Total | 66 | 5 |
- Scores and results list England's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Adams goal.[79]
No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 11 November 1987 | Stadion Crvene Zvedze, Belgrade, Yugoslavia | Yugoslavia | 4–0 | 4–1 | UEFA Euro 1988 qualifying | [80] |
2 | 23 March 1988 | Wembley Stadium, London, England | Netherlands | 2–2 | 2–2 | Friendly | [81] |
3 | 18 June 1988 | Waldstadion, Frankfurt, Germany | Soviet Union | 1–1 | 1–3 | UEFA Euro 1988 | [82] |
4 | 16 November 1988 | King Fahd Stadium, Riyahd, Saudi Arabia | Saudi Arabia | 1–1 | 1–1 | Friendly | [83] |
5 | 31 May 2000 | Wembley Stadium, London, England | Ukraine | 2–0 | 2–0 | Friendly | [84] |
Managerial statistics
Team | From | To | Record | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
P | W | D | L | Win % | |||
Wycombe Wanderers | 5 November 2003 | 9 November 2004 | 53 | 12 | 21 | 20 | 22.6 |
Portsmouth | 28 October 2008 | 9 February 2009 | 21 | 4 | 6 | 11 | 19.0 |
Gabala | 12 May 2010 | 16 November 2011 | 45 | 17 | 15 | 13 | 37.8 |
Granada | 10 April 2017 | 3 June 2017 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0.0 |
Total | 126 | 33 | 42 | 51 | 26.2 |
Honours
Arsenal[85]
- Football League First Division: 1988–89, 1990–91
- Premier League: 1997–98, 2001–02
- FA Cup: 1992–93, 1997–98, 2001–02; runner-up: 2000–01
- Football League Cup: 1986–87, 1992–93; runner-up: 1987–88
- FA Charity Shield: 1991 (shared), 1998
- Football League Centenary Trophy: 1988[86]
- European Cup Winners' Cup: 1993–94
- UEFA Cup runner-up: 1999–2000
- European Super Cup runner-up: 1994
Individual
- English Football Hall of Fame: 2004[87]
- Premier League Hall of Fame: 2023[88]
- Football League 100 Legends[89]
- PFA Young Player of the Year: 1986–87[90]
- PFA First Division/Premier League Team of the Year: 1986–87, 1993–94, 1995–96, 1996–97[85]
- Premier League 10 Seasons Awards: (1992–93 to 2001–02)[91]
- Domestic Team of the Decade
- Overall Team of the Decade
- Premier League 20 Seasons Awards: (1992–93 to 2011–12)[92]
- Public choice Fantasy Teams of the 20 Seasons
- Panel choice Fantasy Teams of the 20 Seasons
- FWA Tribute Award: 2002–03[93]
- Arsenal Player of the Season: 1986−87, 1989−90, 1993−94[94]
Orders
See also
References
- General
- James, Josh; Andrews, Mark; Kelly, Andy (15 October 2018). Arsenal: The Complete Record. Liverpool: deCoubertin Books. ISBN 978-1-909245-75-4.
- Maidment, Jem (2008). The Official Arsenal Encyclopedia: A Comprehensive A-Z of London's Most Successful Club (revised ed.). Hamlyn. ISBN 978-0-600-61888-1.
- Specific
- ^ a b c Hugman, Barry J., ed. (1999). The 1999–2000 Official PFA Footballers Factfile. Harpenden: Queen Anne Press. ISBN 978-1-85291-607-7.
- ^ "Gunners Greatest 50 Players". Arsenal.com. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
- ^ "Where does Kompany rank among Premier League leaders?". BBC Sport.
- ^ "Football personalities of Barking and Dagenham" (PDF). London Borough of Barking & Dagengham. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 June 2012. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
- ^ "Tony Adams, Lauren Booth, Geraldine James and Elle Macpherson share experience, strength and hopes". nacoa.org.uk. 19 October 2015. Archived from the original on 12 July 2019. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
- ^ a b Maidment (2008), p. 54.
- ^ a b c d e "Tony Adams' career highs and lows". The Guardian. 9 February 2009. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
- ^ a b Arsenal.com (5–19 May 2008). "Gunners' Greatest Players – 3. Tony Adams". Official Arsenal Website. Archived from the original on 12 December 2008. Retrieved 24 November 2008.
- ^ Smyth, Rob (8 May 2009). "The Joy of Six: Great defences". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 9 May 2024.
- ^ Maidment (2008), p. 75.
