Getaway Drivers

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Protracted transfer sagas are as much a part of summer as the unpredictabilities of the jet stream and England’s upper order batsmen. This year has seen a number of players angling for moves and the case of Diego Costa in particular brings to mind the antics of another striking striker almost 20 years ago.

When Pierre van Hooijdonk arrived at Nottingham Forest from Celtic in 1997 he was viewed by supporters as a considerable upgrade on the last centre-forward bought to try to keep the Reds in the Premier League. However, like Robert Rosario four years previously, the Dutchman managed only one goal between signing in March and Forest ending the season bottom of the division.

He came into his own, though, as Forest bounced straight back as Division One champions. His aerial presence and lethal long-range shooting were too much for second-tier defences to cope with. He brought the best out of the hitherto unimpressive Kevin Campbell and they formed a deadly partnership. For a while it looked as though Van Hooijdonk might break Wally Ardron’s all-time club record of 36 goals before he ended up with a mere 34 in all competitions. Campbell weighed in with 23 and it was the first time since the 1950s that a Reds front pair had each scored more than 20 league goals.

Van Hooijdonk had all the makings of a Forest legend. There were echoes of the “Psycho!” chants for Stuart Pearce as he lined up free kicks with “Pi-e-erre!” ringing around Trentside. I found myself embraced by a complete stranger for the first time at a match when Van Hooijdonk single-handedly won a game at Birmingham City with a late brace. It seemed he could do no wrong.