Playing Career
Born in Darjeeling, India, Cooper attended Airyhall Primary School and Hazlehead Academy in Aberdeen and began his senior career with Aberdeen, the team he'd supported as a boy. A first-team regular from the beginning of the 1981–82 season, he starred in midfield for the Dons for five seasons in which he won two Premier Division Championships, four Scottish Cups, one League Cup, the 1983 European Cup Winners' Cup and the European Super Cup under the management of Alex Ferguson. Having initially moved into a flat in Aberdeen as a young player, Cooper was 'persuaded' by Ferguson to return to his mother's home to help ensure that Cooper was shielded from the obvious temptations arising from youthful independence. In the summer of 1986, he signed for Aston Villa but made only twenty league appearances in the next two years, partly because of injuries. In the 1988–89 season, he transferred to Rangers but injuries restricted him to only seventeen league appearances. In the summer of 1990, he re-joined Aberdeen but was never fit to play. Next season he signed for Reading but after only seven appearances moved to Dunfermline Athletic where he at last was able to play regularly. After three seasons in the First Division, he moved into management with Ross County
Read more about this topic: Neale Cooper
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