Chris Sutton facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Chris Sutton

Sutton in 2019
Personal information
Full name	Christopher Roy Sutton
Date of birth	(1973-03-10) 10 March 1973 (age 52)
Place of birth	Nottingham, England
Height	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Position(s)	Striker
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1991–1994	Norwich City	102	(35)
1994–1999	Blackburn Rovers	130	(47)
1999–2000	Chelsea	28	(1)
2000–2006	Celtic	130	(63)
2006	Birmingham City	10	(1)
2006–2007	Aston Villa	8	(1)
2012	Wroxham	1	(0)
Total		409	(148)
International career
1992–1994	England U21	13	(1)
1994	England B	2	(0)
1997	England	1	(0)
Managerial career
2009–2010	Lincoln City
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Chris Sutton, born on March 10, 1973, is a famous English former football player. He also worked as a manager. After playing, he became a sports expert, talking about football on TV and radio.

Chris played football for many big clubs from 1991 to 2007. These clubs included Norwich City, Blackburn Rovers, Chelsea, Celtic, Birmingham City, and Aston Villa. He scored over 150 goals in more than 400 league games during his 16-year career. He played in both the English Premier League and the Scottish Premier League.

Chris started his career as a defender. But at Norwich, he became a successful striker. In 1995, he helped Blackburn Rovers win the Premier League title. He also played once for the England national team. Chris was known for his "glancing headers," a special way of heading the ball to score goals. This made him very good at scoring from set-pieces, like corners or free kicks.

In September 2009, Chris became the manager of Lincoln City. However, he left the role after a year for personal reasons. In 2012, he briefly came out of retirement to play for a non-league team called Wroxham.

Early Life and Family

Chris Sutton was born in Nottingham, England. His father, Mike Sutton, was also a footballer who played for Norwich City. Chris has a younger brother named John, who also became a footballer. John played for several clubs in both England and Scotland. When Chris was a child, his family moved from East Leake to Horsford in Norfolk.

Playing Career Highlights

Starting at Norwich City (1991–1994)

Chris Sutton began his professional football journey at Norwich City. He started as a centre-half, which is a defensive position. However, his manager, Dave Stringer, changed him into a striker. Chris played his first game on May 4, 1991. It was a 1–0 home win against Queens Park Rangers.

In the 1991–92 season, Chris slowly became a regular player for Norwich. He played in 21 league games and scored two goals. That season, Norwich reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup.

Chris did very well in his new striker role. In the 1992–93 season, Norwich was a top team in the new FA Premier League. They were league leaders for most of the season. Chris played in 38 Premier League games and scored eight goals. He was the club's second-highest scorer that season.

In 1993, Chris helped Norwich beat the famous German team Bayern Munich in the UEFA Cup. In the 1993–94 season, he scored 25 Premier League goals. After this great season, many big clubs like Blackburn Rovers, Arsenal, and Manchester United were interested in signing him.

Blackburn Rovers (1994–1999)

In July 1994, Chris Sutton became the most expensive player in English football. He moved from Norwich City to Blackburn Rovers for £5 million.

In his first season at Blackburn, he formed a strong partnership with Alan Shearer. This duo was famously called 'SAS'. Chris scored 15 Premier League goals. His goals helped Blackburn Rovers win their first top-flight league title since 1914.

After this success, Chris faced some challenges. He had several injuries and lost some of his form. In the 1995–96 season, he only played in 13 Premier League games and did not score any league goals. After that season, Alan Shearer left the club. This meant Chris and Kevin Gallacher became Blackburn's main strikers.

Chris regained his good form over the next three seasons. In the 1997–98 season, he was the joint top scorer in the Premier League with 18 goals.

Chris was involved in a controversial moment in a game against Arsenal in 1997. Arsenal kicked the ball out of play so an injured player could get treatment. Usually, the ball is returned to the other team without a fight. However, Chris chased the ball and won a corner kick for Blackburn. Blackburn then scored from this corner. Chris refused to apologize for his action.

Even though Chris scored 18 goals in 1997–98, helping Blackburn finish sixth, the next season was tough. In 1998–99, he played only 17 league games and scored three goals. Blackburn Rovers were relegated from the Premier League, just four years after winning the title.

Chelsea (1999–2000)

After Blackburn's relegation, Chris Sutton was sold to Chelsea for £10 million. His time at Stamford Bridge was not very happy. He found it hard to live up to his high price tag and fit into Chelsea's playing style. He scored only one league goal in 28 appearances. This goal was in a 5–0 win against Manchester United. He scored two other goals in cup competitions. Chris did not even make the team for the FA Cup Final win against Aston Villa. In July 2000, he was sold to the Scottish team Celtic for £6 million.

Celtic (2000–2006)

Chris Sutton found his goal-scoring form again at Celtic. He scored the winning goal in his first league game for Celtic in July 2000. This was a 2–1 win against Dundee United. However, he was sent off in his second game. Four weeks later, he became a fan favorite in his first Old Firm match against Rangers. He scored the first and last goals in a huge 6–2 victory for Celtic. Chris then formed a very successful partnership with the Swedish striker Henrik Larsson.

Chris's goals helped Celtic win many trophies. They won three Scottish Premier League titles, three Scottish Cups, and one Scottish League Cup. They also reached the UEFA Cup final in 2003. Many of Chris's most memorable goals for Celtic were scored in European games. These included goals against Ajax, Juventus, Blackburn Rovers, VfB Stuttgart, and Barcelona.

