OTD: EMERSON THOME BORN

Born on this day in 1972 is former Sunderland and Chelsea defender Emerson Thome, a player who came to Wearside after failing to break up the formidable partnership of Marcel Desailly and Frank Leboeuf.

Thome grew up in the ‘country of football’, learning his trade at Brazilian side Internacional. However, despite rising through their ranks, Emerson never made a senior appearance before moving to Portugal. He would join Académica, Tirsense and then Benfica (where he was also loaned to 3rd Division side Alverca for a year).

By the time Thome’s contract at Benfica expired it was 1997. He’d caught the eye of scouts at Sheffield Wednesday, who brought him to England for the first time on a free transfer.

At Hillsborough, Emerson really made a name for himself and became a quality defender. The fan favourite was affectionately nicknamed the Wall based on his commanding presence at the back and a great ability to impose himself on attackers.

With the Owls fighting relegation in 1999, Thome jumped ship and joined Gianluca Vially’s Chelsea side that was full of superstars such as Gus Poyet, Dennis Wise and a young John Terry. Emerson is rumoured to have cost the Blues around £2.7 million.

He was signed as emergency cover for Chelsea’s defence and was utilised sparingly. One of his few starts came in their famous 3-1 win over Barcelona, which was described by many as the most important match to ever be played at Stamford Bridge.

After just nine months in London, Emerson made the move to Wearside in an attempt to find more game time. The defender was Sunderland’s record signing at the time, costing Peter Reid £4.5 million.

One of the reasons Sunderland wanted Thome was to step into Stanislav Varga's role, who’d gotten injured just one game into the 2000/01 season. He became popular among the fanbase, with his tough-tackling, no-nonsense style of play appealing to supporters.

Alongside Jody Craddock, Thome looked like a great defender, even if his passing left a lot to be desired. You’d expect a Brazilian defender to be cultured on the ball but it was wayward at best. He scored twice for the Lads, getting goals at home to Coventry and Aston Villa respectively. Both goals came from corners, both taken by his South American counterpart, Julio Arca.

Thome suffered badly with injuries during his time on Wearside, missing over a year’s worth of football all together, including two separate knee operations.

Emerson went to Bolton Wanderers following Sunderland’s relegation in the 2002/03 season. He reached the Carling Cup final in his debut season, where he was a first team regular and helped Wanderers finish eighth in the Premier League.

With injuries catching up with the Brazilian, he decided to drop down a division to the Championship. It turned out to be a good decision, as he ended up winning promotion with Wigan Athletic when they were promoted to the Premiership for the first time.

Emerson then moved to Japan, winding down his career with J-League side Vissel Kobe, who have had the likes of Andreas Iniesta, David Villa and Lukas Podolski in recent years. He eventually announced his retirement in 2007, and went on to become Everton’s chief scout in Portugal.