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Neil Wilkins Biography & Facts

Raymond Colin Wilkins (14 September 1956 – 4 April 2018) was an English football player and coach. Born into a footballing family with his father and three brothers involved in the game, Wilkins played as a midfielder. He began his career at Chelsea, where he was appointed captain at the age of 18, and later played for clubs including Manchester United, AC Milan, Queens Park Rangers and Rangers. He won 84 caps for the England national football team from 1976 to 1986, playing at UEFA Euro 1980 and the 1982 and 1986 FIFA World Cups. After his playing career ended, he worked as a television pundit, and as a coach and manager with Queens Park Rangers, Fulham and Chelsea. He managed Jordan at the 2015 AFC Asian Cup and his last coaching job was as the assistant manager of Aston Villa later that year. Club career Early career Born in Hillingdon, Middlesex, Wilkins started his career with the Sunday League team Senrab that play in Wanstead Flats, East London. Chelsea Wilkins made his name in the 1970s with boyhood club Chelsea, which he joined as an apprentice, progressing to his first team debut against Norwich City at the age of 17 on 26 October 1973 as a substitute in a 3–0 home league win. In 1975, following the club's relegation and the departure of many established players, an 18-year-old Wilkins was handed the captaincy of Chelsea by new manager Eddie McCreadie, taking it from long-time Blues captain John Hollins. He took to the role well, keeping it for four years. He emerged as Chelsea's key player of that period, leading a team of mainly young players to promotion again in 1976–1977 and, in the next season, consolidation of their place in the First Division. His elder brother, Graham Wilkins also played for Chelsea. Manchester United In 1979, after Chelsea were relegated, Wilkins signed for Manchester United for a fee of £825,000, the highest fee received for a Chelsea player at the time. He scored ten goals in his five years with the Red Devils, including a long-range strike in the 2–2 draw with Brighton & Hove Albion in the 1983 FA Cup Final (United won the replay). He was voted player of the year by the team's supporters at the end of the 1983–1984 season. His midfield performances drew the attention of Milan, who made United a £1.5 million offer for the player. Milan, Paris and Rangers Wilkins signed with Milan in summer 1984. He later remarked that the most difficult part of adapting to the Italian game was the focus on fitness – the coaching staff made him work to reduce his body fat levels and Wilkins described the result as being in the best shape of his career. The Italian team was struggling during this period, having suffered relegation in the 1981–82 Serie A season, and Wilkins was joined by fellow Englishman Mark Hateley (himself replacing another compatriot — Luther Blissett). The only foreign players in the squad, the pair helped the team to victory over rivals Inter Milan in the Milan Derby that October, winning plaudits from Italian press and the club's fans. In his first year there, Wilkins played 28 Serie A games to bring the team to fifth in the league and also won a runner-up medal in the Coppa Italia (having eliminated Inter in the semis). The following season he remained a key player in Milan's midfield, appearing in 29 league games and scoring two goals – one late goal to salvage a draw at Avellino and another goal the following game against Sampdoria. These were the only Serie A goals of his career. Overall, the team struggled for goals, with Pietro Paolo Virdis's total of 13 making him the club's only goalscorer in double figures that year. The club also suffered off the pitch, with owner Giuseppe Farina absconding to South Africa following accusations of bribery and theft. In Wilkins' final season there (1986–1987), he fell out of the first team structure, following the signing of Roberto Donadoni and the continued presence of both Agostino Di Bartolomei and Alberigo Evani. The team finished fifth in the league, beating Inter twice, in Silvio Berlusconi's first year as owner. Wilkins played 105 games (74 in Serie A) for Milan between 1984 and 1987. Corriere della Sera eulogised him as a "serious and meticulous professional who was immediately appreciated for his long and precise passes". Wilkins signed for Paris Saint-Germain in the middle of 1987, but this proved to be short-lived: he failed to break into the team ahead of Gabriel Calderón and Safet Sušić so he eagerly took the option to move to Scotland to sign for Rangers for £250,000 that November. He made his debut for Rangers on 28 November 1987 in a 3–2 win over Hearts at Ibrox. He became an integral part of the team for the rest of the season, making twenty-nine appearances, which included both legs of the European Cup quarter-final against Steaua Bucharest. However, it would be the following season he would truly make his mark at Rangers. Reigning Scottish champions, and Old Firm rivals, Celtic played Rangers on 27 August 1988. With the score tied at 1–1, Wilkins scored a "thunderous volley" from the edge of the penalty box to put Rangers ahead, and his side eventually recorded an emphatic 5–1 win that day over their rivals. Rangers went on to win the league title that season, the first of their eventual nine-in-a-row. Wilkins also played in Rangers' win over Aberdeen in the 1988 Scottish League Cup Final. He remained an important team member into season 1988–89, playing in almost every game for the first half of the season, but his family wished to return to London. As such, he left Rangers in December 1989 to sign for Queens Park Rangers. Following his last appearance for Rangers, Wilkins received a standing ovation from the 40,000 crowd. Despite only playing two seasons for the Glasgow club, he was later inducted into their Hall of Fame. Later career The longest stint of his late career was at Queens Park Rangers, for whom he was a regular first team player from November 1989 to 1994, including the team's first two Premier League seasons. He made his debut in the 3–0 away win versus Crystal Palace. Wilkins left QPR in the summer of 1994 on a free transfer to join Crystal Palace as a player-coach under manager Alan Smith, but only made one appearance due to breaking his left foot on his debut. Wilkins re-joined QPR as player-manager on 15 November 1994, following the exit of Gerry Francis. The rest of that season was a success with the team finishing eighth in the Premiership. However the close season of 1995 saw the departure of Les Ferdinand to Newcastle and the following season the team struggled and were relegated. As player-manager, he appeared in a further 21 games for the club from 1994 to 1996. Wilkins left QPR by mutual agreement in September 1996 after the club was bought by media tycoon Chris Wright following their relegation from the FA Premier League. Wilkins played for four clubs in the 1996–1997 season. He played one game at Wycombe Wanderers befo.... Discover the Neil Wilkins popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Neil Wilkins books.