Who is the retired English footballer that was signed to play for Southampton, Black Rovers, Newcastle United and the England national team?
1996–97 Newcastle United F.C. season The 1996–97 season saw English professional football club Newcastle United participate in the Premier League for the fourth consecutive season since their promotion from the Football League First Division in 1993. After the disappointment of finishing runner-up to Manchester United in the previous campaign despite having at one stage held a 12-point lead over their rivals, the club responded by signing Alan Shearer from Blackburn Rovers in July 1996.
Neil Cox (footballer) Neil James Cox (born 8 October 1971) is an English former professional footballer and manager. A defender capable of playing at centre or right-back, he made over 500 appearances in the Football League during his career and was capped at Under-21 level by England. He began his career at Scunthorpe United as a youth player and was eventually offered a professional contract by the club, breaking into the first-team soon after. In 1991, Cox joined First Division side Aston Villa for a fee of £400,000, going on to make over 50 appearances for the side in all competitions, including playing in the club's victory over Manchester United in the 1994 Football League Cup Final, but struggled to establish himself in the first-team.