Nigel Pearson

Lore & Background

Pearson was born in Nottingham. He began his playing career with non-league Heanor Town before joining Shrewsbury Town in November 1981. He made over 200 appearances for Sheffield Wednesday, captaining the side to League Cup victory in 1990–91 and scoring the club's first Premier League goal. At Middlesbrough he captained the side to promotion twice and to three domestic cup finals. As manager of Carlisle United, he helped keep the club in the Football League in 1998–99. He was appointed Leicester City manager in June 2008, leading them to the League One title in 2008–09 and then to the Championship play-offs in 2009–10. He left Leicester in 2010, but returned as manager on 15 November 2011 and led the club to the Premier League in 2013–14. He was sacked on 30 June 2015.

In Their Own Story

The King Power Stadium was alive on a cold April evening in 2013. The final minutes of the Championship title run were ticking away, and the noise from the East Stand was a physical force, a wall of sound that you could feel in your chest. Nigel Pearson stood at the edge of the technical area, his face flushed, his voice already hoarse from twenty minutes of screaming instructions. When the ball crossed the line, he didn't celebrate. He collapsed. Knees first, then hands, forehead pressed into the wet grass as if the earth itself might swallow the relief. Around him, players mobbed him, and the roar of twenty-three thousand voices turned into something almost sacred. He stayed on the ground for a long moment, eyes closed, breathing hard, a man who had carried the weight of a club's expectations on his shoulders for two years and finally, finally, set it down.

Reader's Guide

Nigel Pearson is a former defender who managed Leicester City across two spells. His first tenure (2008–2010) saw the club win League One and reach the Championship play-offs. His second tenure (2011–2015) culminated in promotion to the Premier League as Championship champions in 2013–14. He also managed Hull City, Southampton, Carlisle United, Derby County, OH Leuven, and Watford.

Did You Know?

• Pearson scored Sheffield Wednesday's first Premier League goal, in a 1–1 draw at Everton on the opening day of the 1992–93 season.
• He broke his leg in the 1992–93 League Cup semi-final and missed both domestic cup finals that season.
• As caretaker manager of Newcastle United, his team lost 6–0 to Manchester United in January 2008.
• He was named League One Manager of the Month in August and December 2008 during Leicester's title-winning season.