To say that he had an excellent playing career would be a massive understatement. He played 840 career games, scoring a total of 134 goals. He also is the second highest appearance maker in the Premier League with 535, only beaten by David James. Before Sheffield United were relegated back to the Championship he shared with Ryan Giggs the distinction of scoring at least one goal in every season since the Premier Leagues inauguration. He played in two League Cup finals once with Leeds and once with Bolton, losing both times. His crowning moment however was when he won the First Divison Championship with Leeds, in the final season before the Premier League replaced Division One as the top league in English football. Along with this he secured 85 caps for his country Wales, the second highest amount behind only Neville Southall.
He was one of those players who was able to adapt to any situation, as I seem to remember him being in a more defensive role for both Bolton and Sheffield United but was still able to get amongst the goals. I wouldn't say he was the complete midfielder but he wasn't far off it. Every time I have watched him play, you could see the passion, the drive to try and get everything that was possible out of the game. Always one of the first names on any teamsheet, he rarely failed in giving it his all. So as a player, he was never the greatest, but nearly always the most important for any team he played for. The Model Professional.
By last year he had made the transition into management and got the Wales job last December. He was doing quite a brilliant job with the only defeat Wales having recently was against England and that was a game they should've easily drawn. Their World Cup qualifying group looked promising as well.
As a man he seemed like a very nice person who gave advice to many young players going through the system at many different clubs and player like Robbie Savage and Craig Bellamy have previously praised him for his kindness at the beggining of their international careers. He was one of those people was in the spotlight, but wasn't if you see what I mean. He wouldn't be the first person you would think of first thing in the morning or when discussing football matters but if you saw him on TV, you'd know what his name was. Or if he came up in a random conversation, you would know who he was.
To say that his death is tragic is again a masssive piece of understatement. My shock at this news was probably confounded by the fact that just yesterday, I was watching Football Focus and he was on the show. He seemed happy all show, was having a laugh about the old days with his former Leeds teammate Gary Mcallister, expressing his pleasure at how well his national side was doing and how confident he was about World Cup qualification. Dan Walker, the presenter said on his twitter page today how he recorded the focus forum afterwards with Speed and said how he was talking about his family, golf and football with no sign at all of what was going to happen. Emotion has been shown by all comers, with many of my freinds and followers on twitter expressing their sadness at his passing. Shay Given was in tears before the Swansea vs Aston Villa match began and Craig Bellamy withdrew from the Liverpool squad to face Manchester City.
On a quick side note, it's quite sad in a way that it takes an event like this to realise that football doesn't matter. Not really.
I suppose the question over the coming days, will be as Robbie Savage, one of Gary's closest freinds said on twitter: Why? From the outside Gary Speed seemed to have it all. A close family with a wife and two sons. A clean bill of health, a healthy managerial career and respect from many quarters in football.
Those answers will probably start to unravel over the next few days. But for now lets remember Gary Speed as the great footballer and great man. I just hope after todays outpouring of sympathy and tribute, that he knew how much people liked and respected him.
RIP
1969-2011
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