Roy Aitken

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Roy Aitken
Personal information
Full name Robert Sime Aitken
Date of birth (1958-11-24) 24 November 1958 (age 53)
Place of birth Irvine, Scotland
Height 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Playing position Defender
Youth career
1973–1976 Celtic Boys Club
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1976–1990 Celtic 483 (40)
1990–1991 Newcastle United 54 (1)
1991–1992 St Mirren 34 (1)
1992–1995 Aberdeen 29 (2)
Total 600 (44)
National team
1980–1991 Scotland 57 (1)
Teams managed
1995–1997 Aberdeen
2006 Aston Villa (caretaker manager)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.
† Appearances (Goals).

Robert Sime "Roy" Aitken (born 24 November 1958)[1] is a former footballer who went on to become a coach with clubs including Leeds United and Aston Villa. His position as a player was defence.

Born in Irvine, Ayrshire,[1] he grew up in Ardrossan. He signed for Celtic as a youngster.

Playing career

At Celtic, he was nicknamed 'The Bear' by the supporters due to his large frame and commanding presence. He later went on to play for Newcastle United, St. Mirren and Aberdeen.

He won 57 caps for the Scotland national football team, scoring once.

Management and coaching career

After his playing career, he had a short spell in management with Scottish Premier League team Aberdeen, and won the Scottish League Cup in 1995 before turning his attention to coaching.

After obtaining his UEFA Pro Licence at the Scottish Football Association's Largs training centre,[2] Aitken went on to become a coach with Leeds United before rejoining former Leeds coach David O'Leary at Aston Villa.[3]

On 20 July 2006, he was named caretaker manager of Aston Villa after O'Leary's departure the previous evening.[4] Aitken managed Villa to three pre-season victories before being replaced by Martin O'Neill.[5]

In January 2007, he was appointed as one of Alex McLeish's assistants with the Scotland national football team. On 28 November 2007, he followed McLeish, newly appointed as manager of Birmingham City, to the club as first-team coach alongside Andy Watson.[6]

In July 2010, Aitken left Birmingham City to join O'Leary in Dubai with Al-Ahli.[7]

References

Sporting positions
Preceded by
Danny McGrain
Celtic F.C. captain
1987–1989
Succeeded by
Paul McStay
Preceded by
Andy Thorn
Newcastle United F.C. Captain
1990–1991
Succeeded by
Kevin Scott

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