Mel Eves

Melvyn James "Mel" Eves (born 10 September 1956) is an English former professional footballer who had a long career playing as a striker and left sided attacker, mostly known for his time with Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Career

Eves was educated at Wolverhampton Grammar School from 1968 to 1975 when he represented England as a Schoolboy International before joining Wolves. He eventually made his debut on 26 November 1977 against Ipswich Town at Molineux in the First Division.

His first goal was at Chelsea in 1978, followed by the winner against Manchester United in the following game and a goal in victory over Aston Villa afterwards. Such a run saw him earn a spot in the England B's summer tour of 1978, managed by Sir Bobby Robson, where he made three appearances and scored one goal (in a record 8-0 success over Singapore's full team).

Eves played in Wolves' 1980 League Cup final triumph over then-European Cup holders Nottingham Forest at Wembley.

He was top goalscorer in 1981/82 (seven goals) as Wolves slumped out of the top flight, but his 18 league goal haul the following year, not only earned him the top goalscorer award again, but saw the team immediately return to Division One.

Financial problems then struck Wolves and saw many players, including Eves, leave after relegation. After a period of time training at Manchester City, recovering from a ruptured Achilles tendon sustained in his last game for Wolves in May 1984, Eves was signed by Sheffield United in December 1984. Here, he played until May 1986 and was also voted 'Player of the Year' by fans.

Eves then moved to Gillingham and played two further seasons in the third tier. He retired through injury in May 1989 after a six-month spell at Walsall, aged 32.

Upon leaving the game, Eves became an independent financial advisor (IFA), often dealing with advising young footballers. He became a licensed FA agent in the mid-1990s and became more involved with the agency work, although also running an IFA business. In the 2000s, though, he has focused more on his agency commitments, representing players such as Enzo Maresca, Benito Carbone, Fabrizio Ravanelli, Robert Earnshaw and Gareth McAuley. He now heads up Eleven Sports Management and has working alongside him ex-professional footballers John Williams, Carl Hutchings, Ben Abbey and Chris Marsh.

Eves also had a short stint as manager of part-time non-league Willenhall Town from March 2006 until November 2007 when he resigned through work commitments.He won the Birmingham Senior Cup for the first time in the 125-year history of the competition and reached the play-off final in the 2006-07 season eventually losing out in extra time to Bromsgrove Rovers.