Tony Alexander Adams MBE (born 10 October 1966) is an English former football player who is currently assistant manager of Portsmouth. He spent his entire playing career (22 years) at Arsenal, and is one of the club's greatest players of all time.
Adams was born in Romford in the London Borough of Havering and,joined Arsenal as a schoolboy in 1980. He made his first team debut on November 5, 1983, at the age of 17 against Sunderland. Together with Lee Dixon, Nigel Winterburn and Steve Bould, Adams was part of the "famous four" that lined up in Arsenal's defence, which under George Graham was renowned for its well disciplined use of the offside trap. On January 1, 1988, he became Arsenal's youngest ever captain at the age of 21; he remained club captain for the next 14 years.
Their strong defence was a huge factor in Arsenal winning the League Cup in 1986-87 then the First Division trophy in 1988-89 and 1990-91. In 1992-93 Adams became the first player to captain his side to a League Cup and FA Cup double, lifting the European Cup Winners' Cup the year after.
Despite this success, alcohol problems increasingly blighted his life as he was reportedly often involved in fights in night clubs, was fined for driving in a drunken state several times before being imprisoned for three months after being caught drink-driving in 1990. After Euro 96, Adams admitted that he was an alcoholic and, after seeking treatment, found a more sensitive side to his character, which included a return to education and an attempt to learn the piano. He is one of the most high-profile recovering alcoholics in the UK - his battle with alcohol is heavily detailed in his autobiography, Addicted, which was released in May 1998 to enormous critical acclaim.
His recovery and rehabilitation were helped in no small part by the arrival of Arsène Wenger as Arsenal manager in September 1996, who reformed the club's dietary practices and the players' lifestyles. Wenger stuck by Adams following his confessions about his drink problem, and the improvements in the regime probably extended Adams's career by several years. Adams rewarded his manager's understanding handsomely, captaining the club to two Premiership and FA Cup Doubles, in 1997-98 and 2001-02; he is the only player in English football history to have captained a League-winning team in three different decades.
After his second Double win in 2002, Adams retired from professional football altogether, his last match being the 2002 FA Cup Final. He played 668 matches for Arsenal (only David O'Leary has played more) and was the most successful captain in the club's history. The number 6 shirt that Adams wore when playing was not used from his retirement at the end of 2001/2002 to the end of the 2005/2006 season, but Philippe Senderos recently acquired this number. Nicknamed "Mr. Arsenal", he was honoured by Arsenal with a testimonial game against Celtic in May 2002 with many Arsenal legends playing, including Ian Wright, John Lukic and Adams' fellow back four stalwarts, Dixon, Winterburn and Bould. The game finished 1-1 with Lee Dixon, in his final appearance for the Gunners, getting their goal.
In 2004, Adams was inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame in recognition of his impact on the English game.
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