Steve Finnan Bio Send To Friend  

Finnnan returned to the Premier League in the summer of 2009, signing for Portsmouth on a free transfer following his release from Spanish club Espanyol.

Finnan is famously the first player to have played in every English football league, from the Conference to the Premier League. He began his career in non-league football with Welling United and, as a 19-year-old, signed for Birmingham City in a £100,000 deal in the summer of 1995.

He struggled to breakthrough at St Andrews, making just 22 appearances before moving to Notts County.

Some fine performances soon had Kevin Keegan interested, and in November 1998 Finnan joined the Fulham revolution for £600,000. He made his debut in a 2-1 home win against Chesterfield, and scored his first goal in a 4-0 hammering of Blackpool.

The Irishman's reputation continued to grow and before long he won full international honours with the Republic of Ireland.

Finnan was one of the outstanding players in Fulham's rise to the Premiership, and was unfazed when mixing it with the big boys.

As the 2002/03 season came to a close, Finnan's transfer to Liverpool was one of the game's worst kept secrets. He made 209 appearances for Fulham, scoring seven goals.

Finnan joined Liverpool for a fee of £3.5m, and although he struggled to impress under Gerard Houllier in his first season, he was clearly rated by Rafael Benitez when he took charge in the summer of 2004.

The Republic of Ireland international became a vital player in the Premier League and in Europe as Liverpool won the Champions League in 2005.

Finnan lost his place to Alvaro Arbeloa in 2007-08, and in August 2008 he was sold to Espanyol for an undisclosed fee.

The Irishman suffered an injury-ravaged 2008-09 in La Liga, leading to rumours of a move back to the Premier League and his eventual release from a two-year contract mid-way through. After interest from Hull City, he opted to join Portsmouth ahead of the 2009-10 term.