Waddle, Chris

Waddle's playing position is controversial. Someone calls him an attacker, someone a playmaker, someone an extreme midfielder. The fact is that at different periods of his career and in different teams, Waddle played in several different positions. But if we talk about where he showed himself most vividly and is best remembered by the fans, then you can define him as a flank attacking midfielder (in the English tradition, this position on the field is called the “winger” ). For many years, the famous Welshman Ryan Giggs had a similar role. At the same time, being right-handed and at the same time perfectly “mastering” the left foot, Waddle usually played on the right flank, which created additional difficulties for the opponents. Chris himself said, “that in my youth I practiced blows from the left foot every day for 20 minutes. Just 20 minutes a day - and you won’t think about which leg is better to earn the ball ” ^[4] .

Chris was distinguished by unusual dribbling, based on false movements of the body, a sharp change in direction of movement and sudden stops with the ball. High growth (188 cm) and a long step allowed him to control the ball even at a certain distance from himself. Waddle was also remembered for powerful punches from free-kicks (from a distance of 20-25 meters), while in the England team he was practically not trusted to beat them. Chris also had good control over strokes, with both his left and right legs. As a flank midfielder, Chris was a master of lumbago and awnings, from which many partners scored a lot of goals. Journalists call him one of the “most intelligent and subtle midfielders in the history of the English national team” ^[5] .

Chris fell in love with the fans of all the clubs in which he played, his extraordinary behavior on the field. He was always ready to make a funny grimace, to make fun of both partners and himself. One of his famous gestures was the image with the help of two hands above the head of the ears of a hare. At the same time, Waddle was a gentleman on the field, he practically did not receive yellow cards for being rude. Chris was different and has an extraordinary look at the principles of football, he always puts entertainment at the forefront, which is appreciated by many fans.

Club Performances

Newcastle United

Before signing a contract with Newcastle United in the summer of 1980 , Waddle was seen at Sunderland and Coventry City , but did not fit those clubs. Before signing his first professional contract with Newcastle, Chris managed to work in a factory for the production of sausages and meat pies.

At Newcastle, Chris quickly became one of the leaders, playing with such famous football players as Kevin Keegan and Peter Beardsley . In 1984, Newcastle entered the first division of the championship of England (the current Premier League), and Chris scored 18 goals in 42 games in a season. In March 1985, a 24-year-old midfielder made his debut in the national team in a match with the Irish team .

Tottenham Hotspur

In July 1985, Waddle for 590 thousand pounds transferred to the London club Tottenham Hotspur . A certain role in Waddle’s transition to the camp of Londoners was played by their then midfielder Glenn Hoddle ^[6] . In 1987, Tottenham Hotspur and Waddle made it to the FA Cup final, where they lost to Coventry City with a score of 2-3 in extra time, although the Londoners scored twice. In the championship of England that season, “Tottenham Hotspur” finished in third place. Over the 4 seasons at Tottenham, Waddle became one of the audience's favorites, making up the midway line of the Spurs with Hoddle and Ossi Ardiles . In various symbolic teams of Londoners of all time, it is Chris who often takes the place of the right midfielder.

Olympic Marseille

In July 1989, the 28-year-old Waddle, for £ 4.5 million (the third transfer at that time in world football history ^[4] ), transferred to the French Olympic from Marseille . In a star French club, Chris immediately became one of the leaders along with Jean-Pierre Papin , Abedi Pele , Carlos Moser , Basil Pain . Three times in a row (1990, 1991 and 1992), Olympic won the French championship , and in 1991 the Marseilles reached the final of the European Cup , where they met with the Yugoslav Red Star . The main and extra time of the match in Bari ended in a goalless draw, and the Yugoslavs 5-3 were more accurate in the penalty shootout . Waddle spent all 120 minutes on the field, he did not beat in the penalty shootout.

In Marseille, Chris received the nickname "Magic Chris" ( English Magic Chris ). In 1998, in honor of the 100th anniversary of the club, Olimpik fans conducted a survey to determine the best player of the club of all time. The Englishman Waddle took the second place in the poll after Jean-Pierre Papin , even though Chris spent only 3 seasons in the French club. Chris left Olympic after the 1991/92 season, and the following year the Marseilles won the Champions Cup, but without Waddle.

