Matthew Le Tissier

Matthew Paul Le Tissier (born October 14, 1968) was an English footballer. Playing in midfield he spent his entire playing career from 1986 to retirement in 2002 at Southampton F.C His casual but dazzling ball skills and intense loyalty made him the fans favourite. His commitment to a minor club and frequent injuries towards the end of his career limited his success in terms of international caps (just eight, the first in 1994) and trophies.

He played his first professional game on September 2, 1986 and went on to play 431 league games for Southampton, 50 League Cup games and 32 FA Cup games. He scored 208 goals for his club including 49 out of 50 penalties. His best season was probably 1994-95 when he scored 30 goals, although the club finished only 10th. In 2001, he scored the last competitive goal at The Dell, which had been Southampton's home for more than 100 years. The goal won a match against Arsenal; this turned out to be Arsenal's last away defeat for over a year.

He was born in St. Peter Port, Guernsey. He played youth football on the island and was clearly a class above his compatriots. After a trial at Oxford United he signed to Southampton in May 1985.