- ^ Joe Lovejoy (5 May 1994). "European Cup-Winners Cup: Smith's strike brings Arsenal European glory: Battling Londoners make light of the loss of Wright and Jensen". The Independent. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
- ^ "Tony Adams". Ask Men. Archived from the original on 16 December 2018. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
- ^ Stillman, Tim (25 July 2010). "Stick Your Two Points Up Your Arsenal". Vital Football. Archived from the original on 25 September 2017. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
- ^ Watts, Charles (16 February 2018). "27 years on: The inside story of Tony Adams' return from prison as told by those who were there". Football London. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
- ^ a b Paul Whittaker (March 1998). "Adams turns his back on alcohol". Alcohol Works. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
- ^ "Battling the booze". BBC News. 4 October 2001. Archived from the original on 28 July 2017. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
- ^ Maidment (2008), p. 67.
- ^ Magee, Will (9 February 2017). "The Artistic and Cultural Influence of Arsenal's Famous Back Four". Vice. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ Wrack, Susy (31 January 2020). "Tony Adams: 'Alcohol gave me a good hiding – I needed a lot of pain'". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
- ^ Ridley, Ian (11 August 2002). "Adams: the next chapter". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
- ^ Mannion, Damian (4 July 2012). "From Ronaldo to Owen, Dalglish to Clough, Adams to Senderos: famous numbers worn by crap players". Talksport. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
- ^ "Brentford snub Adams". BBC Sport. London. 27 June 2002. Retrieved 8 January 2009.
- ^ a b c Brodkin, Jon (14 May 2002). "A night out for the Adams family". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 28 October 2008.
- ^ Fordyce, Tom (24 March 2003). "Blast from the past: Part one". BBC News.
- ^ Wilson, Jeremy (7 December 2011). "Arsenal to unveil statues of Thierry Henry, Tony Adams, and Herbert Chapman for 125th anniversary". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
- ^ "Arsenal unveil Dennis Bergkamp statue". BBC News. 22 February 2014. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
- ^ "Hoddle and Adams 'closer than ever'". BBC News. 9 September 1998. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
- ^ "Tony Alexander Adams – International Appearances". Retrieved 24 October 2008.
- ^ Sheen, Tom (20 October 2014). "John Terry captained Chelsea for the 500th time on Saturday - is he the best centre-back in the Premier League era?". The Independent. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
- ^ Rob Bagchi (19 January 2011). "Judges have a blindspot when destroyers like Vidic play a blinder". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
- ^ "Greatest 50 Players - 3. Tony Adams". Arsenal. 31 May 2017. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
- ^ MCNICHOLAS, JAMES (19 September 2017). "Assigning FIFA Card Ratings to 21st Century Arsenal Legends". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
- ^ Eccleshare, Charlie (1 April 2019). "Tony Adams exclusive interview: 'I have defied all the odds - I thought I'd be dead at 30'". Telegraph. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
- ^ Lawrence, Amy (6 June 2016). "The lost art of defending: how style has replaced solidity in England's DNA". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
- ^ Camedda, Paolo (10 October 2020). "Il lato oscuro di Tony Adams: la lunga e difficile battaglia contro l'alcol" (in Italian). www.goal.com. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
- ^ Harper, Nick (1 February 2006). "Terry Butcher: Perfect XI". FourFourTwo. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
- ^ "Vieira the hero as Arsenal leave it late". The Irish Times. 9 December 1996. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
- ^ Ingle, Sean (5 November 2003). "Excited Adams takes over at Wycombe". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
- ^ "Wycombe 4, Swindon 1". Chronicle Live. 9 November 2009. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
- ^ Harrison, Lindsay (15 April 2004). "Relegation belatedly sinks in at Wycombe". The Independent. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
- ^ "Adams resigns as Wycombe manager". BBC Sport. London. 9 November 2004. Retrieved 25 March 2010.
- ^ Stanton, Chris (3 June 2009). "Exclusive: Italian job for Gunners". Setanta. Archived from the original on 7 June 2009. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
- ^ a b Ashdown, John (28 October 2008). "Adams set to be unveiled as new Portsmouth manager". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 28 October 2008.
- ^ "Adams appointed new Pompey boss". BBC. London. 28 October 2008. Archived from the original on 13 February 2009. Retrieved 28 October 2008.
- ^ "Pompey confirm Adams axe". Sky Sports. British Sky Broadcasting. 9 February 2009. Archived from the original on 9 October 2012. Retrieved 11 February 2009.
- ^ Esslemont, Tom (11 May 2010). "Tony Adams' grand plans for Azerbaijan football club". BBC. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
- ^ "Tony Adams quits as manager of FC Gabala". Independent. 18 November 2011. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
- ^ "Tony Adams returns to FC Gabala in Azerbaijan – BBC Sport". BBC Sport. Retrieved 21 April 2019.
