Ray Wilkins

From RedCafe.net

[edit] Statistics

• United Career: 1979 - 1984

• Birthplace: Hillingdon, Middlesex

• Date of Birth: 4th September 1956

• Position: Midfield

• Games: 190 (3)

• Goals: 10

• Honours: FA Cup 1983

• Full International: 84 England caps 3 goals (76-86)

• Other Clubs: Chelsea (73/4-78/9), AC Milan (Ita) (84/5-86/7), Paris St. Germain (Fra) (87/8), Glasgow Rangers (Sco) (87/8-89/90), Queen's Park Rangers (89/90-93/94), Crystal Palace (94/95), Queen's Park Rangers (94/95-96/7), Wycombe Wanderers (96/7), Hibernian (96/7), Millwall (96/7), Leyton Orient (96/7)

• Manager: Queen's Park Rangers (94-96), Fulham (97/98)

[edit] Biography

When Dave Sexton paid Chelsea £825,000 for Ray Wilkins in August 1979 there was much rejoicing in the Old Trafford camp. There was a genuine feeling that England's 22 year-old midfield general would be the long- sought-after missing link, the man who held the key to United winning the title for the first time in more than a decade.

After all, Ray was a richly gifted play-maker possessed of maturity and experience unusual for one of his age. Both Liverpool and Arsenal had tried to sign him and failed. Now, surely, his time was ripe and Old Trafford would witness the flowering of a great talent. Well, he was a fine footballer and he gave United five seasons of trusty service, yet he failed palpably to reach the lofty pinnacles predicted for him.

What was special about Ray? His touch was inspired; his passing could reach sublime heights; his reading of the game was exemplary and his temperament was impeccable. But often his play was flawed by an apparent lack of ambition, a propensity to play safe, which led to Ron Atkinson uncharitably christening him `The Crab' - because he was always passing sideways - and to the fans becoming frustrated by his laid-back style.

At times, presumably, Ray's cautious approach reflected team tactics, but nevertheless it created a sadly unsympathetic image of a man who had the raw materials to become a Reds immortal.

To be fair, he did turn in many magnificent performances for United, and though his scoring rate was disappointly negligible - something like one goal every 19 matches - occasionally he would come up with a classic such as his 25-yard left-foot curler in the first instalment of the 1983 FA Cup Final against Brighton.

For a time, Ray was skipper of both club and country before he suffered a fractured cheekbone and lost both jobs to Bryan Robson. In the wake of that setback, his form dipped noticeably, but he recovered to deliver some of his most compelling displays in his farewell season before joining AC Milan for £1.5 million in the summer of 1984.

Should he have stayed? If he had it would certainly have been harder, for financial reasons, to keep Robson out of the Italians' clutches, so it could be argued that, by the mere act of leaving, Ray did Manchester United a priceless service.

Of course, such a thoroughbred footballer and decent man deserves better than such a glib epitaph and for a moment in 1991 it seemed he might get the chance to write a new ending to his personal chapter of the Old Trafford story. Alex Ferguson pondered deeply on the need for a top-quality schemer and was said to be on the verge of offering the job to Ray, whose game was improving with every passing year. But it never happened; the personable thirtysomething continued to pull the midfield strings for QPR and Alex pursued other options. What might have transpired if Ray and the Reds had been reunited, we'll never know.