ARTICULATE pundit Matthew Upson was deservedly player of the season after starring in Brighton & Hove Albion’s back line during the 2013-14 season.

Earlier, in a career spanning eleven clubs, he played more times (144 plus once as sub) for West Ham United than any of his other clubs. He also won 21 England caps.

Upson initially joined the Seagulls during the second half of the 2012-13 season, signing on loan from Premier League Stoke City, where, in two years, he’d only managed 21 games (plus four as sub) following four years with the Hammers.

On signing him for Brighton at the age of 33, manager Gus Poyet told seagulls.co.uk, “When we had the chance to bring a player with the quality of Matt until the end of the season we went for him.

“He’s experienced, he’s been a regular Premier League player and there were no doubts about it. He has presence, he’s a leader as well and it’s a good opportunity for us to use him the right way and for him to play football.”

Upson joined a side already blessed with the on-loan presence of another former England international in the shape of left-back Wayne Bridge, but unfortunately the side couldn’t get past arch rivals Crystal Palace in the play-offs to gain promotion from the Championship.

Although Poyet departed, Upson decided to make his move to Brighton permanent and played 41 games, mainly alongside skipper Gordon Greer. Unfortunately, Oscar Garcia’s squad also stumbled in the play-offs.

Hampered by an ankle injury towards the end of the season, although Upson played in the first leg 2-1 home defeat to Derby County – when he conceded a penalty with a clumsy foul – he was one of several players to miss out through injury in the away leg, when the Rams prevailed 4-1.

At the season’s end, Upson declined a new contract offer with the Albion and decided to seize the opportunity to return to Premier League football with newly-promoted Leicester City.

As it turned out, injury delayed his debut by seven months and he made just six appearances for the Foxes before ending his playing days with MK Dons, where he was limited to four full appearances plus three as a sub.

Upson is now a regular pundit on our TV screens, displaying verbally the sort of calm assuredness he demonstrated out on the pitch.

So where did it all begin? Born on 18 April 1979 in Eye, a small Suffolk market town, Upson went to Diss High School, over the border in Norfolk, and his football ability first shone at Diss Town FC. He went on to the Ipswich Town Centre of Excellence but it was Luton Town who took him on as a trainee after his Ipswich coach, Terry Westley, had switched to the Hatters.

It was to be a lucrative decision by Luton because, after signing him as a professional in April 1996, a year later they sold him to Arsenal for £2million. He only ever made one first team appearance for Luton and that was as an 88^th minute substitute against Rotherham United in August 1996.

Unfortunately, his time with the Gunners was dogged by injury and lack of opportunity because of the solid form of the likes of Tony Adams, Steve Bould and Martin Keown.

Just as he was beginning to make a breakthrough in the 2001-02 season, taking the ageing Keown’s place, he broke his leg and missed out on the Gunners’ end-of-season League and FA Cup double, although he earned a league winners’ medal. At the season’s end, he’d made 16 appearances plus six as a sub.

While waiting for his chance at Arsenal, he had gone out on loan, to Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace, then Reading after his return from the leg break. But after a total of 39 appearances, plus eight as a sub, for Arsenal spanning five and a half years, he made a £1m move to Birmingham City in January 2003.

City were halfway through their first season in the Premier League, under Steve Bruce, and Upson made 14 appearances as the side finished in 13^th place.

Upson told the dailystar.co.uk: “I had a good four and a half years under him at Birmingham. We had quite a successful period there.”

It was during his time with the Blues, during which he made 127 appearances plus one as sub, that his form was recognised with a call up to the England squad.

He had played at youth level and 12 times for the under 21 side but his first call-up for the senior squad came in February 2003, when he was an unused sub for England’s 3-1 win over Australia.

Three months later, coach Sven-Göran Eriksson gave him his debut when he came on for the second half In England’s 2-1 win over South Africa in Durban on 22 May 2003.

His final international appearance also came in South Africa – when he scored in England’s 4-1 defeat to Germany which brought about their exit from the 2010 World Cup. His involvement in the tournament was keenly followed by relatives and the whole community back in Diss.

He was involved in the squad for two subsequent games in September that year, but didn’t get to play. In total, he won seven caps while with Birmingham and 14 under Fabio Capello, after he had moved to West Ham. Of his 21 England appearances, 16 were as a starter, five as a sub.

Birmingham boss Bruce was reluctant to lose him but, on the final day of the transfer window in January 2007, the recently appointed Hammers boss, Alan Curbishley, paid £6million to take him to Upton Park, where enjoyed the longest spell of his playing career.

As he’d experienced at previous clubs, injury hampered him early on but eventually he got a regular spot in the side and subsequently took on the captaincy after the departure of Lucas Neill in August 2009.

It was after relegation from the Premiership during Sam Allardyce’s tenure as manager that Upson finally left the Hammers at the end of the 2010-11 season.