Pascal Chimbonda & 57 Other Classic Premier League Players You'd Forgotten: No. 1 - Marlon Harewood

Born: 25 August 1979, London Age: 39 Age in 2005: 26 Premier League Clubs: West Ham United (2003/07), Aston Villa (2007/10), Wolverhampton Wanderers (2009),

Born: 25 August 1979, London

Age: 39

Age in 2005: 26

Premier League Clubs: West Ham United (2003/07), Aston Villa (2007/10), Wolverhampton Wanderers (2009), Newcastle United (2009), Blackpool (2010/11)

Position: Striker

Career

Marlon Anderson Harewood was and, in the hearts and minds of all Premier League fans, will always be, a striker. Not only did he score on the pitch (153 goals in 597 appearances to be exact), he also scored off it when he tied the knot and married a woman he knew. 

Although undoubtedly a product of the Nottingham Forest youth system, the young Marlon first burst onto the scene whilst playing on loan for Finnish side, Haka, in which he won both the Finnish championship and Finnish cup, netting three goals in the process. 

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(Above: Marlon celebrating a victory with some men)

It was believed that this experience abroad transformed the style and ability of Marlon 'The Hare in the Wood' Harewood, where he gained the confidence he would carry with him for the rest of his career, both on the pitch (goals) and off the pitch (chatting to women, making complaints over the phone, telling the waiter he'd got the bill wrong etc). 

This new found aplomb became evident in his next loan spell at Ipswich where he scored a goal in the 1999/2000 season. However, it was at West Ham where he really found his feet and head, after being signed by Alan Pardew for a cool £500k that would prove to be what most Hammers fans viewed as 'an alright deal'. 

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(Above: Marlon's patented 'yes, I did a goal' celebration)

It was here that M.A.H was to have his career highlight, scoring the winning goal in an FA Cup semi-final against Middlesbrough to take his team through to the final against Liverpool. A looping ball over the top from Konchesky, headed down by Dean Ashton, into the path of Marlo, left footed strike and into the back of the net. Haka must've been giving themselves a pat on the back for that one. 

It was following that goal that the offers really started to trickle in, with rumours of Stoke, Sheffield United and, yes, Middlesbrough, all vying for his signature. However, Aston Villa won the race and snapped up the 6ft 1in talisman for £4m - a year before the global financial crash, which was caused by people spending money on ridiculously expensive things they could not afford. 

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(Above: Marlon the man, not the hare)

It wouldn't be long before the chant "Feed the Hare and he will score" rang around Villa Park as he quickly became a fan favourite. Asked how he felt about the chant, Marlon replied, "I'm not a hare. I'm a man."

Then, in his twilight years, and craving that foreign air he so sorely missed since finishing his loan spell in Finland, the Big Rabbit made the bold move to China where he starred alongside players such as Chengxiang Zhang, Choo Young-Woo, Fusheng Yang, and Harison. He helped Guangzhou R&F win promotion to the top division and did not learn any Chinese. 

Where is he now?

Harewood is currently running his own car sales business with his business partner Andy Cole (not the Manchester United player) in Nottingham, where, not long ago, he very nearly sold a car to Sylvan Ebanks-Blake. 

What did he say?

"I might have had a better chance of getting into Wigan’s first team"