Nigel Pearson's leadership skills were evident during a successful playing career as a dominant central defender and captain, a characteristic which has been key to his success in management.
As a player, Nigel started out at non-league Heanor Town in the early 1980s, before securing a move to Shrewsbury Town, then in the second tier of English football, and enjoying a near six-year spell in Shropshire, making 181 appearances as he became hardened to league football.
In October 1987, Pearson made the switch to Yorkshire giants Sheffield Wednesday for a substantial £250,000 fee. The six-foot-one-inch centre-back spent nearly seven years at Hillsborough, playing 224 times and scoring a creditable 20 goals in the process.
In April 1991 Pearson helped the Owls to League Cup glory, beating Manchester United 1-0 at Wembley, thanks to a John Sheridan strike. Pearson was also named as Man of the Match and, as captain, he was presented with the trophy. Those two honours were added to the fact that he helped to steer Wednesday back to the top flight as the Owls earned promotion in the same season.
Despite helping his side to both the FA Cup and League Cup finals in the following season, there was despair for Pearson, who broke his leg and therefore missed out on both showpieces, as Sheffield Wednesday fell short to Arsenal on both occasions.
In July 1994, Pearson made the final move of his playing career, with Middlesbrough's manager, former England captain Bryan Robson, making a £500,000 swoop for the commanding defender.
Pearson excelled in the twilight of his playing days on Teesside, again captaining a side to promotion, twice, and leading 'Boro to three domestic cup finals. Robson's side were arguably the most entertaining in the club's history and Pearson was the fulcrum of the team, with a never-say-die spirit, who came agonisingly close to glory during a breathless four-year period.
He retired from football as a player in the summer of 1998, but remained in the game.
Prior to his first spell as manager with the Foxes, Pearson enjoyed a dramatic start to management, overseeing Carlisle United's last-day escape from relegation out of the Football League, thanks to goalkeeper Jimmy Glass' famous stoppage time goal. Pearson had signed Glass on-loan and the 'keeper was thrown forward for a corner, scored, and relegated Scarborough in the process. The match was Pearson's last in charge at Brunton Park.
Nigel then moved on to first-team coaching roles at Stoke City and West Bromwich Albion, working as a National Coach for the FA for three years in between, before becoming assistant manager of Newcastle United, where he was twice put in caretaker charge of the club. He then experienced a brief spell at Southampton, helping to keep them in the Championship in 2008 after a final day 3-2 victory over Coventry City. That was to be his last game at St. Mary's, before his first move to Leicester City in June 2008.
During his last spell with the Club, Nigel and his staff led Leicester City to the League 1 Title in 2009. The Foxes went on a Club record 23-match unbeaten run and lost only four league games in 46 during their triumphant return to the Championship.
Pearson's men continued that form on their return, reaching the 2010 Championship Play-Off Semi-Finals, losing narrowly to Cardiff City in a penalty shootout, after finishing in fifth place in the division.
Pearson and his assistants then joined Hull City, where they finished in a respectable 11th place last season after a number of players left the club following the Tigers' relegation from the Premier League. Hull are now in ninth place, just a point outside of the npower Championship play-off positions.
Notably, Pearson also served as assistant manager to Stuart Pearce for the England Under-21 side, taking caretaker charge of the side for the first game at the new Wembley Stadium in 2007, a 3-3 draw with Italy, while Pearce was on duty as manager of Manchester City.
