A childhood Spurs fan, Scott Parker finally got the move to the club he had wanted to play for after moving around the country to end up at White Hart Lane.
Attended Haberdashers Aske's Hatcham College in New Cross as a boy and joined Charlton's youth system as a ten year old. At 14, he was the face of McDonald's TV advertising campaign during the 1994 World Cup, as he juggled a football in an advert for the burger chain.
Was at Charlton for seven years, before he became unsettled by Chelsea's interest in him, causing manager Alan Curbishley to criticise him for his attitude in training once the West London club had made it clear they wanted to buy him. Once he had moved to Stamford Bridge in the January transfer window of 2004, he rarely got a start, as Clause Makelele and Frank Lampard did not miss many games and in 18 months at Chelsea, Scott played only 28 times.
Thus he looked to move on and get more first team action, so when he was made available, Spurs were interested in brining him to White Hart lane, but he chose to move to "a big club" in Newcastle United over Spurs. Unfortunately for Parker, this move was just as frustrating, with a two year spell at St, James' Park coinciding with the team playing poorly under Graeme Souness and Scott suffered glandular fever which terminated his season early and may have cost him a place in the England World Cup 2006 squad. When new manager Glenn ROeder came in, he installed Parker as captain, a role which he also fulfilled at West Ham and Spurs.
Having followed his career closely and bid for him a year earlier, West Ham's continued presence in the Championship was potentially holding back Parker's England career and in August 2011, he signed for Tottenham for £5.5 million after handing in a written transfer request.
At Spurs, he proved a useful addition in midfield, as the link between the back four and the front players, with his prompting from midfield a useful supply line to the wide players and the front two. His positional play was instrumental in Tottenham's fourth place finish and for a player with a reputation of being one who broke down moves, it was a notable asset he possessed in holding onto the ball when in possession.
A player who enjoys the dirty side of the game - getting stuck into tackles and chasing players back to help out the defence - Scott Parker had built a reputation as a reliable 'destroyer', but there is much more to his game that perhaps you don't notice until he plays for your club. His passing is nothing extraordinary, but it keeps the team ticking over and moving forward, while he is happy to take the ball forward at his feet to commit opposition players and make space for others.
At international level, Scott has had a haphazard time, playing for his country while a player at five different clubs and under five different England managers.
Following a summer of buying midfielders, such as Paulinho and Etienne Capoue, Scott left to join Fulham on a three year deal in August 2013 to get first team football, with a World Cup finals coming up in Brazil in 2014.
A player who always conducted himself well in the Spurs shirt and gave 100%, he was instrumental in Tottenham's presence at the top of the table. Not always the sort of player who would get rave reviews or the adulation of the fans, but one who, at the time, was a vital piece in the jigsaw in the club's development into a side in the top six.