Stuart Pearce facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Stuart Pearce
MBE

Pearce in 2016
Personal information
Full name	Stuart Pearce
Date of birth	(1962-04-24) 24 April 1962 (age 63)
Place of birth	Shepherd's Bush, London, England
Height	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Position(s)	Defender
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1978–1983	Wealdstone	176	(10)
1983–1985	Coventry City	52	(4)
1985–1997	Nottingham Forest	401	(63)
1997–1999	Newcastle United	37	(1)
1999–2001	West Ham United	42	(2)
2001–2002	Manchester City	38	(3)
2016	Longford	1	(0)
Total		747	(82)
International career
1986	England U21	1	(0)
1987–1999	England	78	(5)
Managerial career
1996–1997	Nottingham Forest
2005–2007	Manchester City
2007–2013	England U21
2011–2012	Great Britain
2012	England (caretaker)
2014–2015	Nottingham Forest
Medal record Men's football Representing  England (as manager) UEFA European Under-21 Championship Runner-up 2009
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Stuart Pearce (born 24 April 1962) is an English football manager and former professional player. He was known for his tough and passionate style of play, which earned him the nickname "Psycho."

As a player, Pearce was a defender. He played for several clubs, including Wealdstone, Coventry City, Newcastle United, West Ham United, and Manchester City. He is most famous for his 12 years at Nottingham Forest, where he was the team captain.

Pearce played 78 times for the England national team, captaining the side nine times. In 2016, long after he retired, he played one more game for a small team called Longford to support local football. After his playing career, he became a manager for clubs like Manchester City and Nottingham Forest, and also coached England's Under-21 and the Great Britain Olympic teams.

Club Career

Starting Out

Pearce's first attempt to become a professional footballer didn't work out. He failed a trial with Queens Park Rangers and turned down an offer from Hull City. Instead, he started playing for his local non-league team, Wealdstone, while also working as an electrician.

In 1983, top-division club Coventry City offered £30,000 for Pearce, which was a huge amount for a non-league player at the time. The manager was impressed by his determined attitude. Pearce joined Coventry and quickly became known as a tough but fair left-back.

Nottingham Forest

In 1985, the famous manager Brian Clough signed Pearce for Nottingham Forest. Pearce played at Forest for 12 years and became the club captain. During this time, he won two League Cups and the Full Members Cup. He famously scored a goal from a free-kick in the 1991 FA Cup Final, although Forest lost to Tottenham Hotspur.

In 1989, Pearce and his teammates experienced the Hillsborough disaster during an FA Cup semi-final against Liverpool. He played in the re-arranged match, which Liverpool won.

When Forest was relegated from the Premier League in 1993, Pearce chose to stay with the club. He helped them get promoted back to the top division the very next season. In December 1996, he became the caretaker player-manager of Forest. He even won the Manager of the Month award in January 1997, but the team was still relegated at the end of the season. After 12 years, Pearce decided to leave the club.

Later Career

Pearce joined Newcastle United in 1997 and played in the 1998 FA Cup Final, but his team lost again. He later played for West Ham United, where he was named the club's Player of the Year in 2001.

His final club was Manchester City, where he was the team captain. He helped them win the First Division championship in his last season. In the very last game of his career, he had a chance to score his 100th career goal with a penalty kick, but he missed.

In 2016, at age 53, Pearce came out of retirement for one match. He played for Longford, a team in Gloucestershire that was struggling, to show his support for amateur football.

International Career

Stuart Pearce managing Manchester City against Rafael Benítez's Liverpool in 2007.

Pearce made his first appearance for England in 1987. He became the team's main left-back and played in the 1990 FIFA World Cup in Italy. England reached the semi-finals but lost to West Germany in a penalty shoot-out. Pearce was one of the players who missed a penalty and was very emotional after the match.

Six years later, at UEFA Euro 1996, which was held in England, Pearce got a chance to make up for his earlier miss. In the quarter-final against Spain, the match went to a penalty shoot-out. This time, Pearce scored his penalty, and his passionate celebration became one of the most famous moments of the tournament. England won the shoot-out but lost to Germany again in the semi-finals, also on penalties.

Pearce played his last game for England in 1999, ending his international career with 78 appearances.

Coaching Career

After retiring as a player, Pearce became a coach. He was appointed manager of Manchester City in 2005. He later managed the England U21 team, leading them to the final of the 2009 European Under-21 Championship.

He also coached the senior England team for one game as a caretaker manager in 2012. That same year, he managed the Great Britain Olympic team at the London Olympics.

In 2014, he returned to Nottingham Forest as manager. The team started the season well, but after a period of poor results, he was let go in February 2015. He later worked as a coach for West Ham United.

Pearce returned as Nottingham Forest manager in 2014

Playing Style

Pearce was nicknamed "Psycho" because of his intense and fearless style of play. He was a very strong and committed defender who never gave up. While the nickname sounded aggressive, Pearce was rarely sent off in his career.

Former teammate Roy Keane called him "a man amongst boys." He was also known for his powerful shots, especially from free-kicks and penalties. His strong left foot made him a threat when attacking, and he scored many important goals.

Personal Life

Pearce is a big fan of punk rock music. He has said that one of his favourite bands is the Stranglers, and he has seen them perform over 300 times.

In 1998, he was in a serious car crash but thankfully escaped with only minor injuries. For his services to football and his support for charities, he was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in 1999. He is also a fan of rugby league.

Career statistics

Club

International

Scores and results list England's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Pearce goal.

List of international goals scored by Stuart Pearce

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition	Ref.
1	25 April 1990	Wembley Stadium, London, England	Czechoslovakia	2–1	4–2	Friendly
2	8 June 1991	Athletic Park, Wellington, New Zealand	New Zealand	1–0	2–0	Friendly
3	18 November 1992	Wembley Stadium, London, England	Turkey	3–0	4–0	1994 FIFA World Cup qualification
4	8 September 1993	Wembley Stadium, London, England	Poland	3–0	3–0	1994 FIFA World Cup qualification
5	15 November 1995	Wembley Stadium, London, England	Switzerland	1–1	3–1	Friendly

Managerial

Honours

As a player

Wealdstone

• Southern League South: 1981–82
• Southern League Cup: 1981–82

Nottingham Forest

• Football League Cup: 1988–89, 1989–90
• Full Members' Cup: 1988–89, 1991–92

Manchester City

• Football League First Division: 2001–02

England

• Tournoi de France: 1997

Individual

• PFA Team of the Year: 1987–88 First Division, 1988–89 First Division, 1989–90 First Division, 1990–91 First Division, 1991–92 First Division
• Nottingham Forest Player of the Season: 1988–89, 1990–91, 1995–96
• Premier League Player of the Month: February 2001

As a manager

England U21

• UEFA European Under-21 Championship runner-up: 2009

Individual

• Premier League Manager of the Month: January 1997, April 2005, August 2005

See also

In Spanish: Stuart Pearce para niños

• List of men's footballers with the most official appearances