David Sadler (born 5 February 1946 in

Yalding Yalding is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Maidstone in Kent, England. The village is situated south west of Maidstone at a point where the Rivers Teise and Beult join the River Medway. At the 2001 census, the parish, which incl ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

, England) is an English former

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

. He was a skilful

central defender In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

who could also play usefully in

midfield Midfield is the part of a sports field that lies approximately in the center. In American football, association football (soccer) and field hockey, it is the area in and around the center circle, as well as the players who occupy that region. In ...

or even as a forward. He is currently secretary of the Manchester United Former Players' Association. Sadler started his career with Maidstone United, but signed a professional contract with Manchester United in 1963, helping the club win the 1965 and 1967 First Division Football League championships as well as the 1968 European Cup. He left United in 1974 after scoring 27 goals for the club to join Preston North End, who were being managed by Sadler's former teammate

Bobby Charlton Sir Robert Charlton (born 11 October 1937) is an English former footballer who played either as a midfielder or a forward. Considered one of the greatest players of all time, he was a member of the England team that won the 1966 FIFA World ...

. He made 121 appearances (including one as substitute) for the

Deepdale Deepdale is a football stadium in the Deepdale area of Preston, England, the home of Preston North End. Deepdale is "widely recognised as being the oldest 'continuously used' football stadium in the world, though this is contested". History ...

club and scored four goals before retiring due to injury in 1977, by which time Charlton had resigned as manager. Sadler was

capped In sport, a cap is a player's appearance in a game at international level. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in an international match of rugby football and association football. In the ea ...

four times for

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

Post-football career

Sadler became a manager for a

building society A building society is a financial institution owned by its members as a mutual organization. Building societies offer banking and related financial services, especially savings and mortgage lending. Building societies exist in the United Kingd ...

Hale, Greater Manchester Hale is a suburb and electoral ward within the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford, in Greater Manchester, England. The population of the village taken at the 2011 Census was 15,315. It is contiguous with the southeast of Altrincham, about southwe ...

. He also became involved with Charlton in corporate hospitality.Where are they now...from Stepney to Bestie
''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...

'', 22 May 1999

Career statistics

Club statistics

International statistics

References

1946 births Living people Footballers from Kent English footballers Association football defenders Association football midfielders Association football forwards England international footballers England under-23 international footballers Maidstone United F.C. (1897) players Manchester United F.C. players Miami Toros players Preston North End F.C. players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players English Football League players English Football League representative players English expatriate footballers Expatriate soccer players in the United States Association football utility players English expatriate sportspeople in the United States UEFA Champions League winning players {{England-footy-defender-1940s-stub