ON THIS DAY

& 2009 Cristiano Ronaldo has the reputation of being a decent player and goalscorer. During his first spell at Manchester United he scored 118 goals in his 292 first team appearances for the Reds. But surprisingly he only managed one hat-trick in that total – that came on 12th January 2008 when his three second-half goals helped United to a 6-0 win over Newcastle at Old Trafford. Obviously helped by that hat-trick, and the fact that he helped Manchester United win the Premier League title and the Champions League, exactly a year later on 12th January 2009 he was voted FIFA World Player of the Year for 2008. That made him first player from the Premier League to win that title.

After resigning from Lazio Sven officially took over as England manager and we soon realised foreign managers were as crap as English ones!

One of the immortals of the English game made his Football League debut. Just 10 days short of his 17th birthday Dixie Dean played for his local club, Tranmere Rovers, in a Division 3 (North) match at Rotherham County (as Rotherham United were then). Tranmere lost the match 5-1. His debut might have been a disappointment but his goalscoring record of 27 goals in 30 League outings for Tranmere brought him to the attention of near neighbours Everton who signed him in March 1925. From then on it was goals all the way with his achievement of scoring 349 goals in 399 League appearances being an Everton record while his 60 League goals in 1927/28 is an English record that seems unbeatable. In May 2001 a statue of the Everton legend was unveiled outside of Goodison Park and tragically he died on 1st March 1980 at Goodison while watching an Everton-Liverpool local derby. A true legend.