David John Ian Dunn (born 27
December 1979 in Great
Harwood
, Lancashire
) is an English
footballer who currently plays for
Blackburn
Rovers
.
Club career
Blackburn Rovers
Dunn
joined Blackburn
Rovers as a trainee at the beginning of 1997 and made his
debut during a goalless draw with Everton on September
26 1998. Dunn came off the bench
after 70 minutes, but was taken off again on 81 minutes, due to the
sending off of a Blackburn player. Whilst Dunn was a trainee at
Blackburn he cleaned former Rovers keeper Christian McCrone's
boots.
Dunn's first goal came in a 3–1 victory against
Aston Villa on
February 26 1999, but the
team was subsequently relegated in this, his first full
season.
His best season in a Blackburn shirt would appear to be
2000–01, when he played
a big role in helping the club to automatic promotion from Division
1. That year saw Blackburn entertain local team Rochdale in the
Worthington cup where Dunn scored a hat-trick from the penalty
spot, reported by Sky Sports as a World's First. He reached double
figures in terms of goals in 2000, and continued his good form in
2001–02 when the
club won the
League
Cup.
Dunn starred in Rovers return to the Premier League, putting in a
string of impressive performances, notably in the 7–1 battering of
West Ham and the thrilling 3–3 draw at Arsenal, where he managed to
score two goals, one a last minute equalizer. Many pundits demanded
he gain international recognition for his fantastic form, so it was
a surprise when he was overlooked by then-
England manager
Sven-Göran Eriksson for many
friendlies.
Dunn was at one time dubbed "the New
Gazza", a testament to his flair and
technical ability. A string of fine performances in 2001 put Dunn
in contention for a call-up to the
England squad, but he did not
win his first
cap until September 2002,
when he replaced
Kieron Dyer. He
impressed against Portugal but has not been given another chance on
the big stage since.
Dunn began
the 2002–03 season in dazzling form but a loss of form and being
made to play on the right wing did not help his cause and he fell
out with then-Blackburn manager Graeme
Souness. Subsequently, Dunn was ready to move on to
another club in the summer of 2003.
Blackburn initially rejected offers from a number of clubs, but
Birmingham's revised bid of
£5.5 million was accepted, and Dunn moved to the West Midlands in
time for the start of the 2003–04 season.
Birmingham City
After signing a four-year contract, Dunn's
Birmingham career started brightly with
a debut goal in the 1–0 victory over Tottenham on 16 August
2003.
A niggling hamstring sustained in February 2004 meant that Dunn
spent much of the second half of that season on the sidelines. The
beginning of 2004–05 again saw Dunn quickly re-establishing himself
in the heart of the Birmingham midfield and chipping in with some
vital goals. A recurrence of Dunn's hamstring problems in November
2004 limited him to just a handful of performances for the
remainder of 2004–05 and kept him out of the side until midway
through 2005–06.
Ultimately, Birmingham were relegated from the Premier League with
Dunn still not returning to fitness.
In October 2006, Dunn was linked with a return to Blackburn in the
upcoming transfer window. However, both Dunn and Rovers manager
Mark Hughes denied this.
Return to Blackburn Rovers
In January 2007, Dunn looked set to return to Lancashire in a
transfer to
Bolton after
manager
Sam Allardyce negotiated a fee
for the midfielder, but on January 17, it was revealed that Dunn
had turned his back on Bolton, having already passed his medical,
in favour of a return to hometown club Blackburn for an undisclosed
fee believed to be £2.2 million.
He managed to play a small part in the remainder of the 2006–07
season and managed to earn a free kick against Sheffield United
which led to Rovers scoring a last minute winner.
On
February 3 2007,
he played his first Premiership match since his return to Rovers
against
Sheffield
United.
Dunn was a regular for Rovers in the 2007–08 season, in which he
made 31 league appearances and scored once, against
Arsenal. He was appointed vice-captain by new
manager
Paul Ince for the 2008–09 season,
but the player managed only 17 appearances in all competitions,
scoring once, in a season disrupted by niggling injuries. Despite
missing the first two games of the 2009–10 season Dunn returned in
the League Cup against Gillingham and scored on his return. He went
on to score four goals in six games.
Club career statistics
Blackburn
- (correct as of 22 November 2009)
Personal life
Dunn has a
daughter, Mia, with his ex-fiancee, Emmerdale
actress Sammy
Winward, and a son, Isaac.
Honours
- Blackburn Rovers
References
External links
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