OTD: STEFAN SCHWARZ BORN

Today marks the birthday of former Sunderland midfielder Stefan Schwarz, very much a fans favourite at the Stadium of Light, mainly due to his reputation of being an all round nice guy!

Schwarz was signed in 1999 by Peter Reid for a record £4 million and the club inserted a "Space Clause" in his contract, that stated that if he were to travel into space his contract would become wholly invalid! The was because the former Valencia man was a keen space enthusiast and had put down a deposit for space exploration flights, should they ever be offered.

He would end his career on Wearside, retiring in 2003. This coincided with Sunderland's relegation from the Premier League, although he would retain his well respected reputation among fans. His time at Sunderland saw him make 73 appearances, scoring three goals. During his spell with SAFC, he earned near enough all of his Sweden caps, 69 in total, in which he scored 6 goals internationally.

An experienced and creative midfielder, he had already experienced the English Premier League, signing for Arsenal in 1994 but only spending a year in North London, a fairly successful one to say the least though. During his time at Highbury he reached the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup final in 1995 but was only a runner-up, being defeated 2-1 by Real Zaragoza after extra time. He had European football experience also with Benfica prior to this and when leaving Arsenal, he joined Italian giants Fiorentina and then onto Valencia.