Gary Speed had already insured a legacy as one of his generation’s finest players. As the manager of the Welsh side he had only really just begun his task and it this has ended all too soon. Speed began his career when the Premier League was just starting and he quickly became an icon in the sport and one of the best players in English football. He played for Everton, Bolton, Leeds, and Newcastle.
After playing for these sides he went on to play at Sheffield United eventually accepting a job managing the team. After this he became manager of Wales, the country which he is from. During the time the Speed was in charge of the Welsh national side saw great improvements, and this is something that all teams that were managed by Mr Speed benefited from. He has recently died aged 42 and he is survived by his wife and two sons.
Gary Speed was born in 1969 in Mancot and eventually moved to Leeds when he was given a professional football contract. He played midfield at the side and his fellow players had a big influence on his game. He was known for being a professional and had a great focus on the sport. Despite early promise and excellent playing during his career he only won cups during the start of his career which was a surprise to many people who watched him play.
As he continued to play the sports it seemed that age did not affected his game and even late in his career he was seen playing in several FA Cup finals although unfortunately these were lost to Manchester United and Arsenal. He was also on the side that reached the Champions League final in 2003. All of this occurred while he was playing for Newcastle.
He was the first football player to ever have appeared in 500 Premier league games and he achieved this in 2006. After this he accepted a position as the coach at Bolton that he decided he wanted to return to play the game in 2008 where he played for Sheffield United. After a while he took the position of managing the club.
When he took over the lead position at Wales he showed himself to be a bold and forwardthinking leader and appointed Aaron Ramsey as the captain of the side – despite only being 20 years old. The side also had very few footballing stars but he still managed to turn the side around after a disappointing start. Craig Bellamy and Gareth Dale were some of the stars that he empowered on the team and he relied on them to bring Wales’s victory.
His death was announced by the football Association of Wales on the weekend and has been met in the footballing community with great shock and sympathy. In recent matches his team had been very successful having won five out of the last seven matches. One of the most impressive victories was over Norway where the Welsh team beat them by four goals to one. Wales had been climbing up in the FIFA rankings at a great pace and it is hoped that whoever takes over as manager of the team will be able to continue the great work that Gary Speed has brought to the side.