Jim Leighton

Jim Leighton carries the particular melancholy of a goalkeeper's career. Winning seven trophies and a European Cup Winners' Cup under Alex Ferguson at Aberdeen, then being signed and later dropped by that same manager after the 1990 FA Cup Final, is a story of loyalty and heartbreak in equal measure. What strikes me is his resilience: rather than fade away, he kept playing and later coached. The keeper's post is the loneliest on the pitch, where one mistake can erase years of brilliance. Leighton faced both glory and rejection head-on, and that earns my quiet respect.

James Leighton (born 24 July 1958) is a Scottish former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Leighton started his career with Aberdeen, where he won seven domestic trophies and the 1982–83 European Cup Winners' Cup under the management of Alex Ferguson. Ferguson then signed Leighton for Manchester United in 1988, but dropped him after he conceded three goals in the 1990 FA Cup Final.

Summary adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Name (English)

Jim Leighton

Name (Japanese)

ジム・レイトン

Reading

じむ・れいとん

Born

July 24, 1958 (age 67)

Zodiac / Chinese zodiac

Leo / Dog

Origin

Johnstone, United Kingdom

Blood type

Private

Height

2 cm

Agency

Private

Occupation

association football player / association football coach

Elementary school

Private

Junior high

Private

High school

Private

University

Private

Spouse

Private

Children

Private

Parents

Private

Siblings

Private

Motto

Private

• Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%82%B8%E3%83%A0%E3%83%BB%E3%83%AC%E3%82%A4%E3%83%88%E3%83%B3

Tags

• association football player
• association football coach

Last updated

2026-06-02

Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.