The Dublin-born striker played for Arsenal, Manchester City and Sunderland during his career.
Niall Quinn has said he enjoyed playing at Sunderland more than he did playing for Arsenal or Manchester City, speaking to safc.com.
The Republic of Ireland striker celebrated his 50th birthday on October 6, and took the time to reminisce over his career, stating that his favourite playing days were in the red and white of Sunderland, explaining why he enjoyed his football more in the North East than anywhere else.
Sunderland fans
“I think it was a sense of achievement not with winning trophies but with making the club big and being part of the group that did that because coming from Roker Park might have been difficult had we not kicked on,” Quinn told safc.com.
“I suppose it was more precious to me because I was coming to the end of my career and I felt the passion.”
Quinn joined Sunderland in 1996 and spent six years at the club, where he formed a legendary partnership with Kevin Phillips, which is still talked about today on Wearside.
Former footballer and chairman of Sunderland Niall Quinn poses with the Capital One Cup trophy ahead of the Capital One Cup Final
The forward would score 61 goals for the club, and would later go on to manage the club for a brief period while he was chairman of the Black Cats.
When Ellis Short arrived in the North East in 2011, Quinn became Director of International Development, finally leaving the club in February 2012.
Quinn’s career began at Arsenal in 1983, with the six foot four striker spending seven years in North London, before moving to Manchester City. Now a Sky Sports pundit, Quinn also represented his country 92 times.
Niall Quinn before the match
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