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Teddy Sheringham - Professional Footballer

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Millwall

Sheringham began his professional career at Millwall in 1982 at the age of sixteen, after impressing a scout when playing for the small club Leyton & Ilford during a Youth Team game against Millwall.

He was signed up, initially as an apprentice, and scored on only his second appearance for the club in a match away at Bournemouth in January 1984. After being loaned out by the club twice in 1985, to Aldershot and later a Swedish side, Djurgrdens, on his return he quickly became a first choice selection at Millwall, and during the late 1980s formed a famous striking partnership with Tony Cascarino. He was the club's top goalscorer in four different seasons (1986-87, 1987-88, 1988-89 and 1990-91) and played in every single game of the season for them twice, in 1986-87 and 1990-91.

The 1987-88 season saw the club promoted to the First Division, then the highest tier of English league football, for the first time. Many had predicted that Millwall would not survive their first season in the top flight and would be relegated back to the Second Division in their first season, but the goals of Sheringham and Cascarino helped them to finish in a surprising 10th position. However, it was not to last, as the following season Millwall were indeed relegated, finishing bottom of the Division and returning to the second flight.

The club had an opportunity to bounce straight back up at the end of the 1990-91 season, reaching the semi-finals of the Division Two play-offs, but they were beaten by Brighton & Hove Albion and thus remained in the Division.

Nottingham Forest

Sheringham was by now in his mid-twenties and although loyal to Millwall, not keen to linger outside of the highest tier of football for long. Salvation came in the form of a transfer to Nottingham Forest, then one of the major clubs in the country, for a then record fee of £2 million in July 1991. However, after two years at the club he found himself a victim of the pain of relegation for the second time, as Forest went down at the end of the inaugural Premier League season in 1992-93.

Tottenham Hotspur

He had impressed many with his appearances for the club, however, and was quickly signed by another big club, Tottenham Hotspur, for £2.1 million. Sheringham became a great favourite of the Tottenham fans and scored many goals for the club, forming a particularly impressive partnership with the German striker Jurgen Klinsmann during the 1994-95 season: Klinsmann was later quoted as claiming that Sheringham was the most intelligent strike partner he ever had.

Despite his success and popularity at Tottenham, however, Sheringham was disappointed that he had failed to win any trophies with the club, and when England's largest and most successful club, Manchester United offered Tottenham £3.5 million for his services in the summer of 1997, he quickly accepted.

Manchester United

His early time at United was difficult, as he had been signed to replace the iconic Frenchman Eric Cantona, who had retired at the end of the previous season, leaving him with an imposing legacy to live up to. He was mocked in certain quarters when, having publicly stated that he had joined the club "to win trophies", during the 1997-98 season the team won nothing for the first time in three years.

The arrival of striker Dwight Yorke at the beginning of the following season was expected to push Sheringham out of the team, but instead it seemed to have the effect of producing a fine run of form from him. He finally got the trophy he had waited so long for when United won the Premier League in May 1999, and it quickly got much better: they added the FA Cup and the European Cup to their haul, with Sheringham scoring in both cup finals, including a dramatic injury-time equaliser against Bayern Munich at the very end of the European final. This treble of trophies was unprecedented by any club in the history of English football, and has not been equalled or bettered since.

Sheringham spent two further seasons at Manchester United, winning two further Premier League titles and enjoying a fine final season with the club in 2000-01, at the end of which he was honoured with both the PFA Players' Player of the Year and the Football Writers' Association Player of the Year Awards.

Tottenham and Portsmouth

In the summer of 2001 he was allowed by United to move on a free transfer back to Tottenham Hotspur, Sheringham considering that at the age of thirty-five his days at United had reached their peak. He was welcomed back by the Tottenham fans, amongst whom he was still greatly respected, and was made the club Captain by manager Glenn Hoddle.

In 2003 he left Tottenham, many expecting him to end his front line career, but instead he joined the newly-promoted FA Premier League side Portsmouth, his goals helping the club to remain in the top flight against the expectations of many, much as they had done with Millwall 16 years previously.

Sheringham, the oldest player in the whole of the Premiership, was released by Portsmouth at the end of the 2003-04 season, and his immediate future was unclear. He had stated his desire to find a new club and remain playing in the top flight for at least one more season, which would take him up to the age of thirty-nine - incredible career longevity for any player, but especially so for a striker, a position perhaps more than others usually reliant on pace.

West Ham United

Sheringham opted to drop down a division, signing a one-year deal with West Ham United in the League Championship. He expressed a desire to help West Ham earn promotion. In the 2004-05 season, he yet again belied his advanced age for a footballer, scoring 20 goals in league play (third in The Championship) and helping lead West Ham to the promotion playoff final, which they went on to win. He was also selected by a fans poll run by The Football League as the 2004-05 Player of the Season in The Championship. In the close season, Sheringham signed a one-year deal to play for the Hammers in the Premiership.