Goalkeeper David Marshall has become manager Phillip Cocu’s second summer signing, penning a two-year contract with Derby County.
The Scottish international shot-stopper joins the Rams from Wigan Athletic, who suffered relegation from the Sky Bet Championship at the end of last season.
At the age of 35, Marshall brings with him a wealth of experience both domestically and internationally, so let us take a closer look at our new goalkeeper…
Early Years
Born in Glasgow, Marshall grew up in Celtic’s Academy. He made his debut for Celtic in a Scottish Cup tie against St Johnstone in February 2003 as a late substitute, but it was just over 12 months later when he made a name for himself in a UEFA Cup tie against Spanish giants Barcelona in March 2004.
After regular number one Rab Douglas was sent off on the stroke of half time at Celtic Park, with the game poised at 0-0, Marshall stepped up to the plate, once again as a substitute, and kept a clean sheet as Celtic eventually won 1-0 to take a slender first leg lead over to Spain.
With Douglas suspended heading into the second leg, Celtic boss Martin O’Neill trusted Marshall between the sticks at the Nou Camp. He would go on to excel and keep another clean sheet in a 0-0 draw to see the Glasgow side go through to the next stage of the competition.
Rams boss Cocu played the full 90 minutes in both matches for Barcelona and was able to witness Marshall’s qualities up close.
His impressive showings for Celtic earned him a call-up to the Scotland national squad for the first time in August 2004 and he made his debut in a friendly fixture against Hungary.
Over a five-year spell, Marshall would play 50 times for Celtic before joining Norwich City on loan at the end of the 2006/07 season, before making his move permanent in the summer.
He left Celtic with a Scottish Premier League title, alongside two Scottish Cup and one Scottish League Cup winners’ medals, to his name, while he was also capped for Scotland at Under-21 level four times between 2005 and 2006.
South Of The Border
Marshall joined the Canaries on a three-year deal, signing for an undisclosed fee at the start of the 2007/08 season.
He would become the club’s number one goalkeeper and featured in every minute of his first season in English football. He became a favourite at Carrow Road and finished third in the Player of the Season voting poll.
However, his second year with the Canaries did not go to plan as Norwich suffered relegation from the Championship - despite being an ever-present between the posts - along with Southampton and Charlton Athletic.
His form remained impressive and he was capped by Scotland at B international level during the 2008/09 season.
After 105 appearances, Norwich’s relegation brought his association with the club to an end as he soon signed for Championship side Cardiff City.
Cardiff Bound
The Scottish shot-stopper would enjoy his best spell as a professional with Cardiff City, signing in the summer of 2009 for then-manager Dave Jones.
He was immediately installed as the club’s first-choice goalkeeper and went on to play 50 times in total as the Bluebirds reached the Championship Play-Off Final, however, they would suffer a 3-2 defeat against Blackpool at the end of the 2009/10 season.
An elbow injury halted his progression during the 2010/11 season; however, he would go on to play every game during the following two campaigns.
He kept 18 clean sheets - the most in the Championship - during the 2012/13 campaign as the Bluebirds achieved promotion to the Premier League under Malky Mackay.
The goalkeeper earned huge plaudits during Cardiff’s first season in the top-flight, regularly excelling on the big stage. His form would also see him return to the Scotland national team set up.
Despite Cardiff’s relegation after only one season, Marshall’s performances were that impressive, it earned him a place in the Sky Sports Team of the Season, and he was awarded Cardiff City’s Player of the Season award.
He was also described by then-Cardiff manager Ole Gunnar Solskjær as the number one goalkeeper in the Premier League for his excellent performances and he also worked his way back into the Scotland national side.
Marshall was back in the Championship and was handed the captain’s armband at the start of the 2014/15 campaign, while he was subject to various offers from Premier League clubs and was a regular between the posts for Scotland in their 2016 European Championships qualification campaign.
He stayed with the Bluebirds until the summer of 2016 before joining Hull City in the Premier League for a fee believed to be around the £5 million mark.
Later Years
After joining Hull City on 30th August 2016, Marshall had to wait until the end of September to make his debut for the club. That was in a League Cup clash against Stoke City which the Tigers would win 2-1. Hull would eventually reach the semi-final stage of the competition that season.
Marshall would make 16 appearances in the Premier League during the 2016/17 campaign and played alongside current Rams defender Curtis Davies.
His time with Hull came to an end at the conclusion of the 2018/19 season after appearing 67 times in total for the Tigers.
The goalkeeper joined Paul Cook’s Wigan Athletic at the start of last season and made 40 appearances in all competitions.
From his 39 league appearances he kept 15 clean sheets, including a fine run of seven in a row either side of the break in the season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In total, Marshall went on a run of ten clean sheets from 11 matches.
His form for the Latics saw him return to the Scottish international fold under new boss Steve Clarke and he has been first-choice for the Tartan Army since the former Kilmarnock boss took charge in 2019.
