PLAYER PROFILE

Kieron Dyer

Position: Midfield

Height: 5'7

Weight: 10st 4lbs

Date of Birth: 1978-12-29 Ipswich, England

Kieron Dyer

Such was the belief in his potential that Kieron Dyer signed a 7-year contract when joining from Ipswich. The exciting young midfielder was Ruud Gullit's only English signing and within weeks of his Newcastle debut was called into the England squad and made his full international debut.

It was a brilliant start in a difficult time for the club which saw Gullit leave and Bobby Robson arrive. The exuberance of young Dyer barely noticed the change as he attacked opposing defences with his inventiveness and running ability.

Dyer had previously been touted as one of the most promising young players outside the Premiership, as he had been well groomed by his hometown club. He joined Newcastle United after initially saying he would stay with Ipswich following their third successive play-off failure.

Unfortunately, his career to date has been badly disrupted by injuries and off-the-field incidents. He has come under fire from Sir Bobby Robson more than once after making the headlines for the wrong reasons on nights out.

Meanwhile, his almost constant injury problems have limited his appearances, only made the more frustrating by the quality of his performances in the games he is fit for. A shocking tackle by Tahar El Khalej of Southampton in the last game of the 2001/02 season meant that Dyer was a serious injury doubt for England's World Cup squad.

Nevertheless, he was taken by Eriksson, though he only made a few substitute appearances and never looked fully fit. If he can avoid injuries and get a good run in the Newcastle team, then Dyer could be one of the greats, but so far he is more of a case of "what if".

He signed a new contract with the club in the summer of 2001 and shook off the injuries that plagued his World Cup to enjoy a fantastic season with Newcastle during their 2002/03 season.

The 2003/04 season saw controversey swing Dyer's way. Despite a fine season, he fell out with then-boss Bobby Robson when Dyer had refused to play on the right-wing, as requested by Robson. He was dropped to the bench and was later booed and jeered by fans. Although he later issued a formal apology, it was still a severe blackmark on his career.

But worse was to come. The 2004/05 had been relativly controversey-free. He made 43 appearances and scored 6 times in a season which saw Newcastle United make it to the semi-finals in both FA and UEFA Cups. However, in a 3-0 April defeat against Aston Villa, Dyer was involved in an on-the-field, middle-of-the-match scuffle with teammate Lee Bowyer. Although it was later accepted that Bowyer was mostly to blame, Dyer's red-card still stood.

The problems continued into the 2005/06 season. There were still repercussions of the Bowyer incident and Dyer was, at one point, accused of indecently exposing himself in Norwich.

On pitch, things hardly improved as injuries kept him out for much of the season. He played thirteen times all in all and scored once.

Injuries kept him out for sections of the 2006/07 season and in the summer he looked certain to move on for family reasons, with West Ham the most likely destination. The move initially fell through over the price Newcastle wanted for him, but in August 2007 he was finally able to join the Hammers.