Scott Parker

Club career

Charlton Athletic

After graduating from Lilleshall, Parker signed for Charlton Athletic as a trainee and made his first-team debut as a substitute against Bury in the First Division on 23 August 1997, a match which ended 0–0. He signed his first professional contract with the club two months later. Over the next couple of years he made only a few sporadic substitute appearances for Charlton, although he was one of the brightest prospects in English football. In October 2000, Charlton, then in the Premier League, loaned Parker to First Division club Norwich City for two months to give the England under-21 international some first-team experience. At Norwich he scored once against Sheffield Wednesday. On his return to The Valley, Parker was immediately called into the first team to replace injured captain Mark Kinsella. Parker played so well for Charlton that, upon his return from injury, Kinsella could not regain his place in the starting line-up. Parker soon became the linchpin of Charlton's midfield, combining tenacious tackling with an ability to carry the ball quickly from defence to attack and play telling passes, creating many chances for his teammates.

Chelsea

Parker, who had been consistently linked with moves away from Charlton for several years, finally left The Valley on 30 January 2004 to join Chelsea on a four-and-a-half-year contract for a £10 million fee. Alan Curbishley, the Charlton manager, criticised his attitude…

Fulham

Shortly after his retirement from playing, Parker returned to Tottenham Hotspur, coaching their under-18 squad, as well as being announced as a club ambassador. In July 2018, Parker left Tottenham to return to Fulham, who had just gained promotion back to the Premier League, serving as first-team coach, linking up with former manager Slaviša Jokanović. He was retained in his coaching position after Claudio Ranieri was brought in to replace a dismissed Jokanović that November. Ranieri was dismissed on 28 February 2019, having overseen no improvement to the team's results, leaving the club in a relegation battle. Parker was then appointed as caretaker manager that same day, the club now sat nineteenth in the Premier League table. He took charge of the team for the first time three days later, where they lost 2–1 to visitors Chelsea. Fulham were relegated to the Championship after a disappointing returning league campaign, their relegation confirmed after a 4–1 thrashing by Watford, with five games remaining. After speculation arose over who would replace Ranieri on a permanent basis following relegation, chairman Shahid Khan appointed Parker as manager permanently on a two-year contract. Parker was able to retain the majority of his players, despite relegation, with star striker Aleksandar Mitrović signing a new contract during the summer. During his first season in charge, the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in all English sport being suspended from March until June…

Scott Matthew Parker was born on 13 October 1980 in Lambeth, Greater London, and attended Haberdashers' Aske's Hatcham College in New Cross. As a 13-year-old, he appeared in a well-known English advert for McDonald's, in which he played keepie uppie, during the 1994 FIFA World Cup campaign. Parker is a graduate of The Football Association's now-defunct national School of Excellence at Lilleshall.

Parker met Carly Arter when he was 16, and they married when he was 20. The couple have four sons. Parker is the brother-in-law of footballer Harry Arter, whom he managed at Fulham.