Born: Zwedru, Liberia, 17 October 1985
Position: Centre forward
Nationality: Dutch
International caps: 2
International goals: 0
Signed: 31 January 2004, FC Twente (£500,000)
Fulham debut: Chelsea 2-1 Fulham, 20 March 2004
Fulham appearances: 106
Fulham goals: 20
Sold: Released, 2009.
Collins John was a prodigiously talented centre forward, who probably didn’t make the most of his special talent. He was born in Liberia but emigrated to the Netherlands after the death of his father in the Liberian civil war. He became a teenage sensation at FC Twente, scoring eleven goals in just over a year, before signing for Fulham in a £500,000 deal in January 2004. He was famously presented to the Fulham faithful by his near namesake John Collins.
After an impressive debut off the bench at Chelsea in March 2004, John scored his first Fulham goals with a brilliant brace at Leicester City. Despite being used mostly as a substitute, the Dutch international scored eleven times in 2005-06 – including an outstanding volley that won Match of the Day’s ‘Goal of the Month’ competition. He became frustrated after failing to break into Chris Coleman’s first team, scoring his final Fulham goal at Manchester City in November 2006. After a number of unsuccessful loan spells elsewhere, the likeable striker was released at the end of his contract in the summer of 2009.
