Craig Burley, a Scottish footballer born on 24 September 1971, plied his trade as a robust midfielder. Standing 6ft 1in (1.86m) tall and weighing in at 11st 6lbs (73kg), Burley's physical prowess was a key characteristic of his game.
Burley made the leap to professional football with Chelsea FC in July 1989. In his inaugural season (1990 - 1991) with the English Premier League goliath, he made one first-team appearance. Progress was steady, as the subsequent season saw Burley making eight first-team appearances. The 1992-1993 season limited him to play in three league matches, but marked improvements came in the 1993 - 1994 season, where he earned a spot on Chelsea's first team 23 times, scoring three goals. The following season, Burley maintained his noteworthy form, bagging another 25 appearances and two goals. His final two seasons saw him play in 22 and 31 league games respectively for the club, with a couple of goals in his last term.
Burley’s journey led him back home to Scotland in July 1997 when he joined Celtic FC in a transfer deal reported to be around £2.3m. In his debut (1997 - 1998) season at Celtic, Burley was instrumental, with 35 appearances and a remarkable 10 goal contribution from a midfield role. His second season (1998 - 1999) also proved influential, although appearances were lessened at 21, he still managed nine goals. His final season (1999 - 2000) was somewhat less prolific, featuring in eight games and netting once, before departing for Derby County in December 1999 for a reported fee of £3m.
At Derby County, the Scottish international made 18 first team appearances and scored five goals in his debut season (1999 - 2000). His following seasons saw him feature 24 times and 11 times respectively, with a further five goals added to his tally. His final season at Derby (2002 - 2003) consisted of 21 appearances and three goals.
Later in his career, Burley made brief stops at Dundee FC, Preston North End, and Walsall, before eventually hanging up his boots in May 2004.
