Tony Coton

Infobox Football biography
playername = Tony Coton


fullname = Anthony P. Coton
height = convert|6|ft|2|in|m|2|abbr=on
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1961|5|19
cityofbirth = Tamworth
countryofbirth = England
currentclub =
clubnumber =
position = Goalkeeper (retired)
youthyears = 1977–1978
youthclubs = Mile Oak Rovers
years = 1978–1984
1979
1984–1990
1990–1996
1996
1996–1999
2004
clubs = Birmingham City
→ Hereford United (loan)
Watford
Manchester City
Manchester United
Sunderland
Hereford United
caps(goals) = 094 (0)
000 (0)
233 (0)
163 (0)
000 (0)
010 (0)
000 (0)
nationalyears = 1992
nationalteam = England B
nationalcaps(goals) = 001 (0)
manageryears =
managerclubs =

Tony Coton (born 19 May 1961 in Tamworth) is an English ex-footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He was renowned for his excellent reflexes and shot-stopping abilities.

Career

Coton started his professional career at Birmingham City in 1978, having signed from Mile Oak Rovers. Although he did not make his first league appearance until the 1980–81 season, by the 1982–83 season he had established himself as Birmingham's first choice goalkeeper. Coton actually saved a penalty given in the first minute of his debut against Sunderland.

Despite relegation at the end of the next season, Coton found his way back into the top flight with a transfer to Watford, for a sum of £300,000. He soon he replaced Steve Sherwood in Watford's goal and At the end of his second full season at Vicarage Road he won the Hornets' Player of the Season and Display of the Season awards, the latter for a cleansheet against Liverpool.

Before the start of the 1990–91 season, Coton was bought for just under £1,000,000 by Manchester City manager Howard Kendall. At the time, he was one of the most expensive goalkeepers to be signed by any British club.

He went on to win the City Player of the Year award in both the 1991–92 and 1993-94 seasons. He also won an England B cap during his time at City. They finished fifth in the First Division during his first two seasons at Maine Road and ninth in the first season of the Premier League. However, they dipped to 16th in 1993-94 and 17th in 1994-95, although he remained first choice goalkeeper under subsequent managers Peter Reid and Brian Horton.

Coton's time at Manchester City was cut short by injury in 1995, and the signing of Eike Immel. In 1996, he moved across the city to Manchester United for £500,000, a record fee for a transfer between United and City. [cite book |last=White |first=John D. T. |title=The Official Manchester United Almanac |edition=1st edition |date=2008-05-29 |publisher=Orion Books |location=London |isbn=978-0-7528-9192-7 |pages=p.21 |chapter=January ] He never played a first team game for United and moved on to Sunderland after just six months, for a fee of £300,000.

He made a few impressive performances for his new club (who had just been promoted to the Premier League as Division One champions) before breaking his leg in five places during a league match against Southampton. The injury marked the end of his career, although in April 2004 he was brought in as emergency goalkeeping cover by Hereford United for a Nationwide Conference fixture.

Post-retirement

From 1997 to 2007, Coton was goalkeeping coach at Manchester United, establishing himself as one of the best coaches in his field. He was forced to step down from the position in December 2007 due to a knee injury that stopped him participating in training sessions. [ [http://football.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/0,,2230147,00.html Coton quits Old Trafford] , guardian.co.uk, accessed 2007-12-20] He had had two operations in the past four months, in order to correct his ongoing knee problems, but after discussions with his surgeon and the Manchester United medical staff, they agreed that retirement was the best option. Coton remained at Manchester United until the end of his contract in June 2008, but with dramatically reduced coaching responsibilities. [cite news |first=Steve |last=Bartram |title=Coton forced to retire |url=http://www.manutd.com/default.sps?pagegid={B4CEE8FA-9A47-47BC-B069-3F7A2F35DB70}&newsid=522783 |publisher=ManUtd.com |date=2008-01-11 |accessdate=2008-01-11 ]

References

External links

*soccerbase|id=1678|name=Tony Coton

Persondata
NAME = Tony Coton
ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
SHORT DESCRIPTION = footballer
DATE OF BIRTH = 19 May 1961
PLACE OF BIRTH = Tamworth, England
DATE OF DEATH =
PLACE OF DEATH =