Chris holds the record for the fastest goal ever in an Old Firm match. He scored at Ibrox in 2002, hitting the net in just 18 seconds.

Towards the end of the 2002–03 season, Chris made a controversial comment. He accused Dunfermline Athletic of not trying their best, which he felt caused Celtic to lose the league title. He did not apologize for his statement. Because of this, he was charged with "bringing the game into disrepute." He received a one-match ban for his comments.

Chris's best season at Celtic was probably 2003–04. He scored 19 league goals and was voted SPFA Player of the Year. In that season, he scored a winning goal against Rangers in injury time. This meant Celtic won all their league games against Rangers that season.

During his five and a half years at Celtic, Chris often showed how versatile he was. Even though he was mainly a striker, he sometimes played in central midfield. This allowed John Hartson to play up front with Larsson. Sometimes, Chris even played in his original position of centre-half. For example, he played there in a league game against Rangers in October 2003, which Celtic won 1–0.

When Gordon Strachan became Celtic's manager in 2005, Chris played less often. He left Celtic on a free transfer in January 2006.

Birmingham City (2006)

Chris joined Birmingham City in January 2006. However, injuries limited him to just eleven games. He scored one goal for the club. This goal came in a derby game against Aston Villa. Chris was one of several highly paid players criticized by the club owner. He was released at the end of the season after Birmingham was relegated.

Aston Villa (2006–2007)

In October 2006, Chris signed with Aston Villa. This club was managed by his former Celtic boss, Martin O'Neill. He scored his first goal for Aston Villa in November 2006, which was the winning goal against Everton.

However, in a game against Manchester United in December 2006, Chris suffered from blurred vision. Despite seeing many specialists, his vision did not recover. Martin O'Neill said that Chris had a serious concern. He explained that no one could promise Chris what would happen if he got hit on the head again. On July 5, 2007, after this eye injury, Chris Sutton retired from football.

Brief Return with Wroxham (2012)

Six years after his retirement, in October 2012, Chris made a surprise appearance for Wroxham. This was a non-league team. He came on as a substitute in the 63rd minute of their home game against Tilbury. His son, Oliver, who is a goalkeeper, had already come on as a substitute earlier in the game. Wroxham lost the game 3-2.

International Career

Chris Sutton's good form for Blackburn earned him a chance to play for England. He played his only game for England on November 15, 1997. He came on as a substitute in the 79th minute against Cameroon. However, he was not chosen for the World Cup squad. This was after he had a disagreement with the national manager, Glenn Hoddle. Chris refused to play for the England B team after being moved there. Because of this, Hoddle never picked Chris for an England squad again.

Management Career

Lincoln City Manager

In January 2009, Chris Sutton was interviewed for the manager's job at Inverness Caledonian Thistle, but he did not get the job. On September 28, 2009, Chris was appointed manager of League Two team Lincoln City. He took over from Peter Jackson. Even though Chris had no experience as a manager, he was chosen over more than 70 other people.

Chris's first game as manager was on October 3, 2009, against Aldershot Town. Lincoln won the game 1–0, giving Chris a winning start. Chris led Lincoln to the third round of the FA Cup for the first time since 1999. However, they lost 4–0 to the Premier League team Bolton Wanderers. Lincoln avoided relegation from the Football League on April 24, 2010. Chris guided them to a 1–0 victory over Bury. Chris left his job as Lincoln manager on September 29, 2010, because of family reasons.

Media Career

Chris Sutton has become a well-known voice in football media. He worked as a main co-commentator for TNT Sports, covering many games, including Celtic FC's UEFA Champions League matches. In 2023, he moved to Sky Sports. There, he works as an expert and co-commentator for their Scottish football coverage. He also works as an expert and co-commentator for BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Sport. He also presents the radio show 606 for BBC Radio 5 Live, currently with Robbie Savage. In January 2015, Chris received some criticism for saying that Celtic's Scottish League Cup semi-final against Rangers would be "so one-sided" that Celtic "could win it blindfolded."

Personal Life

Chris Sutton is married and has six children.

After retiring from professional football, Chris continued to be active in sports. He played cricket for Norwich Cricket Club.

In February 2022, Chris and Micah Richards spoke openly about mental health issues they faced during their playing careers.

Career Statistics

Club Appearances and Goals

Managerial Record

Honours and Awards

Chris Sutton won several important trophies and individual awards during his career:

With Blackburn Rovers

• Premier League: 1994–95 (Champions of England)

With Celtic

• Scottish Premier League: 2000–01, 2001–02, 2003–04, 2005–06 (Won the league title multiple times)
• Scottish Cup: 2000–01, 2003–04, 2004–05 (Won the main Scottish cup)
• Scottish League Cup: 2000–01 (Won the Scottish League Cup)
• UEFA Cup runner-up: 2002–03 (Reached the final of a major European competition)

With England U21

• Toulon Tournament: 1993 (Won a youth international tournament)

Individual Awards

• Premier League Golden Boot: 1997–98 (Top scorer in the Premier League)
• Premier League Player of the Month: November 1994, February 1998 (Recognized as best player in the league for those months)
• Norwich City Player of the Season: 1993–94 (Best player for his club)
• PFA Scotland Players' Player of the Year: 2003–04 (Voted best player in Scotland by his fellow players)
• PFA Team of the Year: 1994–95 Premier League (Included in the best team of the season)
• Scottish Premier League Player of the Month: November 2003, January 2005 (Best player in the Scottish league for those months)

See also

In Spanish: Chris Sutton para niños

• Norwich City F.C. Hall of Fame