Kenny Sansom

Date of birth26 September 1958
Place of birthCamberwell
NationalityEnglish
Weight73 kg
Height1.68 m
PositionDefender

England's most capped left-back, Kenny Sansom arrived at Arsenal in August 1980 in the deal that took Clive Allen to Crystal Palace.

Although he had already won nine of his 86 caps, his game was still developing as he added positional awareness to his more obvious qualities of exceptional pace and accurate passing.

He led the Gunners to their League Cup Final success against Liverpool in 1987 – the club's first trophy for eight years.

The emergence of Nigel Winterburn hastened his departure to Newcastle United in 1988.

Club history

Team Joined Left Loan / Trialist
Crystal Palace 01 Dec 1975 01 Aug 1980
Arsenal 01 Aug 1980 01 Dec 1988
Newcastle United 01 Dec 1988 01 Jun 1989
Queens Park Rangers 01 Jun 1989 01 Mar 1991
Coventry City 01 Mar 1991 01 Feb 1993
Everton 01 Feb 1993 01 Mar 1993
Brentford 01 Mar 1993 01 Aug 1994

Club stats

Season Team Competition Apps Subs Goals Y R
1980-81 Arsenal FA Cup 1
1980-81 Arsenal League Cup 4
1980-81 Arsenal League Division One 42
3
1981-82 Arsenal FA Cup 1
1981-82 Arsenal League Cup 5
1981-82 Arsenal League Division One 42
1981-82 Arsenal UEFA Cup 4
1982-83 Arsenal FA Cup 8
1982-83 Arsenal League Cup 8
1982-83 Arsenal League Division One 40
1982-83 Arsenal UEFA Cup 2
1983-84 Arsenal FA Cup 1
1983-84 Arsenal League Cup 4
1983-84 Arsenal League Division One 40
1
1984-85 Arsenal FA Cup 2
1984-85 Arsenal League Cup 3
1984-85 Arsenal League Division One 39
1
1985-86 Arsenal FA Cup 5
1985-86 Arsenal League Cup 7
1985-86 Arsenal League Division One 42
1986-87 Arsenal FA Cup 4
1986-87 Arsenal League Cup 9
1986-87 Arsenal League Division One 35
1987-88 Arsenal FA Cup 4
1987-88 Arsenal League Cup 8
1987-88 Arsenal League Division One 34
1
1987-88 Football League Centenary 1
1988-89 Newcastle United FA Cup 4
1988-89 Newcastle United League Division One 20
1989-90 Queens Park Rangers FA Cup 2
1989-90 Queens Park Rangers League Division One 1
1990-91 Coventry City League Division One 9
1991-92 Coventry City FA Cup 2
1991-92 Coventry City League Division One 21
1992-93 Coventry City League Cup 2
1992-93 Coventry City Premier League 21
1992-93 Everton Premier League 6
1
1


Please note: Career stats are based on performances in the Premier and Football Leagues and (in most cases all) internationals.

Club matches

Date Match Result Competition Round
08 Aug 1987 Football League v Rest of the World W 3-0 CENTENARY


Please note: Match history is complete for the Premier and Football Leagues and (in most cases all) internationals.

International stats

Season Team Competition Apps Subs Goals Y R
1976-77 England UEFA Under-18 5
1978-79 England B International 2
1978-79 England British Home Championship 1
1978-79 England UEFA Under-21 2
1978-79 England Under-21 2
1979-80 England British Home Championship 2
1
1979-80 England International Friendly 1
1979-80 England UEFA European Championship 4
1979-80 England UEFA Under-21 4
1980-81 England British Home Championship 2
1980-81 England FIFA World Cup 5
1980-81 England International Friendly 2
1981-82 England British Home Championship 3
1981-82 England FIFA World Cup 4
1981-82 England International Friendly 2
1982-83 England British Home Championship 2
1982-83 England International Friendly 1
1982-83 England UEFA European Championship 5
1983-84 England British Home Championship 1
1983-84 England International Friendly 5
1983-84 England UEFA European Championship 3
1984-85 England City Tournament 3
1984-85 England FIFA World Cup 5
1
1984-85 England International Friendly 4
1985-86 England FIFA World Cup 8
1985-86 England International Friendly 6
1985-86 England Unofficial 1
1986-87 England International Friendly 2
1986-87 England UEFA European Championship 4
1987-88 England International Friendly 3
1987-88 England Rous Cup 2
1987-88 England UEFA European Championship 5


Please note: Career stats are based on performances in the Premier and Football Leagues and (in most cases all) internationals.

