Norwich City: Five facts on Steven Whittaker
Former Glasgow Rangers defender Steven Whittaker became Chris Hughton's first signing as Norwich manager over the weekend, but not too many people south of the border will know much about the versatile Scotland international.
Here are five handy facts on your new defender.
1. Steven Whittaker was born in Edinburgh on June 16, 1984, and the 28-year-old stands at 6ft 1in. Despite being a Hearts fan, Whittaker started his professional career at city rivals Hibs and spent five happy years at Easter Road. He made 174 appearances for the Hibees, scoring five times in the process, and helped them win the League Cup in 2007.
2. In the summer of 2007 Whittaker joined Glasgow Rangers for £2 million. The experienced and versatile defender, who is comfortable playing anywhere across the back four and also in midfield, has won it all in Scotland. With the Gers he won three SPL titles, two League Cups and three Scottish Cups. The Scot also comes with Champions League experience.
3. Whitakker spent five years at Ibrox making 209 appearances for the club. Although he is a threat going forward with his blistering pace, Whitakker only managed to score 28 times for the Gers. However, arguably his finest goal for Rangers came in Europe against Sporting Lisbon. He won the ball in midfield and drove towards goal. He danced through the Lisbon defence, evading last-ditch tackles and bamboozling the centre half, before slotting home to give Rangers a 2-0 win.
4. The defender has represented Scotland on the international stage 15 times. He made his debut in 2009 in a humiliating 4-0 defeat by Norway. His second cap was much more enjoyable though as he came on as sub in a 2-0 win over Macedonia.
5. Whitakker can be a bit of a hot head. In a game against Malmo he lost his rag with one of their players after a late tackle. With the red mist descending, Whitakker picked up the ball and hurled it at the Malmo man. Needless to say the referee had no option but to send him off. Chris Hughton should be able to tame him though having previously managed Joey Barton and Andy Carroll at Newcastle.
Calling all Norwich fans: Are you happy about the signing of Steven Whitakker? What do you think he will bring to the team? Can the Scot succeed in the Premier League? Whatever your views, we'd love to hear from you.
