Gary Lineker Biography

Gary Lineker Biography – Introduction - I watched Filippo Inzaghi play (and score twice) in the 2007 Champions League final and without my will, my mind flew 20 years earlier and I thought of a striker that resembles the Italian quite well: Gary Lineker. Like Inzaghi, Lineker was a pure goal scorer, he was often criticized for being lazy and being a goal hanger, getting the fame after someone else does all the hard work, but the truth is that he was one of the most brilliant strikers ever to come from England. This biography will take you through his career, from his youth days to his retirement.

Gary Lineker Biography – Leicester City
Born in Leicester, it was only natural that Lineker would grow up as a fan of the local club. He started out playing for the youth department of Leicester City when he was 14 years old and by the time he was 18, he was selected for the senior squad. In his first two seasons as a professional soccer player, Lineker didn't get a lot of chances to play but as soon as he had the chance to go on the pitch regularly, he never came off the team.

Actually, in the early 80s he was considered one of the most talented young players in England at that time and he came out amongst the top 3 goalscorers in the Premiership almost every year. In 1984, Lineker already had over 100 goals scored for Leicester City in approximately 200 matches.

Gary Lineker Biography – Everton, Barcelona and the World Cup - When he moved to Everton for the 1985-1986 season, Gary was on fire and his excellent form got him his first caps in the English national side. With the upcoming World Cup, it proved to be a decisive moment for Lineker and a quality decision from the English federation and coach to take the young striker to the tournament.

His season with Everton was excellent as he scored 38 goals in 52 matches in all competitions for his new team and this made Barcelona move in and make an offer for the player.

Lineker moved to Barcelona in the summer of 1986, just prior to the World Cup. The Catalan fans were still not convinced of his quality but hopefully, before he could play a match for Barca, he went on to Mexico to play in the World Cup. Although England didn't reach the final, Lineker was the top goal scorer of the competition, winning the Golden Shoe award and wiping all doubt from the hearts of the Barca fans.

His first season with the blau-grana team was also a great one, as Gary Lineker's goals (21 in 41 games) proved the fans yet again that he was a world class player and deserved his spot with the club. Probably one of his most notable performances at Barcelona was his hattrick in the El Clasico derby against Real Madrid, with Barcelona winning 3-2 and Gary Lineker entering a very select list of players that managed to score a hattrick in one of soccer's most important derbies. 

Unfortunately, Barcelona's coach, Johan Cruyff made Lineker play as a right midfielder or a right winger in his next seasons and since he was a natural born scorer, this position obviously made him lose his pace. Gradually taken out of the first team, Lineker decided to move back to England in 1989, but despite Manchester United's interest, he chose to play for Tottenham Hotspur.

Gary Lineker Biography – End of Career - The 3 seasons spent at Tottenham saw him playing as a pure striker again and that move made him catch his old form again, scoring 80 goals in the 120 matches he played for the club. In 1992, his retirement age coming fast, he chose to move to Japan and follow a tempting contract. He ended his career with the Japanese club Nagoya Grampus Eight and left behind more than 300 trademarked Gary Lineker goals for the teams he played for as well as 48 goals for the English national team.