David Anthony Thompson (born 12 September 1977) is an English football pundit currently working for the BBC. Thompson played as a midfielder, though he had to retire aged 29 through an osteochondral defect of the left knee sustained at age 25. He is currently a UEFA A and B licensed coach working towards his professional licence. In August 2021, he became a director of football at Europa in the Gibraltar National League. During his career Thompson played for Liverpool, Coventry City, Blackburn Rovers, Wigan Athletic, Portsmouth and Bolton Wanderers. Overall, he made well over 250 senior league appearances and international appearances until a persistent injury forced his early retirement in late 2007. Career Liverpool Born in Birkenhead, Merseyside, Thompson's Liverpool debut came on 19 August 1996, as an 87th-minute substitute in a 2–0 victory against Arsenal. He only played one more game before being loaned to Swindon Town for two and a half months in November 1997. His good form at Swindon led him to be selected more frequently for Liverpool, these performances paying off as he scored the winning goal against Crystal Palace later in the season. His 1997–98 and 1998–99 seasons were steady, and the 1999–00 season would see him back into the team on a regular basis. Coventry City In the summer of 2000 he moved to Coventry City for a fee of 3.5 million pounds his first game a 3–1 defeat to Middlesbrough in which he was sent off in the 71st minute. Coventry were relegated during the 2000–01 season, and he sought a move back to the Premiership. However, he stayed at Coventry throughout the 2001–02 season scoring 17 goals and assisting many more collecting the player of the year and fans player of the year award and also leading goal scorer award. Blackburn Rovers Blackburn Rovers signed Thompson for an initial fee of £1.5 million in August 2002. His rise in division and impressive start gave him immediate international recognition, as Sven-Göran Eriksson named him in the England squads against Slovakia and Macedonia in October, although ultimately he was never capped for the senior side. Thompson suffered a knee injury which needed surgery in February 2003, sidelining him for five months. After a comeback in 2003–04, the problems returned with his knee swelling up after every game. The club's medical staff sent him to the world's top knee specialist Dr Richard Steadman in Colorado.