Sheffield Wensday

In the summer of 1992, from Marcel Waddle, for 1.25 million pounds sterling he transferred to English Sheffield Wensday . In the very first season, Wensday and Waddle reached the finals of the FA Cup and FA Cup, but both times lost to London Arsenal . In the FA Cup final, Waddle scored Sheffield's only goal in the replay, but Arsenal snatched the victory in extra time with a score of 2: 1 thanks to the ball of defender Andy Linigan . These finals remain the last for the Sheffield Wandsday in these tournaments. In the Premier League, “Sheffield” took 7th place, and 32-year-old Waddle was recognized as the best player of the season according to the Association of Football Journalists. Interestingly, in the championship of England Chris scored only 1 goal in 32 games that season.

After Sheffield

Waddle played for Sheffield Wensday until 1996 , after which he moved to the Scottish Falkirk, but only played there for a month. Then Chris for 4 years replaced 4 clubs - Bradford City , Sunderland , Burnley , Torquay United . At Burnley, Waddle was a playing coach.

In July 1999, Chris was appointed coach of the Sheffield Wensday Reserve Team and worked there a year until the summer of 2000 . After his dismissal, Chris played season 2 for the Workshop Town amateur club, and in 2002 held several matches for Glapwell.

Currently, in his spare time as a commentator, Chris sometimes plays for local teams in one of Sheffield 's amateur leagues.

England team

In the national team, Waddle made his debut on March 26, 1985 in a home friendly match at Wembley with the national team of Ireland (2-0). Midfielder “Newcastle” came out in the starting lineup and spent on the field all 90 minutes. Interestingly, this match was the debut in the team led by Bobby Robson for 2 more players - goalkeeper Gary Bailey and striker Peter Davenport . For Bailey, this was one of two matches for the national team in his career, and for Davenport he remained the only one. The balls scored in that match by Trevor Stephen and Gary Lineker became their first in the national team ^[7] .

Unlike Bailey and Davenport, Waddle immediately became the main player of the England national team - in 1985, Chris played in all the remaining 10 matches of the national team. Waddle scored his first ball for the national team on October 16, 1985 at Wembley against the Turkish national team as part of the 1986 World Cup qualifier . Waddle opened the scoring in the 15th minute, then Gary Lineker scored three times, one more goal was played by team captain Brian Robson (5-0) ^[8] . In total, in that qualifying round, Waddle played in 5 out of 8 England matches (the cycle began even before Chris made his debut in the national team).

On March 26, 1986 in Tbilisi, Waddle brought the British victory in a friendly match with the USSR team under the leadership of Eduard Malofeev . Chris goal in the goal of Rinat Dasayev in the 67th minute was the only one in that match ^[9] . This was Waddle's only national goal scored outside the United Kingdom .

1986 World Cup

Bobby Robson included Waddle with the national team at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico . In the first match with the Portuguese team, Waddle left the starting lineup and spent 80 minutes on the field, after which he was replaced by Peter Beardsley . The British lost 0-1 ^[10] . In the second match with the Moroccans (0-0) Waddle played all 90 minutes ^[11] . In the third match of the group stage with the Polish national team, Waddle replaced in the 76th minute instead of Peter Beardsley (the British won 3-0 thanks to Lineker hat-trick) ^[12] . In the eighth finals with the Paraguayans, Waddle remained in reserve (the English defeated 3-0). In the famous quarterfinal with the team of Argentina, Waddle watched two goals of Diego Maradona against the English goal (at the 50th and 54th minutes) from the bench. As Waddle recalled, “John Barnes and I were sitting on the bench with our mouths open, when Maradona, catching the ball in his half of the field, went half of our team and scored a goal. I will never forget his goal. Ray Wilkins then said: "You will never see such beauty again." At the same time, I wanted to applaud and cry ” ^[4] . Chris appeared on the field in the 63rd minute instead of Peter Reid , but for the remaining time the British only managed to narrow the gap in the account by the efforts of Gary Lineker in the 80th minute ^[13] .

After the 1986 World Cup, Waddle continued to be the main player in the national team. In October 1986 and April 1987, Waddle scored twice in his home and away match against Northern Ireland as part of the 1988 European Championship qualifiers (in London, the British won 3-0 ^[14] , and in Belfast they beat the hosts with a score of 2-0 ^[15] ). In total, in the qualifying round, Waddle entered the field in 4 of 6 matches in England.

