The Aston Villa signing who left a lasting impression despite controversial exit.
Put aside the controversy surrounding Dwight Yorke’s transfer to Manchester United, which was heightened by John Gregory’s declaration that “I would have shot him if I had a gun.”
And if supporters overlook the fact that Yorke only spent a few months playing for St Andrew’s, they could concur that he was among the most innately talented football players to don the claret and blue uniform in the previous 60 years.
Yorke had to wait till he made his impact after being spotted on a beach by Graham Taylor during a preseason trip to the West Indies.
But he undoubtedly left a lasting impression.
Yorke’s goal against Nottingham Forest in a 3-1 home victory in September 1991 launched him to stardom in the early going of the 1991–92 season.
He finished the season with 17 goals, 11 of which came in the league and five in the FA Cup, including his first hat-trick against Derby County. He finished ahead of veteran striker Cyrille Regis after scoring in four straight league games against Wimbledon, Notts County, QPR, and Leeds in the months that followed.
Yorke played second fiddle to Dean Saunders and Dalian Atkinson for the next two seasons, hitting six goals before failing to score any league goals.
However, he scored eight goals while playing regularly in 1994–95, a season that served as a preview of what was to come because 1995–96 was “Yorkie’s” season.
Together with Savo Milosevic, he scored 17 league goals and 25 goals overall as Villa secured fourth place in the league and the League Cup.
Yorke was disappointed that he didn’t even make the bench a few years prior, but his performance in the final versus Leeds more than made up for it.
Prior to his transfer to Old Trafford in August 1998, he scored another 17 league goals in 1996–1997 (20 total) and 12 in 1997–1998 (16 total).
At United, where he spent four seasons, he rose to stardom just as quickly. Dwight Eversley Yorke is his full name.
Birthdate: November 3, 1971.
Born: Tobago’s Canaan.
Villa League career: 231 games, 73 goals, December 1989–August 1998.
Villa’s honors include winning the League Cup in 1996.
Interesting fact: Given that Signal Hill was sold to Manchester United for £12.6 million in 1998, the £10,000 that Villa paid him initially was one of their best business decisions ever.
Highlight of Villa Park: Overcame the disappointment of not even starting on the bench for the March 1994 final against Manchester United by scoring the team’s third goal in the 88th minute to seal a 3-0 victory in the 1996 League Cup Final against Leeds.
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