From the daily mail ............ If only we could produce players like this today ........... we seemed to have a number of 'in demand' players back then. Now, we just have drama-queens. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...d-Arsenal-33-years-ago-today-left-months.html Thirty three years ago, Clive Allen joined Arsenal for £1.25m... two months later he left without playing a competitive game By NEIL MOXLEY PUBLISHED: 12:23 GMT, 12 June 2013 | UPDATED: 22:27 GMT, 12 June 2013 61 shares 26 View comments Just 16 months after Trevor Francis had shocked the world of football by becoming the first million pound player, another record was broken - when the first seven-figure transfer involving a teenager was struck. Queens Park Rangers forward Clive Allen was the youngster who, while still aged only 19, commanded a £1.25 million fee as he moved to Arsenal, 33 years ago on Wednesday. For a club that was trying to lift itself back up following the blows of losing the FA Cup final to West Ham and Cup-Winners' Cup to Valencia, it was seen as a major coup, particularly as the fulcrum of the side - Liam Brady - was set for a move to Juventus. Scroll down to watch video Coup: Arsenal manager Terry Neill (centre) with new signing Clive Allen (left) who joined from QPR But if manager Terry Neill wanted to put a smile on the faces of those Gunners fans with such an audacious move for a striker who had bagged 32 goals in 49 appearances at Loftus Road, they were soon replaced by looks of total bemusement. After three appearances in Arsenal's warm-up games - with a goal return of precisely nil - the teenage marksman was on his way out - to Crystal Palace in a swap deal involving Kenny Sansom and keeper Paul Barron. It was one of the most bizarre transfers in history. And certainly up there with other short-lived moves. Rare outing: Allen made three friendly appearances for Arsenal before he was allowed to join Crystal Palace David Unsworth's £3m move to Aston Villa lasted just 48 hours and was blamed upon the defender not knowing the location of Villa Park, according to manager John Gregory. Unsworth happily re-joined Everton instead. And Sol Campbell's brief spell at Notts County was over after just one appearance, the England centre half complaining that the League Two club had 'broken promises' made to him. But even that pales into insignificance when Didi Hamann's move to Bolton Wanderers is taken into account. The German had signed a pre-contract agreement with the Trotters after his contract with Liverpool came to an end but asked to move to Manchester City instead... his time at the Reebok amounting to little more than 24 hours. Swap: Kenny Sansom joined Arsenal as part of the deal that saw Allen move to Crystal Palace As it was, Allen moved on just two months after joining Arsenal. The theory at the time was that Eagles boss Terry Venables had a hand in engineering the whole move. The suggestion was that Palace wanted Allen but QPR wouldn't sell to them and weren't interested in a swap deal with Kenny Sansom. Arsenal did have cash to spend but were interested in the Palace left back - and so a complicated three-way move was orchestrated. Found his feet: Allen (left) joined Crystal Palace without playing a competitive game for Arsenal Allen is later quoted as saying: 'Several different theories were put forward. There was no foundation to any of them but it was quite an experience to be involved in. 'I mean, if Arsenal wanted Kenny, why didn't they just buy him from Palace?' It is more likely that Neill bought Allen in good faith and then, having seen the forward first-hand during a couple of pre-season matches, decided that he didn't quite fit the bill and looked for a solution to his problem, finding one in a swap deal. Whatever the true story, it remains one of the most bizarre stories in English football history. P.S. Allen spent just a single season at Crystal Palace before returning to QPR. He then joined Arsenal's north London rivals Tottenham where he scored a stunning 49 goals in the 1986-87 season. He was also named the PFA and the Football Writers' Player of the Year - a feat matched by Spurs' Gareth Bale some 26 years later although the Welshman also won the PFA Young Player of the Year award. Spurs star: Allen later signed for Arsenal's bitter rivals Tottenham and rediscovered his scoring touch VIDEO: CLIVE ALLEN SCORES FOR QPR AGAINST WEST HAM VIDEO: ALLEN SCORES THE GOAL THAT NEVER WAS FOR PALACE More... He kissed policemen after scoring, danced naked in pubs and booted Lawro in the face. Robin Friday's story ended in tragedy, but was he the greatest footballer you never saw? Football's Golden Years: On tour and on holiday - Best on the beach, Keegan in the Paris rain and Stuart Pearce holding a kangaroo All the latest Arsenal news, features and opinion All the latest QPR news, features and opinion Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...ears-ago-today-left-months.html#ixzz2W4yTzDZB Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
Bloody hell.....33 years......cracking player....real shame for us that he was injured in 1st minute of the Cup Final against Spurs we would have ahad a real good chance of winning that as he was scoring for fun at that time..... When you think now days bog ordinary players command rediculous fees he would have been worth a fortune in todays' game....
Clive Allen and Paul Goddard, the best teenage strike force I've ever seen down Loftus rd. Those were the days. Always sunshine too!
Tottenham really set out to noble Allen in the final, I'm sure things would have been different if he'd stayed on the pitch.
