Barry Ferguson MBE (born Glasgow, Scotland, February 2, 1978) is a Scottish professional football midfielder who currently plays for Scottish Premier League team Rangers. He is the captain of Rangers and Scotland.
Early career
Barry Ferguson joined the Rangers Youth Setup at the age of thirteen. Ferguson joined the first team squad in 1994/95 and made his first team debut on the last day of the 1996-97 season against Hearts and was voted man of the match for his performance. He became a permanent first team fixture in the 1998/99 season under new manager Dick Advocaat.
He soon became the youngest ever captain of the team in the 2001/2 season, guiding his team to a League Cup and Scottish Cup double. This was also the first season in charge for Alex McLeish. During their second season together (2002/03), Ferguson captained the side to a domestic treble. He also won Scottish Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the Year and Scottish PFA Players’ Player of the Year.
Blackburn Rovers
At the start of the 2003/04 season, he joined English Premiership club Blackburn Rovers for a fee of £7.5 million. With Everton also chasing Ferguson , Rangers initially denied that he was leaving . There was also other reasons given for his sale: financial problems at Rangers, his ambition to play in the Premiership and Ferguson having a hard time living with his fame in Scotland.
Ferguson had some success at the club and he was made captain in July 2004 replacing Garry Flitcroft. After just 18 months, Ferguson submitted a written transfer request. Admitting that the draw of playing in the Premiership and the Lancashire Derby were not as good as he was told / After much discussions between clubs, a fee of £4.5 million was agreed and Ferguson rejoined Rangers just before the close of the transfer window in January 2005
International career
Ferguson made his international debut at the age of 21 against Bosnia Herzegovina in September 1999. However, an injury plagued season prevented him from picking up more caps. He was also appointed captain of the national side by then manager Berti Vogts following the retirement of Paul Lambert.
The Return to Ibrox
Ferguson returned for the end of the 2004/05 season and was part of the Rangers team that won the league in dramatic fashion on the last day of the season. He was not captain for this however, with McLeish not wanting to remove it mid-season from Fernando Ricksen.
For 2005/06, Ferguson was re-appointed captain. He played the last part of the season carrying an ankle injury. This was later revealed to be snapped ligaments and he confessed that he should have undergone the surgery sooner. .
Ferguson was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) on 17 June 2006 , and he is also the only current Rangers player to be inducted into the Rangers F.C. Hall of Fame.
Honours
Scottish Premier League: 1998/99, 1999/2000, 2002/03, 2004/05
Scottish Cup: 1998/99, 1999/2000, 2001/2002, 2002/2003
Scottish League Cup: 1998/99, 2001/02, 2002/03, 2004/05