John Barnes (footballer)

John Barnes (footballer)

John Charles Bryan Barnes MBE (born 7 November 1963) is a Jamaican-born English former footballer and manager, who currently works as a commentator and pundit for ESPN and SuperSport.

During his playing career, Barnes had successful periods at Watford and Liverpool in the 1980s and 1990s, winning the First Division twice, the FA Cup twice, and playing for England 79 times (at the time, a record for a black player). After a period at Newcastle United, he ended his playing career at Charlton Athletic in 1999.

After retiring as a player, Barnes had a brief stint as head coach of Celtic in 1999–2000, working alongside Kenny Dalglish. He took over as manager of the Jamaica national team in 2008, but resigned six months later to become manager at Tranmere Rovers. He was sacked by Tranmere in 2009, after a series of poor results.