David Andrew Platt (born 10 June 1966) is an English retired football coach and player who played as a midfielder.

At the age of 22, he signed for Aston Villa and gained the attention of the England manager Bobby Robson, with whom he soon made his debut.

[3] Platt was at the London club for three years, featuring in the Arsenal side that won the Premier League and FA Cup Double in 1998.

[4] He accepted manager Ron Atkinson's offer of a professional contract at the start of the 1984–85 season, but was given a free transfer on 23 February 1985 without ever playing for the Manchester United first team.

[7] In January 1992, during his time at Bari, Platt received a phone call from Roberto Mancini, who pressed him to come to Sampdoria.

[9][10][11][12][13] Platt was not listed on the substitutes bench, but he picked up a medal as part of the squad and lifted the trophy after the final.

[15] By the time his Italian career came to a close, he was a technically experienced player, possessing dribbling, passing and finishing skills equal to the best.

[1] After four years in Italy with three different clubs, Platt returned to England on 10 July 1995, when new Arsenal manager Bruce Rioch signed him for £4.75 million.

Platt had been offered a two-year extension to his contract with Sampdoria, but his mind was soon made up after talking to Rioch in Sardinia, where he was on holiday.

Platt was a regular in Wenger's first season, the 1996–97 campaign, and scored four goals in 28 league appearances, mainly alongside new signing Patrick Vieira in the centre of the Arsenal midfield.

Arsenal were top of the table in late autumn, but eventually had to settle for a third-place finish, seven points behind champions Manchester United.

Wenger boosted his midfield department during the summer of 1997 with the arrival of French pair Emmanuel Petit and Gilles Grimandi.

The manager's preferred central-midfield pairing was Petit and Vieira, who played a crucial role in Arsenal's double-winning campaign.

He still managed to make a vital contribution to Arsenal's season, however, with a headed winner in a 3–2 victory over Manchester United at Highbury.

[19] In July 1999, Platt signed a three-year contract to take over at Nottingham Forest as player-manager, a decision which saw him go back on his plan from a year earlier to retire from playing.

[22]With captain Bryan Robson having suffered an injury against the Netherlands, Platt started the next game, a quarter-final against Cameroon.

[25] Platt ended the competition on a high by scoring his third goal of the finals in a 2–1 defeat by Italy in the third-place play-off.

On 81 minutes, Tony Dorigo crossed for Platt to place a powerful header into the corner of the Italian net, past Walter Zenga.

The official England history regards him as a tireless runner and tidy passer, leading by quiet example and providing inspiration at a time when it was a rare commodity.

After only 12 minutes, Peter Schmeichel saved a shot at point-blank range, with which Platt was unable to connect properly.

[34] England were drawn in Group 2 for the 1994 World Cup qualifying, along with Poland, Turkey, San Marino, the Netherlands and Norway.

England dominated the game and Platt carried the goal threat, with Alan Shearer and Ian Wright struggling to find form.

[36] Platt miscontrolled a pass from Gascoigne that would have put him one-on-one with the goalkeeper Erik Thorstvedt, which, had he scored, would have given England the lead.

With two games left, Norway had won the group, leaving England and the Dutch competing for second place in a head-to-head.

Platt scored the first England goal in the Venables era in March 1994 against Denmark, and also netted against Greece[40] and Nigeria.

[27] Players like Steve McManaman and Darren Anderton emerged, and Venables decided to employ Ince and Gascoigne in central midfield by the time Euro 1996 came around.

In the second minute of extra-time, he sent McManaman through on the right side of midfield and he delivered a cross to Anderton, who hit the post.

[46] He was manager at the City Ground for two seasons, but had little success despite spending several million pounds on players who did not perform well and plunging the club into large sums of debt.

Platt's tenure at Forest was marred by disagreements with several experienced, long-serving players, leading to them being isolated from the first-team picture and subsequently being released by the club.

[citation needed] Platt was appointed manager of the England U21 on 17 July 2001, which brought a little more success than his stint at Forest.