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Full Name
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Mark Leslie Hughes
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Date of Birth
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1st Nov 1963
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Place of Birth
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Wrexham, Wales
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Position
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Forward
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Height
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5ft 9
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United debut
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26/10/1983
vs Port Vale (H)
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.....
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Hughes's United Record
1983-86 & 1988-95
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Appearances
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Goals
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League
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336 (9)
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120
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FA Cup
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45 (1)
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17
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League Cup
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37 (1)
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16
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Europe
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30 (3)
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9
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Total
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448 (14)
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162
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Hughes's International Record
1983-2000
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72 Caps for Wales - 16 Goals
1994 F.A. Cup
1994 F.A. Premier
League
1993 F.A. Premier
League
1992 League Cup
1991 European Cup
Winners Cup
1990 F.A. Cup
1985 F.A. Cup
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Mark
Hughes must go down as one of the most exciting and talented
forwards in the modern era of English football. A scorer of
some truly spectacular goals, especially with his glorious
bicycle kick, "Sparky" Hughes was the sort of player that
ensured a game was never dull. great passer with an ability
to drop off deep and act as a playmaker, one of his great
talents was holding the ball up while waiting for his team
mates to arrive as the oncoming reinforcements. In fact such
was his strength and power it seemed he could hold onto that
ball forever and his opponents still wouldn't get it off
him.
This enabled United to create the fast-flowing counter
attack that characterised the team in the early to mid
1990s. Chuck the ball at him and it would stick to his
chest, head, thigh or arse. He loved the way that opponents
would just bounce off him and if they got in too close he
could turn quickly, leaving them for dead to fire in a
lethal shot. And who can forget that fiery Welsh temper that
would sometimes emerge in the heat of battle? What was
baffling to many observers was that Hughes was such a quiet,
calm person off the pitch but yet he became a snarling
ultra-competitve fighter once he crossed that white line.
Born in Wrexham, he joined United as a Youth team player and
quickly rose to the first team as a prolific goal-scorer in
United's infamous 1984 season. The club roared off to a ten
point lead at the start of the season but form deserted the
team and Hughes with United finishing a disappointing 4th.
Hughes soon became an established international for Wales
(making 72 appearances over the years and eventually
captaining the squad in 1999) and his impressive
performances made him one of the hottest talents in England.
After winning an FA Cup medal in 1985 and PFA Young Player
of the Year award he attracted the attention of Europe's big
clubs.
He was sold to Barcelona in 1986 for £2 million, however
the intense pressure of the giant Nou-Camp crowds and huge
expectations made for unhappy times - Hughes would get his
revenge on Barca's fans in 1991. He even went out on loan to
Bayern Munich for a time but it was clear his future lay
back in England. |
Alex Ferguson was
first in the queue when Barca put Hughes up for sale and
brought him back to United in 1988 for £1.6 million. It was
business as usual as Hughes returned to his best form again.
Such was his excellence, he won PFA Player of the Year in
both 1989 and 1991.
For United fans it was his wondrous, net busting goals that
we loved the most. They are too many to list, but his best
include the amazing bicycle kick for Wales against Spain, a
superb narrow-angled winner in the Cup Winners' Cup Final
against Barcelona, the looping 25-yarder lashed home against
Manchester City in 1989, a belter at home to Sheffield
Wednesday in 1994 and the volley to equalise against Oldham
in the desperate last seconds of the 1994 FA Cup semi-final,
the goal that saved United's 1994 season during the peak of
his career. Hughes also scored twice in the 1990 FA Cup
Final and the 3rd goal against Chelsea in the 1994 Final.
In the mid and late 1980s when Manchester United were at a
low ebb, Sparky was something to be proud of, a class act
that any great team would love to have. When the glory years
of Cantona arrived, Hughes deservedly got his starring role
in the limelight and was an integral part of the two League
title wins and Double of 1994. It was claimed on Cantona's
arrival that the two would never work together, yet the
Hughes-Cantona partnership worked brilliantly from the
start.
Then, aged 32, Alex Ferguson unexpectedly sold him in the
summer of 1995 to Chelsea, where he went on to win the FA
Cup and become the only player to ever win four FA Cup
winner's medals. At the time United fans were as angry with
the manager as perhaps they have ever been, for selling the
man who had been an Old Trafford icon for over a decade.
In 1999 he became Wales Manager, taking the side to the
European Championship play-offs in 2003. Sparky played his
final game for Blackburn Rovers in May 2002, retiring at the
age of 38. He had wanted to get as much football out his
career as possible, for incredibly it was 7 years since he
had left United. But seeing Mark Hughes in the blue of
Chelsea, Everton or Blackburn never seemed quite right. He
will always be remembered marauding through defences in the
red of his beloved Manchester United, as Alex Ferguson once
said "A warrior you could trust with your life". |
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All pictures in the
profiles can be enlarged by clicking on the smaller version.
Stats do not include friendlies, Charity Shield or World Club tournaments.
Number in brackets ( ) represents appearances as substitute in addition to
starting appearances.
This information is kindly taken from
McCleery's
Manchester United Zone
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