Alan Hansen

Alan Hansen was a formidable defender during his playing days. He was also the first outfield player to win English league titles in three different decades. Since retiring he has become one of the most respected and knowledgeable pundits on the beautiful game. His first club as a professional was Scottish team Partick Thistle, where his brother John Hansen already played. Alan and John also played together before signing professional contracts with Partick Thistle at non league club, Sauchie Juniors. It didn't take long for Alan to break into the Partick Thistle first team. His intelligence and defensive talents began to attract attention from bigger clubs, including Bob Paisley's Liverpool. A move to one of the country's top clubs was beckoning. He transferred to Liverpool at a cost of £110,000, and made his debut on the 24th September, 1977, in a league match at Anfield against Derby County. As an integral part of the great Liverpool side of the late 70s and early to mid- 80s, Alan's record of achievement with the Merseyside giants is impressive. His first full international cap came on the 19th May, 1979, in a British Home Championship match against Wales. He also represented his country at the 1982 World Cup finals in Spain, however, Scotland failed to progress beyond the qualifying group due to drawing 2-2 with the USSR. In total he received 26 caps for Scotland- not a lot for a defender of such considerable talent. This was in part due to the already formidable central defensive partnership of Willie Miller and Alex McLeish, who also played together at Aberdeen. Given his exceptional footballing brain, it wasn't long after his retirement that Sky Television employed Hansen as a pundit and summariser. He then moved to BBC Radio 5 Live before taking up his most well-known role as a pundit for Match of the Day. He is a columnist for the Daily Telegraph, Telegraph.co.UK and the BBC website on football issues and has also worked as a motivational speaker. He is represented in the UK by Useful Sports.