Paul Lake

Paul Lake (born October 28, 1968 in Manchester) is an English former footballer, who played for Manchester City. Raised in the Denton area of Manchester, Lake was spotted by Manchester City scout Ken Barnes as a ten year old, playing against boys two or three years older. As he reached his teens he joined youth club Blue Star, who had strong links with Manchester City. Other clubs also showed interest in Lake, Manchester United inviting him on a tour of Spain. However, as a Manchester City fan Lake remained determined to play for the Blues, and signed a contract to become a Youth Training Scheme apprentice on 1 July, 1985.^[1] A member of Manchester City's FA Youth Cup winning side of 1986, Lake made his first-team debut on January 24, 1987 against Wimbledon. A versatile player, he made appearances in almost every outfield position, though midfield was generally regarded as his strongest position. Lake won six England under 21 caps, the first coming in September 1988. Solid performances at this level led to many experts tipping him for a bright future in the England team, including Bobby Robson, the England coach of the time. However, a misfortune with serious injuries meant this was not to be.Installed as team captain at the centre of defence, a seemingly minor knee injury sustained near the start of the 1990/91 season following a challenge with Tony Cascarino was later diagnosed as a ruptured cruciate ligament, resulting in a two year absence. At the start of the 1992/93 season Lake made his comeback playing in midefield for the inaugural Premiership campaign, his return described by Peter Reid as, "like having a brand new £3,000,000 signing." However, after eight minutes of his second game since returning (away at Middlesborough), the ligament snapped again. After a long struggle with injury, including 14 operations and only four reserve team appearances, Lake retired from playing in 1996. Throughout his years of injury, Lake was a figure of footballing hope for many City fans. Whenever people saw a lack of skill in defence or midfield, fans could imagine it would be better when Lake was there shoring up the fort. Tragically, this was not to be and City's great potential side including Lake, Hinchcliffe, White and Hendry would never truly materialise. Since retiring from playing, Lake has moved to the other side of the treatment table, becoming a physiotherapist. After studying physiotherapy at Salford University he had spells with Altrincham, Burnley and Oldham Athletic before Macclesfield Town, where he was the physiotherapist for five years. In November 2007 he joined the medical staff at [[Bolton Wanderers F.C.|Bolton Wanderers.^[2] Lake's brother Michael was also a professional footballer who played for Sheffield United.

References

• James, Gary - Manchester - The Greatest City ISBN 1-899538-09-7