Michael Dawson

Michael Richard Dawson (born November 18, 1983 in Northallerton, North Yorkshire) is an England professional football (soccer) player who plays as a defender (football) for Tottenham Hotspur F.C. and wears the number 20 shirt for the club.

Club career

Dawson grew up in Leyburn, North Yorkshire and attended the Wensleydale School and is the younger brother of Hull City A.F.C. defender Andy Dawson and Kevin Dawson (formerly of Chesterfield F.C.). He turned professional in November 2000 accumulating 91 appearances for Nottingham Forest F.C. including his début on April 1, 2002 against Walsall F.C. in a 3-2 home defeat.

The following season Dawson formed a solid partnership with veteran Des Walker as Forest finished 6th in the First Division and eventually lost 4-3 in the second leg of the Playoff final to Sheffield United F.C., although Dawson missed that game having been sent off in the first leg.

In the close season Dawson contracted glandular fever whilst on duty with England Under 21's which caused him to miss the start of the following season and thus began a struggle against various injuries which marred the rest of his Forest career. Forest also struggled - winning only twice between the end of September and the beginning of February caused Paul Hart to be dismissed and replaced by Joe Kinnear. The season was transformed from one battling relegation to a confident mid-table finish with the return of Dawson and David Johnson (footballer born 1976) to the team being one of the reasons for this.

Forest again struggled the next season, with Kinnear leaving in December to be replaced by Gary Megson. Although the club were in the bottom three for the bulk of the season and ended up suffering relegation to the third tier for only the second time in their history, Dawson managed to escape their fate. He and one of his Forest team-mates, left-winger Andy Reid (footballer), signed for Tottenham Hotspur F.C. on January 31, 2005 from Forest for an undisclosed fee thought to be worth a combined £8m. His début came towards the end of that campaign in the 2-2 draw at Liverpool F.C. on April 16, 2005.

Michael enjoyed a good 2005-06 in English football, impressing many with his aerial ability and never-say-die attitude. On 28 March 2006 he signed a contract extension which will last until 2011.

He has formed a strong bond with Ledley King. In comparison to England national football team first-choice pairing of Rio Ferdinand and John Terry, King plays like Ferdinand, composed and casual, whereas Dawson - similar to Chelsea F.C.'s John Terry - has great aerial ability and bravery.

He captained the team in the 2006-2007 FA Cup quarter-final tie away to London rivals Chelsea F.C. due to injuries to stand-in captains Robbie Keane, Paul Robinson and Jermaine Jenas, and regular captain Ledley King.

After a season in which he played all but one of the possible 59 games during the season he was rewarded with a new 5 year contract on May 11, 2007 which will keep him at the club until 2012, despite still having several years left on his contract.

International career

Dawson's performances have been duly noted by the national team. Firstly, Sven-Göran Eriksson selected him as a stand-by for the 2006 World Cup a replacement to the injured Luke Young (footballer) and he was retained by new coach Steve McClaren as a squad member. Although Dawson has not played a full international yet, he has been involved in two England 'B' internationals.

Dawson has 13 England national under-21 football team international Cap (football). He is now ineligible for future competitive games for the U-21s due to his age.

Career stats

^{Correct as of 13 May 2007}

Trivia

- Michael scored his first competitive goal for Tottenham in their famous 2-1 win over Chelsea F.C. at White Hart Lane on 5 November 2006. His goal cancelled out Claude Makélélé's strike. Aaron Lennon later scored the winner.