Come in number 37 : the autobiography

He may have been born in the East End of London, where he spent nine years with a struggling Charlton, but as soon as Rob Lee arrived on Tyneside the fans took him to their hearts.

So it was with shock and not a little anger that the Toon Army learnt of him losing the captaincy and banished to the sidelines by then manager Ruud Gullit back in 1998.

Things got so bad that Lee wasn't even allocated a squad number for the following season. In his autobiography, Rob Lee writes graphically and honestly about his treatment by Gullit and the Dutchman's eventual demise; as well as on a host of managers and team-mates during 17 years as a professional footballer, from the likes of Kevin Keegan to Glenn Hoddle, and from Kenny Dalglish to current club captain Alan Shearer.