International matches

Date Match Result Competition Round
09 Mar 1977 England v Wales W 1-0 UEFA U18 Preliminary
23 Mar 1977 Wales v England D 1-1 UEFA U18 Preliminary
19 May 1977 Belgium v England W 0-1 UEFA U18 Group A
21 May 1977 England v Iceland D 0-0 UEFA U18 Group A
23 May 1977 England v Greece D 1-1 UEFA U18 Group A
19 Sep 1978 Denmark v England W 1-2 UEFA Under-21 Group 1
28 Nov 1978 Czechoslovakia v England W 0-1 B International
06 Feb 1979 Wales v England W 0-1 Under-21
23 May 1979 England v Wales D 0-0 British Home Championship
05 Jun 1979 Bulgaria v England W 1-3 UEFA Under-21 Group 1
09 Jun 1979 Sweden v England W 1-2 Under-21
12 Jun 1979 Austria v England W 0-1 B INTER
22 Nov 1979 England v Bulgaria W 2-0 UEFA European Championship Group 1
06 Feb 1980 England v Republic of Ireland W 2-0 UEFA European Championship Group 1
12 Feb 1980 England v Scotland W 2-1 UEFA Under-21 Quarter-final
04 Mar 1980 Scotland v England D 0-0 UEFA Under-21 Quarter-final
16 Apr 1980 England v East Germany L 1-2 UEFA Under-21 Semi-final
23 Apr 1980 East Germany v England L 1-0 UEFA Under-21 Semi-final
13 May 1980 England v Argentina W 3-1 International Friendly
17 May 1980 Wales v England L 4-1 British Home Championship
20 May 1980 England v Northern Ireland D 1-1 British Home Championship
24 May 1980 Scotland v England W 0-2 British Home Championship
12 Jun 1980 Belgium v England D 1-1 UEFA European Championship Finals Group B
15 Jun 1980 Italy v England L 1-0 UEFA European Championship Finals Group B
10 Sep 1980 England v Norway W 4-0 FIFA World Cup Group 4
15 Oct 1980 Romania v England L 2-1 FIFA World Cup Group 4
19 Nov 1980 England v Switzerland W 2-1 FIFA World Cup Group 4
25 Mar 1981 England v Spain L 1-2 International Friendly
29 Apr 1981 England v Romania D 0-0 FIFA World Cup Group 4
12 May 1981 England v Brazil L 0-1 International Friendly
20 May 1981 England v Wales D 0-0 British Home Championship
23 May 1981 England v Scotland L 0-1 British Home Championship
30 May 1981 Switzerland v England L 2-1 FIFA World Cup Group 4
23 Feb 1982 England v Northern Ireland W 4-0 British Home Championship
27 Apr 1982 Wales v England W 0-1 British Home Championship
25 May 1982 England v Netherlands W 2-0 International Friendly
29 May 1982 Scotland v England W 0-1 British Home Championship
03 Jun 1982 Finland v England W 1-4 International Friendly
16 Jun 1982 England v France W 3-1 FIFA World Cup Finals group 4
20 Jun 1982 Czechoslovakia v England W 0-2 FIFA World Cup Finals group 4
29 Jun 1982 England v Germany D 0-0 FIFA World Cup Finals 2nd round group B
05 Jul 1982 Spain v England D 0-0 FIFA World Cup Finals 2nd round group B
22 Sep 1982 Denmark v England D 2-2 UEFA European Championship Group 3
13 Oct 1982 England v West Germany L 1-2 International Friendly
17 Nov 1982 Greece v England W 0-3 UEFA European Championship Group 3
15 Dec 1982 England v Luxembourg W 9-0 UEFA European Championship Group 3
30 Mar 1983 England v Greece D 0-0 UEFA European Championship Group 3
27 Apr 1983 England v Hungary W 2-0 UEFA European Championship Group 3
28 May 1983 Northern Ireland v England D 0-0 British Home Championship
01 Jun 1983 England v Scotland W 2-0 British Home Championship
21 Sep 1983 England v Denmark L 0-1 UEFA European Championship Group 3