1988 European Championship

Bobby Robson included Waddle in a bid for the 1988 European Championship in Germany under the 12th number. England was considered one of the favorites of the championship, very confidently going through the qualifying round (5 wins and 1 draw in 6 matches with a goal difference of 19-1). In the first match of the English team at the championship, the Tottenham midfielder spent all 90 minutes on the field in the game with the team of Ireland, but the English team lost 0-1 - in the 6th minute the Irishman Ray Houghton scored a header. In the second half, Gary Lineker missed out on some excellent opportunities, while the Irish hit Ronnie Whelan on the crossbar ^[16] . In the second game in the group, where the losers of the first round met the British and the Dutch (the latter lost 0-1 to the USSR team in the opening match), Chris remained on the bench. At the beginning of the first half, after Ronald Kuman 's mistake, Lineker hit the post, then Glenn Hoddle hit the same post from the penalty area. At the very end of the first half, the score after a pass by Ruud Gullit was opened by the forward of the “orange” Marco van Basten . At the beginning of the second half, the captain of the Englishman Brian Robson with the transfer of Lineker answered the goal of van Basten. Waddle appeared on the field in the 69th minute instead of Trevor Stephen with a score of 1-1, but in the 71st and 75th minutes, Van Basten scored twice more, bringing victory to the Netherlands ^[17] . After two rounds, the British lost all chances to leave the group, and in the last match they lost to the USSR national team 1-3. Waddle did not appear on the field in that match.

Despite the team's disastrous performance at Euro 1988, Bobby Robson remained at the helm of the team. Chris Waddle also stayed in it. In the 1990 World Cup qualifier, Waddle played all 6 matches and scored 1 goal in a home game against the Albanian team (5-0). In that match, the famous Paul Gascoigne scored his first goal for the national team ^[18] . In 6 qualifying matches, the British won three victories and tied three games, scoring 10 and not missing a single goal (becoming the only of all European and South American teams that did not miss in the qualifying tournament). Nevertheless, the Swedes were ahead of the English in the group, having won 4 matches with 2 draws. The British still selected for the World Cup thanks to 9 points scored, and the only team that took second place in the European qualifying group and did not end up in the final tournament was the Danish team (8 points).

On May 27, 1989, at the Rose Cup , held in Scotland , Waddle scored a goal against the home team in the fall, which became victorious (2-0 in England's favor) ^[19] . Thanks to this victory, the British became the winners of the last in the history of the Rose Cup, held in 1985-1989. This ball became the 6th and final goal of Chris Waddle for the England team.

1990 World Cup

At the 1990 World Cup in Italy, Waddle, who was already playing for the Marseille Olympic, was announced at number 8. As at Euro 1988, the first match in the group the British played with the national team of Ireland. Gary Lineker opened the scoring in Cagliari already in the 8th minute, but in the second half the Irishman Kevin Shidi equalized him with a powerful blow from the free kick line (1-1). Waddle entered the field in the starting lineup and played all 90 minutes ^[20] . The second match in group F, the England team played in Cagliari with the team of the Netherlands. Neither the English were able to break through Hans van Breckelen , nor the Dutch could upset the 40-year-old Peter Shilton , who defended the goal of the national team for the 120th time, 0-0 (Lineker’s goal in the second half was canceled due to the fact that he played up with his own hand, and the goal of Stuart Pearce with a direct free kick was not counted, since the ball did not touch anyone on the way to the goal ^[21] ). Waddle again entered the field in the starting lineup, and in the 58th minute was replaced by Steve Bull . After the second round in group F, all 4 teams had absolutely equal indicators - 2 draws, 1 goal scored and 1 goal conceded. In the final match of the group stage, the British had to meet with the Egyptian team . At this point, in the asset of the England team for the last 8 matches in groups at the World and European Championships (1986, 1988 and 1990) there was only 1 victory with 3 draws and 4 defeats. For more than an hour in the match in Cagliari, zero balance was maintained until the English defender Mark Wright, after a pass from the penalty kick, Paul Gascoigne, led the British ahead. This was Wright's first and only goal for the national team. The match ended with a score of 1-0 in favor of the Europeans ^[22] , which brought the British first place in the group, since in the parallel match the Dutch and Irish went their separate ways (1-1). Waddle spent almost the entire game on the field, only at the very curtain he was replaced by David Platt . Thus, while at Euro 1988, playing in a group with the Netherlands and Ireland, the British were in last place, this time they managed to win the group. It should be noted that instead of the Egyptians, they were also opposed by a strong USSR team.

