Charlie Nicholas
Charles Nicholas (born 30 December 1961) is a Scottish former professional footballer. A striker, Nicholas is best known for his spells at Celtic and Arsenal. He won 20 international caps for Scotland, including playing at the 1986 FIFA World Cup.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Charles Nicholas | ||
| Date of birth | 30 December 1961 | ||
| Place of birth | Glasgow, Scotland | ||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Celtic Boys Club | |||
| 1979–1980 | Celtic | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1979–1983 | Celtic | 74 | (48) |
| 1983–1988 | Arsenal | 151 | (34) |
| 1988–1990 | Aberdeen | 77 | (30) |
| 1990–1995 | Celtic | 112 | (37) |
| 1995–1996 | Clyde | 31 | (5) |
| Total | 445 | (154) | |
| International career | |||
| 1980–1984 | Scotland U21 | 6 | (2) |
| 1983–1989 | Scotland | 20 | (5) |
| 1987 | Scotland B | 1 | (0) |
| 1990 | Scottish League XI | 1 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Nicholas began his career at Celtic, and by the age of 21 was considered the most exciting emerging talent in British football. With several English clubs keen to sign him, he joined Arsenal in the summer of 1983. He spent over four years there, and scored both their goals in their League Cup Final win over Liverpool in 1987. Nicholas fell out of favour at Highbury later that year, and moved back to Scotland to join Aberdeen. He won two Cup Finals in his time at Pittodrie, before rejoining Celtic in 1990. His second spell at Parkhead was less successful than his first, but he spent five seasons there before moving on to Clyde for one season before retiring from playing.
Since retiring he has worked in the media, most recently on the Sky Sports show Soccer Saturday, until August 2020.