Editing David Platt (section)

==Club career==

===Manchester United and Crewe Alexandra===
Platt signed for [[Manchester United F.C.|Manchester United]] as an apprentice on leaving school in 1982, having been spotted playing for [[Chadderton F.C.|Chadderton]].<ref name=turn/> He accepted manager [[Ron Atkinson]]'s offer of a professional contract at the start of the [[1984–85 in English football|1984–85 season]], but was given a free transfer on 23 February 1985 without ever playing for the Manchester United first team.<ref name = "SB">{{soccerbase|id=6386|name=David Platt}}</ref>

[[Dario Gradi]] then signed Platt for [[Crewe Alexandra F.C.|Crewe Alexandra]] in the [[Football League Fourth Division|Fourth Division]]. He quickly established himself in the first team at [[Gresty Road]] as a strong-running, free-scoring midfielder. He played 134 games in the Fourth Division, scoring 55 goals, over the next three years. In the [[FA Cup]], he played three games, scoring one goal. In the [[EFL Cup|League Cup]] he played four games, scoring four goals.<ref name = "SB"/>

===Aston Villa===
In February 1988, Platt left Crewe—then still a Fourth Division side—to join [[Aston Villa F.C.|Aston Villa]] for £200,000. He helped his new club earn an instant return to the First Division that season, as runners-up in the Second Division.<ref name = "SB"/>

He was a frequent goalscorer for Villa, helping re-establish them in the First Division at the end of the 1980s, and in [[1989–90 in English football|1989–90]] took them to the brink of the [[English Football League|league]] title. Although they had to settle for runners-up spot behind [[Liverpool F.C.|Liverpool]], Platt was voted [[PFA Players' Player of the Year]].{{Cn|date=July 2024}}

The next season, [[1990–91 in English football|1990–91]], he continued where he left off. In a game against Arsenal he famously went in goal when [[Nigel Spink]] was injured in a 5–0 defeat to Arsenal. Platt's success with Villa was evident in his goal-scoring record. In more than three years at [[Villa Park]], he played 121 League games, scoring 50 goals. In the FA Cup, he scored two goals in four games, while in the League Cup he scored 10 goals in 14 games. However, his final season at Villa saw the club finish 17th in the league, and he was already being linked with a move to Italy.<ref name = "SB"/>

===Bari===
On 21 July 1991, Platt moved to Italy to play in [[Serie A]].<ref>{{cite web |author=J-Rock |url=http://www.onthisfootballday.com/football-history/july-21-david-platt-signs-for-bari.php |title=July 21 – David Platt signs for Bari |publisher=On This Football Day |access-date=24 February 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120320095952/http://www.onthisfootballday.com/football-history/july-21-david-platt-signs-for-bari.php |archive-date=20 March 2012}}</ref> He signed for [[A.S. Bari]], for £5.5 million, where he was given the captain's armband and the number 10 shirt.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gates |first=Emmet |date=2020-01-24 |title=David Platt in Italy: an enduring legacy at Bari and Sampdoria and £17m in transfer fees |url=https://thesefootballtimes.co/2020/01/24/david-platt-an-englishman-in-italy/ |access-date=2023-01-07 |website=These Football Times |language=en-GB}}</ref> He played 29 games in his first season, scoring 11 goals. The [[1991–92 Serie A]] season ended in relegation for Bari.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.goal.com/en/news/9/england/2009/05/13/1262089/goalcoms-top-50-english-players-david-platt-34 |title=Goal.com's Top 50 English Players: David Platt (34) |publisher=Goal.com |access-date=24 February 2012}}</ref>

In January 1992, during his time at Bari, Platt received a phone call from [[Roberto Mancini]], who pressed him to come to [[Sampdoria]]. "We'd played Sampdoria a few times and I'd faced Robbie," Platt recalls. "But I didn't know him and he'd tracked my number from somewhere. He said: 'I know you've got a good relationship with your president, I'm sure you could push through a move to us.'"<ref name=turn/> In the end, Platt chose Juventus.

===Juventus===
In June 1992, Platt was signed for [[Juventus FC|Juventus]] for £6.5 million.<ref name = "SB"/> In domestic competitions, Platt struggled to maintain a first-team place in the Juventus team that season. He scored a decisive goal against [[S.S.C. Napoli]] in a 4–3 victory, giving the team a chance at the league title.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/italian-football-platts-header-lifts-juventus-1496471.html| location=London | work=The Independent | title= Italian Football: Platt's header lifts Juventus | date=8 March 1993}}</ref>

He also helped the [[Turin]] club win the [[UEFA Europa League|UEFA Cup]]. Platt was involved in five matches, including one as an unused substitute. Platt scored the only goal away to [[Panathinaikos F.C.|Panathinaikos]] as Juventus won the second-round match 1–0 on aggregate. He played in both semi-final legs against [[Paris Saint-Germain F.C.|Paris Saint-Germain]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.uefa.com/uefaeuropaleague/match/6164--anorthosis-vs-juventus/|title=Anorthosis-Juventus 1992 History}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.uefa.com/uefaeuropaleague/match/6668--panathinaikos-vs-juventus/|title=Panathinaikos-Juventus 1992 History}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.uefa.com/uefaeuropaleague/match/6669--juventus-vs-panathinaikos/|title=Juventus-Panathinaikos 1992 History}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.uefa.com/uefaeuropaleague/match/7288--juventus-vs-paris/|title = Juventus-Paris 1992 History}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.uefa.com/uefaeuropaleague/match/7289--paris-vs-juventus/|title = Paris-Juventus 1992 History}}</ref>

