Mal Donaghy
Malachy "Mal " Martin Donaghy (* September 13, 1957 in Belfast ) is a former Northern Irish football player. With the Northern Ireland national team, he participated in the 1982 and 1986 at the FIFA World Cup finals.
Playing career
Luton Town (1978-1988)
Mal Donaghy moved in June 1978 from his home in Northern Ireland to the English second division club Luton Town. In his first season he won a regular place in his new team. Luton improved its performance continuously in the second league and entered in the 1981/82 season as second division champions in the First Division on. Mal Donaghy played this season forty league games and scored nine goals. The climbers reached in the 1982/83 season as Eighteenth just the league. After two seasons in the lower middle Luton ended the First Division 1985/86 as a table in ninth and increased this performance in the following season in seventh place. In English League Cup 1987/88 Donaghy reached with his team-mates Steve Foster and Danny Wilson the finals and won by a 3-2 victory over Arsenal FC the first major trophy in the club's history of Luton Town.
Manchester United (1988-1992)
In October 1988, the 31 -year-old moved to ten years in Luton for £ 650,000 Manchester United. The 1986 Alex Ferguson coached team finished the 1988/89 season in eleventh place. Donaghy came mostly at left-back for use and denied thirty league games. The following season, he completed only fourteen league games played between time on loan at his old club Luton Town. United reached the final of this season FA Cup 1989/90 and won after a 3-3 draw after extra time in the first game, the replay 1-0 against Crystal Palace. Mal Donaghy was not nominated for this batch of Alex Ferguson in the squad. In Europe Cup Winners' Cup 1990/91 Manchester won by 2-1 against FC Barcelona the first title for an English team since 1985. Donaghy was appointed this time to the squad, but had no use. In the Football League First Division in 1990/91 he played twenty-five games and finished the season with Manchester United in sixth. In his last season in Manchester in 1991/92 he won the runner-up behind with United Leeds United and once completed twenty league games. In the title win in the League Cup 1991/92 (1-0 against Nottingham Forest ), he was not in the squad.
Chelsea FC (1992-1994)
In August 1992, joined Mal Donaghy with almost 35 years for £ 100,000 for Ian Porterfield trained Chelsea. In the newly formed Premier League 1992/93 he played forty league games and reached with his new team in eleventh place in the table. Under the new player-manager Glenn Hoddle to Donaghy was temporarily back in midfield, before he lost his place and therefore not in the squad for the FA Cup Final in 1994 stood. Chelsea lost this match with 0-4 against Manchester United and Mal Donaghy ended shortly thereafter with 36 years of his playing career.
Northern Ireland national team (1980-1994)
Mal Donaghy denied on 16 May 1980 at the age of 22, his first cap for Northern Ireland ( 1-0 against Scotland). For the World Cup in Spain in 1982 he was appointed to the Northern Ireland World Cup squad. Donaghy played in all three group games and went through 1-0 in the third game against hosts Spain in the second round. Donaghy was against Spain in the 62nd minute the red card, and therefore missed the first game against Austria ( 2:2 ). When 1:4 against France he was again 90 minutes on the court, but resigned Northern Ireland from the tournament.
Four years later he was again in the Northern Ireland World Cup squad of the Football World Cup 1986 in Mexico. Mal Donaghy once again denied all three group matches, but failed this time after defeats against Spain and Brazil in the preliminary round.
Until 1994, he played a total of ninety-one matches, missed with Northern Ireland but another part in an international tournament. He is by Pat Jennings and David Healy 's most capped player of his country.
Achievements
- League Cup Winners: 1988 ( 3-2 against Arsenal )
- European Cup Winners Cup Winners' Cup: 1991 (2:1 against FC Barcelona)