In the 1/8 finals in Bologna, the English met with the Belgian national team led by Enzo Schifo , Franky van der Elst and Michel Prudumm in the gate. For 90 minutes of normal time, the account was never opened, although the Belgian striker Jan Kulemans hit the crossbar, and John Barnes's goal was not counted because of an offside position. An additional 30 minutes also reached the zero point when, in the 119th minute, David Platt , who went on the field in the middle of the second half, scored his first goal for the national team after the submission of Paul Gascoigne, which became the British victory. The Belgians simply did not have time to change anything. Waddle left in the starting lineup and played all 120 minutes ^[23] .

In the quarter finals in Naples, the British played with the main sensation of the 1990 World Cup - the national team of Cameroon . It all started well for the British - in the 25th minute David Platt, who released this time in the starting lineup, opened the scoring with his head after a pass by Stuart Pearce . But in the second half, Cameroon put everything upside down in a few minutes - at first Emmanuel Kunde fouls Roger Mill from the penalty spot on the 61st minute, and after 4 minutes Eugene Ekeke pulled his team forward after a pass by Milla ball through shilton. Moreover, Francois Omam-Biyik had a great opportunity to score Peter Shilton and the third goal, but, leaving one on one, he decided to hit the heel and did not succeed. The British recouped only thanks to a penalty in the 83rd minute, which was realized by Gary Lineker. Cameroonians, like the British, defeated Colombia in the 1/8 finals in extra time after a goalless draw in the main, so it was not easy to predict the outcome of the match based on the team’s fatigue. The balance of the match lasted until the very end of the 1st additional half when the Mexican referee Edgardo Kodesal Mendes appointed the third penalty in the match and the second into the gates of the African team. Lineker and the second time was accurate. In the last 15 minutes, Cameroonians could not recoup, and the British for the first time since 1966 reached the semifinals of the World Cup. The referee's work in this difficult match was highly appreciated by FIFA and he was entrusted to judge the final match of the World Cup in Italy. Waddle, as in the match with Belgium, spent all 120 minutes on the field ^[24] .

In the semi-final in Turin, the British had to play with their irreconcilable rivals - the German team . On the German side, they managed to win their matches in regular time in the 1/8 and 1/4 finals, while the English had to play 120 minutes both times, despite the fact that the summer of 1990 in Italy turned out to be very hot . An account at the Turin stadium " Delle Alpi " was opened only after an hour of playing time. By this moment, the key German striker Rudi Föller had already left the field due to injury, replaced by Karl-Heinz Riedl . In the 60th minute, English defender Stuart Pearce shot down Thomas Hössler on the outskirts of his German penalty box. After the ball was kicked back, the defender Andreas Breme struck “for strength”, but the ball screamed about Paul Parker rushing beneath him and fell in a high arc behind Shilton who had stepped out of the goal. The British recouped after 20 minutes - Parker hung in the penalty area, where Jürgen Kohler played unsuccessfully, Lineker picked up the ball and scored his 4th goal in the tournament. The British for the third time in the playoffs had to play another 30 minutes. In extra time, Chris Waddle could bring England a victory, but his powerful shot from the left corner of the penalty area fell to the far post. Then, after a pass by Waddle, Platt scored with a free kick, but the judge canceled the goal because of an offside position. In extra time, the score has not changed, and to identify the winner I had to resort to a penalty shootout. For the England team, this was the first penalty shootout in its entire long history. The first to beat the British. Lineker, Beardsley and Platt realized their attempts. The Germans retaliated with three accurate strikes by Breme, Lothar Matteus and Riedle. Fourth at the British beat defender Stuart Pearce, known for his cannon strike. Waddle said that “it was possible to set up a house for Stuart to score from a point” ^[4] . Pierce once again relied on force, but his kick with his left foot right in the center of the goal kicked in the fall parried Bodo Illgner . The fourth penalty of Germany was realized by Olaf Ton . The fifth from the British beat Waddle. To save the chances of continuing the penalty shootout, Waddle certainly had to score, but his kick with the left foot in the upper left corner of the goal fell above the crossbar. England lost and was forced to be content only with the match for third place ^{[25] [26]} .