Platt was not listed on the substitutes bench, but he picked up a medal as part of the squad and lifted the trophy after [[1993 UEFA Cup final|the final]].<ref name="tuttojuve">{{cite web|url=http://www.tuttojuve.com/gli-eroi-bianconeri/gli-eroi-in-bianconero-david-platt-52798|title=Gli eroi in bianconero: David Platt|trans-title=The heroes in black and white: David Platt|publisher=Tutto Juve|language=it|author1=Stefano Bedeschi|date=13 June 2013|access-date=18 January 2017}}</ref> In Serie A, he scored three goals in 16 games.<ref name = "SB"/>

Mancini persisted despite Platt's move to Turin. "Every two weeks he would be on the phone, pressing me." When things quickly failed to work out in Turin, the move Mancini wanted finally did happen. "Juventus played Sampdoria, Robbie was playing, so I was marking him and hovering around him, hoping he would say something," Platt remembers. "I've always suspected I wasn't on Sampdoria's list that summer, because their president wanted to sign [[Marco Osio]] from [[Parma Calcio 1913|Parma]] but he ran the transfer list past Robbie, who had much of the say. I soon made the move."<ref name=turn>{{cite news| url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/david-platt-i-wanted-to-turn-robbie-down-but-of-course-i-couldnt-say-no-2267931.html| location=London | work=The Independent | title= David Platt: 'I wanted to turn Robbie down, but of course I couldn't say no' | date=15 April 2011}}</ref>

===Sampdoria===
After just one season with Juventus, Platt was soon on the move again. This time he signed for Sampdoria on 14 July 1993 for £5.2 million. Platt won the [[Coppa Italia]] [[1993–94 Coppa Italia|in 1994]] under [[Sven-Göran Eriksson]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Gates |first1=Emmet |title=David Platt in Italy: an enduring legacy at Bari and Sampdoria and £17m in transfer fees |url=https://thesefootballtimes.co/2020/01/24/david-platt-an-englishman-in-italy/ |access-date=6 September 2020 |work=These Football Times |date=24 January 2020}}</ref> By the time his Italian career came to a close, he was a technically experienced player, possessing [[Dribbling#Association football|dribbling]], passing and finishing skills equal to the best.<ref>Witzig, Richard. ''The Global Art of Soccer'', p. 167.</ref> Platt played for exactly two years, until 14 July 1995. He played 55 league games for Sampdoria, scoring 17 goals.<ref name = "SB"/>

===Arsenal===
After four years in Italy with three different clubs, Platt returned to England on 10 July 1995, when new [[Arsenal F.C.|Arsenal]] manager [[Bruce Rioch]] signed him for £4.75 million.<ref name="White 1995">{{cite news| url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/platt-in-pounds-475m-move-to-arsenal-1590988.html | location=London | work=The Independent | first=Clive | last=White | title=Platt in pounds 4.75m move to Arsenal | date=11 July 1995}}</ref> Rioch cut short a holiday in Portugal to bring Platt to Arsenal. Platt had been offered a two-year extension to his contract with Sampdoria, but his mind was soon made up after talking to Rioch in [[Sardinia]], where he was on holiday. "Arsenal made it clear that they really wanted me," Platt said. "My talks with Bruce Rioch were exceptional. We hit it off straight away. He is a great communicator with some exciting ideas on tactics and a definite view on how he sees me fitting into his plans."<ref name="White 1995"/> The feelings were mutual. "I'm delighted to sign a player of David's calibre," Rioch said. "I have admired him for a long time and through these discussions with him I have been very impressed by his knowledge, ambition and desire."<ref name="White 1995"/>

In his first season, Arsenal finished fifth in the league and qualified for the UEFA Cup, although Rioch was sacked just before the start of the following season due to a dispute with the board, and succeeded by [[Arsène Wenger]]. His first season at Highbury produced six goals from his 29 league appearances, with his first goal in an Arsenal shirt coming in a 2–0 win at [[Everton F.C.|Everton]] in the second game of the campaign. Platt was a regular in Wenger's first season, the 1996–97 campaign, and scored four goals in 28 league appearances, mainly alongside new signing [[Patrick Vieira]] in the centre of the Arsenal midfield. Arsenal were top of the table in late autumn, but eventually had to settle for a third-place finish, seven points behind champions Manchester United.

Wenger boosted his midfield department during the summer of 1997 with the arrival of French pair [[Emmanuel Petit]] and [[Gilles Grimandi]]. The manager's preferred central-midfield pairing was Petit and Vieira, who played a crucial role in Arsenal's double-winning campaign. This severely limited Platt's appearances and he was to make just eleven starts during the season, with a further 20 substitute appearances. He still managed to make a vital contribution to Arsenal's season, however, with a headed winner in a 3–2 victory over Manchester United at [[Arsenal Stadium|Highbury]]. That proved to be Platt's last season with the Gunners as he retired from playing at the end of the season, with the intention of taking a year out from the game to study coaching before making the move into management.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sporting-heroes.net/football-heroes/displayhero_club.asp?HeroID=37495 |title=David Platt Arsenal profile |publisher=Sporting-heroes.net |access-date=24 February 2012}}</ref> His last match was the [[1998 FA Cup Final]].

Early in the 1997–98 season, Arsenal accepted a £1.5 million bid from [[Middlesbrough F.C.|Middlesbrough]] for Platt, but the transfer never happened and Platt saw out the season at Highbury.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/pounds-15m-platt-ponders-boro-move-1244396.html | location=London | work=The Independent | first=Rupert | last=Metcalf | title=pounds 1.5m Platt ponders Boro move | date=8 August 1997}}</ref>

===Nottingham Forest===
In July 1999, Platt signed a three-year contract to take over at Nottingham Forest as player-manager, a decision which saw him go back on his plan from a year earlier to retire from playing.