RIP Dalian Atkinson: A man of big goals and big smiles

THE mere mention of Dalian Atkinson’s name conjures up images of big goals and big smiles.

By Dave Armitage 

And the former Aston Villa, Sheffield Wednesday and Ipswich striker had a smile which was every bit as dazzling as some of the goals he scored.

Make no mistake, Atkinson was a scorer of stunning goals and it was quite fitting that he won the very first Premier League Goal of the Season award for a strike that is etched in Aston Villa folklore.

Back in October 1992 there was a case to be argued that in big Dalian and Dean Saunders, Villa had the most dangerous strike force in the country.

Ron Atkinson’s side were playing at Wimbledon when his namesake latched onto the ball deep in his own half and shows a touch belying a man of his size.

Atkinson turns and hares off towards the Wimbledon goal, bypassing four players on his way to the edge of the box.

TRAGIC: Atkinson died aged 48

He then sends the most audacious of chips flying into the net and celebrates with Saunders on his shoulders under the ‘protection’ of an umbrella passed to him by a jubilant fan.

In that one iconic moment, Atkinson’s career was summed up – big goal, big smile.

It was that familiar No. 10 that got Villa up and running in the 1994 Coca Cola Cup final victory over Manchester United at Wembley, Atkinson scoring the opener in the 3-1 win.

If there’s one thing that fans will remember him for it would be his ability to run with the ball, not only elegantly, but at blistering pace.

I live only a couple of miles from where Atkinson lived – and died - in the early hours of Monday morning.

I recall him being a name on the local scene of kids to watch out for and knew he must be good when a local schoolmaster Bob Ellis took him to Ipswich.

Mr. Ellis, who taught at the Blessed Robert Johnson School, had a long friendship with Bobby Robson and it seemed like the cream of Telford kids found their way to Portman Road rather than Molineux or Villa Park.

When I bumped into him at Villa years later it wasn’t hard to see why he was a scorer of big goals – there was a certain swagger about him.

He was a man who wasn’t afraid to voice his opinion whatever the consequences. I recall once, he and Big Ron had to be pulled apart in a fierce argument in the showers.

But Ron loved him, loved his panache and recalls affectionately: “The one thing with Dalian was I knew I didn’t have to worry about him in big games.”

Football has lost one of its heroes in Atkinson who died aged 48 in tragic circumstances following a police incident in which a Tazer was fired.