12 Oct 1983 Hungary v England W 0-3 UEFA European Championship Group 3
16 Nov 1983 Luxembourg v England W 0-4 UEFA European Championship Group 3
29 Feb 1984 France v England L 2-0 International Friendly
26 May 1984 Scotland v England D 1-1 British Home Championship
02 Jun 1984 England v USSR L 0-2 International Friendly
10 Jun 1984 Brazil v England W 0-2 International Friendly
13 Jun 1984 Uruguay v England L 2-0 International Friendly
17 Jun 1984 Chile v England D 0-0 International Friendly
12 Sep 1984 England v East Germany W 1-0 International Friendly
17 Oct 1984 England v Finland W 5-0 FIFA World Cup Group 3
14 Nov 1984 Turkey v England W 0-8 FIFA World Cup Group 3
27 Feb 1985 Northern Ireland v England W 0-1 FIFA World Cup Group 3
26 Mar 1985 England v Republic of Ireland W 2-1 International Friendly
01 May 1985 Romania v England D 0-0 FIFA World Cup Group 3
22 May 1985 Finland v England D 1-1 FIFA World Cup Group 3
25 May 1985 Scotland v England L 1-0 International Friendly
06 Jun 1985 Italy v England L 2-1 City Tournament
09 Jun 1985 Mexico v England L 1-0 City Tournament
12 Jun 1985 England v Germany W 3-0 City Tournament
16 Jun 1985 USA v England W 0-5 International Friendly
11 Sep 1985 England v Romania D 1-1 FIFA World Cup Group 3
16 Oct 1985 England v Turkey W 5-0 FIFA World Cup Group 3
13 Nov 1985 England v Northern Ireland D 0-0 FIFA World Cup Group 3
29 Jan 1986 Egypt v England W 0-4 International Friendly
26 Feb 1986 Israel v England W 1-2 International Friendly
26 Mar 1986 USSR v England W 0-1 International Friendly
23 Apr 1986 England v Scotland W 2-1 International Friendly
14 May 1986 England v Korea Republic W 4-1 UNOFFICIAL
17 May 1986 England v Mexico W 3-0 International Friendly
24 May 1986 Canada v England W 0-1 International Friendly
03 Jun 1986 Portugal v England L 1-0 FIFA World Cup Finals group F
06 Jun 1986 England v Morocco D 0-0 FIFA World Cup Finals group F
11 Jun 1986 England v Poland W 3-0 FIFA World Cup Finals group F
18 Jun 1986 England v Paraguay W 3-0 FIFA World Cup Finals 2nd round
22 Jun 1986 Argentina v England L 2-1 FIFA World Cup Finals quarter-final
10 Sep 1986 Sweden v England L 1-0 International Friendly
15 Oct 1986 England v Northern Ireland W 3-0 UEFA European Championship Group 4
12 Nov 1986 England v Yugoslavia W 2-0 UEFA European Championship Group 4
18 Feb 1987 Spain v England W 2-4 International Friendly
01 Apr 1987 Northern Ireland v England W 0-2 UEFA European Championship Group 4
29 Apr 1987 Turkey v England D 0-0 UEFA European Championship Group 4
09 Sep 1987 West Germany v England L 3-1 International Friendly
14 Oct 1987 England v Turkey W 8-0 UEFA European Championship Group 4
11 Nov 1987 Yugoslavia v England W 1-4 UEFA European Championship Group 4
23 Mar 1988 England v Netherlands D 2-2 International Friendly
21 May 1988 England v Scotland W 1-0 ROUS CUP
24 May 1988 England v Colombia D 1-1 Rous Cup
28 May 1988 Switzerland v England W 0-1 International Friendly
12 Jun 1988 England v Republic of Ireland L 0-1 UEFA European Championship Finals Group B
15 Jun 1988 England v Netherlands L 1-3 UEFA European Championship Finals Group B
18 Jun 1988 England v USSR L 1-3 UEFA European Championship Finals Group B


Please note: Match history is complete for the Premier and Football Leagues and (in most cases all) internationals.