Born 25th September 1961 - Dublin
Games 459 with 17 sub appearances scoring 73 goals
Honours - 1 European Cup, 6 League Championships, 3 League Cups, 2 FA Cups, 53 Ireland Caps
Whelan nearly played for Manchester United after being a trialist at Old Trafford but after being released Liverpool picked him up from Home Farm. He marked his debut with a goal against Stoke but didn't become a regular straight away. He eventually forced his way into the team as replacement for Ray Kennedy on the left of midfield and it heralded the end of not only his career but also that of Kevin Sheedy.
Whelan did the simple things in the game to the highest of standards and mixed in the truly wonderful as well such as his habit of scoring from outside of the box to secure the League Cup. His first full run in the side saw him score two against Spurs to win the League Cup and end up being voted Young Player of the Year. He suffered an injury setback in 1983-84 which hampered his place in the side a bit but after Graeme Souness moved on he assumed a newly improved role. His versatility saw him play in every midfield position and even at left back as cover for a while.
With the arrival of John Barnes at the start of the 87-88 season Whelan moved to a central midfield role and he loved it. His distribution was superb and his tackling stopped moves starting against the Reds. He was the complete player and went on to captain the side to FA Cup victory in 1989. Whelan had it all but sadly in the nineties he also started getting injuries too which hampered his career. After three to four seasons of injuries he was finally released by the club to join Southend where he eventually became player-manager. He has since managed sides in the Greek League.
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