- Tom Huddlestone
Biography
The stylish midfielder has earned the reputation as one of the country’s best young players since joining us as an 18-year-old from Derby County in July 2005.
In November 2009, Tom won his first senior England cap when he represented the Three Lions in a friendly with Brazil held in Doha, Qatar.
The call-up came on the back of an impressive start to the 2009-10 campaign, in which Tom started every single Premier League game, mainly in the heart of midfield but also at centre-half when needed, right up until Boxing Day!
In the end, he started more Premier League games than anyone else (33/38) and made more starts (41/50) in all competitions than anyone apart from goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes, who made 42.
Tom also played a key role as we finished fourth in the Premier League, partnering Luka Modric in central midfield in those huge wins against Arsenal, Chelsea, Bolton and Manchester City – not forgetting his wonderful strike to beat Bolton 1-0 at the Lane on May 1.
His form earned a call into Fabio Capello’s provisional 30-man World Cup squad, but he was unfortunately cut from the final 23.
Having played only 31 games in all competitions during the previous season, the statistics go to show the effort the big man has made to become one of Harry Redknapp’s most important players.
A product of Derby County’s youth academy, Tom made his senior debut aged just 16 in August 2003, and went on to make 95 appearances for the Rams before arriving in N17.
During the early part of his Spurs career, Tom was loaned out to Wolverhampton Wanderers for further Championship experience, where he made 13 appearances and scored one goal – ironically against Derby at Pride Park, for whom he never found the net in two seasons!
Tom returned from Molineux to make his Spurs first team debut in a 1-0 Premier League defeat at Fulham in January 2006.
During the following campaign, the England Under-21 international established himself in the first team at The Lane, scoring three goals in 35 games.
Still only 20 years of age at the beginning of the 2007-08 campaign, Tom still had to work hard to prove himself as a first-choice central midfielder at the highest level.
But as the season progressed, Tom made the most of every opportunity given to him, and ended the campaign with his best return of both goals and games for the Club to date – four in 43.
He was a member of the side that won the Carling Cup at Wembley in February 2008, and it soon led to England Head Coach Fabio Capello first showing an interest in Tom.
In May 2008, he was called up to the senior England squad for the first time for end-of-season friendlies with USA and Trinidad & Tobago.
Although Tom did not get on the pitch over the two games, he would eventually get his chance to perform on the biggest stage.
The arrival of Redknapp as Spurs manager in October 2008 saw Tom’s career kick on another level, and he was even given the captain’s armband for the first time in a UEFA Cup Round of 32 tie with Shakhtar Donetsk in February 2009.
Before gaining his first senior honours, Tom had been a regular England youth international, representing his country at Under-15 level through to Under-21s, where he won over 30 caps.
Thomas Andrew “Tom” Huddlestone (born 28 December 1986) is an English footballer who plays for England national team.
Club career
Nottingham Forest: Born in Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, Huddlestone was taken on by Nottingham Forest at an early age but was released at 12 as he was claimed to be ‘Not strong enough’. After Forest he joined Derby. He made his debut on the opening day of the 2003–04 season in a 3–0 home defeat to Stoke City, but despite the defeat, he was voted Man of the Match.
Tottenham Hotspur: Huddlestone signed for Tottenham in January 2005 for a fee reported to be worth up to £3 million, but remained at Derby until the summer. Huddlestone spent a few months of the 2005–06 season on loan to Wolverhampton Wanderers, scoring his first league goal, at Derby, before returning to make his debut for Tottenham as a substitute in the 1–0 defeat away at Fulham on 31 January 2006.
His first start for Tottenham came on 14 September 2006, away to Slavia Prague in the UEFA Cup, a game which Tottenham won 1–0. His first goal for Spurs came in the Carling Cup 4th Round match against Port Vale on 8 November 2006. Huddlestone scored 2 goals in this match, his second goal proving decisive in extra time, taking Tottenham through to the quarter finals of the competition. Huddlestone got his first league goal for Spurs on 17 December 2006 against Manchester City with an excellent half-volley on 24 minutes, hit first-time after assisting with team mate Calum Davenport’s first goal with a free-kick.
Huddlestone established himself as one of the most promising young English central midfielders in the premiership towards the end of the 2006–07 season and head coach Martin Jol compared Tom Huddlestone with German legend Franz Beckenbauer due to his playmaking abilities, ferocious shot power and versatility. He has also been deployed at centre back on numerous occasions for both Tottenham and the England under-21s.
On 25 December 2006, he signed a new four and a half year contract – keeping him at the club until 2011. Tom signed a new and improved five-year contract on 30 June 2008 committing his future to Tottenham Hotspur until 2013. He came on as a substitute as Spurs beat Chelsea in the 2008 Football League Cup Final. During the 2009–10 season, he became a regular under Harry Redknapp. In March, he extended his contract until 2015.
International career
Youth
Having been capped at the U-17 and U-19 levels, Huddlestone was a regular in the England under-21s. He played twice in the 2007 UEFA Under-21 Championship before a red card for dissent ruled him out of the semi-final and final. In October 2008, he scored the opening goal from a free kick in the second leg of the 2009 European Championship qualifying play-offs against Wales. Although the game ended in a draw which ensured qualification for England, it was marred by his sending-off in the second half for a reckless challenge on Darcy Blake. He missed the tournament through injury.
Senior team
He was called up into the England squad by coach Fabio Capello to face United States and Trinidad and Tobago in friendlies. On 14 November 2009, he received his first cap for the senior side in the 1–0 loss in a friendly match against Brazil, after coming on as a substitute in the 81st minute.
In May 2010, Fabio Capello announced that Huddlestone would be in his preliminary World Cup squad of 30 players however was not selected for the final 23-man squad.