John Wark - Playing Style and Personality

Playing Style and Personality

Wark played as a central defender, midfielder and, occasionally, as a striker. Wark was an unusual player; he was able to play as a defensive midfielder yet break forward to score. According to former team-mate Terry Butcher, this was because his colleagues would drop back to cover for him: "I played with John Wark, who was a sitting midfielder but was one of the top scorers in England and Europe. If you see it, then do it, as long as the others spot it and cover for you."

Wark was not a "supremely talented" player, but, according to football journalist Jim White, one who espoused team-work and team spirit: "There is no question that the 'one-for-all, all-for-one' mentality generated in the Anfield dressing room was the engine that drove the great team. With players such as Alan Kennedy, John Wark, Sammy Lee and Craig Johnston, nobody could claim this was a collection of top-notch operators in the manner, say, of the current Real Madrid. Every week, they played as an entity greater than the sum of its parts." He has been described as "a defensive midfielder with an astonishing goalscoring record".

Over the years, Wark has become closely associated with his moustache. Owen Slot described the player as "Ipswich's immortal moustache", while Wark himself notes "... it is something of a trademark, even if people are always calling me Bruce ..."