- ^ "Tony Adams named as Granada manager until end of season". The Guardian. 10 April 2017. Retrieved 10 April 2017.
- ^ "Tony Adams talks about hifccfdds role at Granada CF". Granada CF website. 10 April 2017. Retrieved 10 April 2017.
- ^ "Tony Adams' Granada are relegated – now the real challenge starts". The Independent. 29 April 2017. Retrieved 21 April 2019.
- ^ Sengupta, Kim (21 August 2000). "Tony Adams to provide safe haven for alcoholic and drug-addict footballers". The Independent. London. Retrieved 28 October 2008.
- ^ "Tony Adams". Bristol: NACOA. 15 April 2009. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
- ^ "School-Home Support (SHS) announces new charity patron – Tony Adams MBE". London: School-Home Support. Retrieved 17 March 2017.
- ^ "Tony Adams reveals heart surgery in Azerbaijan saved his life". The Guardian. 4 November 2015. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
- ^ Bower, Aaron (12 December 2018). "Tony Adams to become new president of Rugby Football League". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
- ^ "Former Arsenal captain Tony Adams named Rugby Football League president". The Independent. 13 December 2018. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
- ^ Tony Adams: 'Hopefully people have had periods of reflection in lockdown', The Guardian, 14 July 2020
- ^ James, Andrews & Kelly (2018), p. 358.
- ^ James, Andrews & Kelly (2018), p. 362.
- ^ James, Andrews & Kelly (2018), p. 366.
- ^ James, Andrews & Kelly (2018), p. 372.
- ^ James, Andrews & Kelly (2018), p. 376.
- ^ James, Andrews & Kelly (2018), p. 380.
- ^ a b "Tony Adams – Stats and titles won". footballdatabase.eu. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
- ^ James, Andrews & Kelly (2018), p. 384.
- ^ James, Andrews & Kelly (2018), p. 388.
- ^ James, Andrews & Kelly (2018), p. 392.
- ^ James, Andrews & Kelly (2018), p. 396.
- ^ James, Andrews & Kelly (2018), p. 400.
- ^ James, Andrews & Kelly (2018), p. 404.
- ^ James, Andrews & Kelly (2018), p. 408.
- ^ James, Andrews & Kelly (2018), p. 414.
- ^ James, Andrews & Kelly (2018), p. 418.
- ^ James, Andrews & Kelly (2018), p. 422.
- ^ James, Andrews & Kelly (2018), p. 426.
- ^ James, Andrews & Kelly (2018), p. 430.
- ^ James, Andrews & Kelly (2018), p. 434.
- ^ a b "General Information about the player Tony Adams". national-football-teams.com. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
- ^ "Yugoslavia vs. England". national-football-teams.com. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
- ^ "England vs. Netherlands". national-football-teams.com. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
- ^ "England vs. Soviet Union". national-football-teams.com. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
- ^ "Saudi Arabia vs. England". national-football-teams.com. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
- ^ "England vs. Ukraine". national-football-teams.com. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
- ^ a b "England Players – Tony Adams 1988". englandfootballonline.com. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
- ^ Pye, Steven (4 January 2017). "How Arsenal won the Centenary Trophy, the least celebrated title in their history". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
- ^ "Tony Adams Hall of Fame profile". National Football Museum. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
- ^ "Rio Ferdinand, Petr Cech and Tony Adams inducted into Premier League Hall of Fame". BBC Sport. 3 May 2023. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
- ^ "Football Legends list in full". BBC Sport. 4 August 1998. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
- ^ Keogh, Frank (20 April 2001). "Too much too young?". BBC Sport. Retrieved 7 July 2017.
- ^ "Owen miss nets award". Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 7 July 2017.
- ^ "Fergie & Giggs honoured". Sky Sports. 15 May 2012. Retrieved 7 July 2017.
- ^ "FWA Tribute to Tony Adams a Success". Football Writers’ Association. 19 January 2003. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
- ^ Maidment (2008), p. 148.
- ^ Brodkin, Jon (12 June 1999). "Adams seals recovery with a gong". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 July 2017.
Further reading
- Adams, Tony (1999). Addicted. London: CollinsWillow. ISBN 978-0002187954.
- Adams, Tony; Ridley, Ian (2017). Sober: Football. My Story. My Life. London: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4711-5674-8.
External links
- Official website
- Tony Adams – FIFA competition record (archived)
- Tony Adams at Soccerbase
- Tony Adams management career statistics at Soccerbase
- Tony Adams at Englandstats.com