Man City vs Spurs | Boot in both camps | Paul Stewart
Thu 30 November 2023, 12:45|
Tottenham Hotspur
How apt, as we mourn the passing of Terry Venables this week, that the focus of a player who represented both Manchester City and Spurs ahead of Sunday's Premier League clash at the Etihad (4.30pm) scored one of the most important goals of Terry's time at Spurs - Paul Stewart.
Born in Manchester, Paul began his journey as an apprentice at Blackpool in 1980, turned professional a year later and scored 62 goals in 224 appearances in the old Fourth and Third Divisions.
His performances earned a move to City at the end of the 1986/87 season, but he couldn't help prevent the Citizens slipping out of the top flight and back into the Second Division for the 1987/88 campaign. Paul scored 28 goals in 52 appearances for City that term and, with Clive Allen on his way to Bordeaux, Venables swooped in to sign Paul for a then club record fee.
Paul scored 37 goals in 171 appearances in all competitions for us in the next four seasons, the highlight, a much-needed equaliser in the second half of the 1991 FA Cup Final against Nottingham Forest. By then playing in a deeper role, with Gary Lineker banging in the goals up front, Stewart latched onto Paul Allen's pass to fire low across Mark Crossley into the far corner 10 minutes into the second half at Wembley after a disastrous first half where we'd lost Paul Gascoigne to injury, gone a goal down and Lineker saw a goal ruled out for offside and a penalty saved.
Paul, who scored the first goal on this FA Cup run in the third round at Blackpool, the only goal of a tough tie against his first club, then claimed the assist for the winner as he flicked on Nayim's corner and Des Walker could only head into his own net under pressure from Gary Mabbutt. Paul's display earned the Man of the Match award.
Capped three times by England, Paul moved to Liverpool in 1992 and had loan spells at Palace, Wolves, Burnley and Sunderland before moving permanently to the Black Cats in 1996, helping them to promotion to the Premier League in 1995/96. He ended his career with spells at Stoke City and Workington.
