Roy Aitken
Aitken in September 1982
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Robert Sime Aitken | ||
| Date of birth | 24 November 1958 | ||
| Place of birth | Irvine, Scotland | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||
| Playing position | Defender | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1973–1976 | Celtic Boys Club | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1976–1990 | Celtic | 483 | (40) |
| 1990–1991 | Newcastle United | 54 | (1) |
| 1991–1992 | St Mirren | 34 | (1) |
| 1992–1995 | Aberdeen | 29 | (2) |
| Total | 600 | (44) | |
| National team | |||
| 1976–1984 | Scotland U21 | 16 | (2) |
| 1979–1991 | Scotland | 57 | (1) |
| Teams managed | |||
| 1995–1997 | Aberdeen | ||
| 2006 | Aston Villa (caretaker manager) | ||
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. |
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Robert Sime "Roy" Aitken (born 24 November 1958) is a former footballer who went on to become a coach with clubs including Leeds United and Aston Villa. His position as a player was defence.
Born in Irvine, Ayrshire, he grew up in Ardrossan. He signed for Celtic as a youngster.
At Celtic, he was nicknamed 'The Bear' by the supporters due to his large frame and commanding presence. Playing as a centre back or defensive midfielder, often as captain, Aitken made the third-most appearances in the club's history and was particularly noted for his contributions in the club's double-winning 1987-88 season.
He later went on to play for Newcastle United, joining the club for £500,000 in January 1990. He captained the side in an ultimately unsuccessful attempt to gain promotion from the Second Division. Having been signed by Jim Smith, he was deemed surplus to requirements when Smith was replaced as manager by Ossie Ardiles and returned to Scotland with St Mirren. He did not remain long at St Mirren, signing for Aberdeen for £100,000 to act as player-assistant manager.
Aitken won 57 caps for the Scotland national football team, scoring once and featured at both the 1986 and 1990 World Cups.
Aitken was appointed manager of Aberdeen in February 1995 after the sacking of Willie Miller. At the time, Aberdeen were struggling to avoid relegation, and Aitken made a bright start by winning 2-0 against Rangers in his first game as manager. Aberdeen finished second bottom of the league, but maintained their top league status by defeating Dunfermline Athletic in a two-legged play-off.
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