John McLaughlin (born 25 February 1952) is an English former professional

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 lea ...

who played as a

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

. Active in England and the United States between 1970 and 1976, McLaughlin made 72 career League appearances, scoring 9 goals.

Career

Born in

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

, McLaughlin played as a youth with hometown club

, before making his professional debut in 1970. He made a total of 40 appearances for Liverpool in

the Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in the world, and was the top-level football league in England from ...

between 1970 and 1976. McLaughlin made five appearances on loan at

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

in 1976. McLaughlin also spent time in the

North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League (NASL) was the top-level major professional soccer league in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984. It is considered the first soccer league to be successful on a national scale in the ...

with the

Philadelphia Atoms The Philadelphia Atoms were an American soccer team based out of Philadelphia that played in the North American Soccer League (NASL). They played from 1973 to 1976, at Veterans Stadium (1973–75) and Franklin Field (1976). The club's colors ...

and the

Dallas Tornado The Dallas Tornado was a soccer team based in Dallas, Texas that played in the North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1967 to 1981. Of the twelve teams that comprised the U.S. in 1967, the Tornado franchise played the longest–15 seasons. T ...

. After a knee injury ended his professional career, McLaughlin later played non-League football for teams including South Liverpool, Barrow and

Wrexham Wrexham ( ; ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in the North East Wales, north-east of Wales. It lies between the Cambrian Mountains, Welsh mountains and the lower River Dee, Wales, Dee Valley, near the England–Wales border, borde ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McLaughlin, John 1952 births Living people English men's footballers Footballers from Liverpool Men's association football midfielders Liverpool F.C. players Philadelphia Atoms players Portsmouth F.C. players Dallas Tornado players South Liverpool F.C. players Barrow A.F.C. players Wrexham A.F.C. players Macclesfield Town F.C. players English Football League players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players English expatriate sportspeople in the United States Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States English expatriate men's footballers