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Bio:
Francis Anthony Stapleton (born 10 July 1956) is a retired Irish football player and manager. He is known for playing at Arsenal and Manchester United and for the Republic of Ireland national team. He also managed Bradford City and the MLS team New England Revolution.
Stapleton was a notable centre forward, once considered one of the best in his position and known for his powerful heading ability. He began his career with Arsenal in 1972 as an apprentice after Manchester United rejected him. He made his first-team debut in March 1975 against Stoke City and developed a strong partnership with Malcolm Macdonald, scoring 46 goals together in the 1976–77 season. Stapleton was Arsenal’s top scorer for three seasons and helped the team reach three FA Cup finals, scoring in the 1979 final, where Arsenal won 3–2 against Manchester United. In total, he scored 108 goals in 300 appearances for the Gunners.
Stapleton joined Manchester United in the summer of 1981 for £900,000, a fee decided by a tribunal when the clubs could not agree. New manager Ron Atkinson was building a team to compete for trophies after a poor 1980–81 season under Dave Sexton.
He helped United win the FA Cups in 1983 and 1985. In the 1983 final against Brighton, Stapleton became the first player to score for two different clubs in FA Cup Finals.
Factfile:
* Full Name: Francis Anthony Stapleton
* Position: Forward
* Date of Birth: 10.07.1956
* Birthplace: Dublin
* Nation: Ireland
* Caps: 75
* Goals: 0
* Club Career: Manchester United
* Period: 1990-2003
* League Games, 288
* League Goals, 78
* Previous Club: Arsenal
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