In the “comforting” game for 3rd place, the British in Bari met with the hosts of the tournament . Interestingly, the Italians lost in the semifinals to the Argentines in the same scenario as the British to the Germans. The main time ended with the score 1-1, there were no goals in the extra, and in the penalty shootout, the Italians first scored three times in a row and then missed twice, the Argentines realized all 4 of their hits. In the match for 3rd place, the score was opened in the 70th minute, when Roberto Baggio scored after Shilton’s grave mistake. The British answered after 10 minutes - Tony Dorigo hung from the left flank, and Platt irresistibly struck his head in the very nine. But after 5 minutes, the Italians took the lead again - Paul Parker shot down Salvatore Skillaci at the entrance to the penalty area, and the injured sold the 11-meter goal, scoring his 6th goal in the tournament and becoming his top scorer ^[27] . For the remaining minutes, the British could not win back. Waddle appeared on the field only in the 73rd minute. This match was the 125th and last in the national team for Peter Shilton. Left the team after 8 years at the head and coach Bobby Robson. 4th place - the best achievement in history of the British at world championships, except for their victory in 1966 .

Team Finish

After the World Cup, the national team was headed by Graham Taylor . In the fall of 1990, Waddle twice played for the Wembley national team - in a friendly match with Hungary, he appeared on the field in the 74th minute ^[28] (England win 1-0), and in the 1992 European Championship qualifying match with the Poles, Chris came out for a substitution in the 57th minute ^[29] (win 2-0). It was Waddle's 61st game for the national team. The disappointment after the World Cup was too great, and Chris decided to focus on playing for the Olympic.

Waddle played his 62nd and last match for the national team a year later on October 16, 1991 . At Wembley, as part of the selection for Euro 1992, the British met with the Turkish team, whose goal exactly 6 years ago, Chris scored his first goal for the national team. На этот раз Уоддлу отличиться не удалось, хотя он и провёл на поле все 90 минут, англичане же победили 1-0 ^[30] . Этот матч стал прощальным не только для 30-летнего Уоддла, но и для многолетнего капитана сборной Брайана Робсона (90 игр и 26 голов).

В 62 матчах с участием Уоддла англичане одержали 29 побед, 22 раза сыграли вничью и 11 раз проиграли. 59 раз из 62 командой руководил Бобби Робсон и трижды Грэм Тэйлор. 48 раз Крис выходил в стартовом составе и 14 раз на замену. Самого Уоддла меняли 20 раз. Чаще всего партнёрами Уоддла по команде были Гари Линекер (52 раза) и Питер Шилтон (50).

Карьера Уоддла в сборной продолжалась 6 лет и 202 дня.

Все голы Уоддла за сборную (6)

В 6 матчах, когда Уоддл забивал, англичане одержали 6 побед с общим счётом 18-0. 2 из 6 мячей Уоддла были победными.

Клубы

•   « Тоттенхэм Хотспур »
  • Финалист Кубка Англии 1986/87

•   « Олимпик Марсель »
  • Трёхкратный чемпион Франции — 1989/90, 1990/91 и 1991/92
  • Финалист Кубка европейских чемпионов 1990/91

•   « Шеффилд Уэнсдей »
  • Финалист Кубка Англии 1992/93
  • Финалист Кубка английской лиги 1992/93

Сборная Англии

• 1/4 финала чемпионата мира 1986 года
• 4-е место на чемпионате мира 1990 года

Personal

• «Серебряный мяч» второго футболиста Европы по версии французского журнала Onze Mondial в 1991 году.
• Лучший футболист чемпионата Англии 1992/93 по версии Ассоциации футбольных журналистов (единственный в истории игрок «Шеффилд Уэнсдей», получивший эту награду).

Старший двоюродный брат Криса Алан Уоддл (род. 1954 ) также был футболистом и выступал за такие клубы как « Ливерпуль », « Лестер Сити », « Суонси » и др.

У Криса есть дочь Брук ( англ. Brooke ) и сын Джек.

• В 1987 году Крис Уоддл и Гленн Ходдл , выступавшие тогда за «Тоттенхэм», записали песню Diamond Lights , которая в апреле поднялась до 12-го места в британском хит-параде синглов ^[31] . По опросу же компании «Марс» эта песня вошла в пятёрку худших песен всех времён ^[32] .
• В 2005 году Уоддл был арестован за драку в одном из пабов Шеффилда, когда он «помассировал физиономию с помощью кулаков» 20-летнему местному жителю ^[33] .

• Все матчи Уоддла за сборную Англии (англ.)
• Статистика Уоддла в матчах за сборную (англ.)
• Chris Waddle on the official website of "Tottenham Hotspur" (eng.)
• Chris Waddle on the official website "Sheffield Wednesday" (eng.)
• Le clown - football.ua, December 7, 2009