Eddie Lewis (soccer player, 1974)

Eddie Lewis
Personnel
Surname	Edward James Lewis
birthday	17th May 1974
place of birth	Cerritos , California ,  USA
size	178 cm
position	Left mid-field
Juniors
Years	station
1992	Cerritos High School
1992-1995	UCLA Bruins
Men's
Years	station	Games (goals) 1
1996-1999	San Jose Clash	115 0(9)
2000-2002	Fulham FC	16 0(0)
2002-2005	Preston North End	111 (15)
2005-2007	Leeds United	85 0(8)
2007-2008	Derby County	24 0(0)
2008-2010	Los Angeles Galaxy	48 0(3)
National team
Years	selection	Games (goals)
1996-2008	United States	82 (10)
1 Only league games are given.

Edward "Eddie" Lewis (born May 17, 1974 in Cerritos , California , USA ) is a former American football player . Most recently he played in the MLS , the top US division, for Los Angeles Galaxy .

Athletic career

Before Lewis decided to play football at a young age, he had already played tennis with some success and was also involved in American football in school sports . During his studies at UCLA he played for the local soccer team until he graduated in sociology , scoring a total of 30 goals and preparing 28 goals. In 1995 he even led the internal ranking of the UCLA Bruins with eleven goals and ten assists .

Known for his good crosses with his left foot, the midfielder was drawn in 1996 in the third round of the Major League Soccer (MLS) draft system by the San José Clash club - now known as "San José Earthquakes". There he made his debut in the first game of the MLS ever, which went into its first season this year, and remained with this club for four seasons until 1999. He was the player with the second most minutes of play in the MLS in 1998 and at the end of his MLS career he was voted into the best team of the season in 1999.

In his first year as a professional he made his debut for the US national team when he played against Peru on October 16, 1996 . This game was only possible for him, however, as many national players boycotted this encounter due to financial disagreements and so Lewis had to wait two more years for his second international appearance and then came into his home stadium in San José against Australia . From then on he developed more and more to a regular player in the national team on the left side of midfield and took part in the Confederations Cup in Mexico in 1999 , where the USA could reach third place.

For two million US dollars, Lewis then moved to the English First Division , as the English second division was called at that time, to Fulham FC in 2000 and played his first game against Barnsley FC in March 2000 . During his time in Fulham, however, he could never really assert himself and came in the promotion season 2001/02 in only one game - the meaningless last game of the season - used. In the national team, however, he was able to defend his place in the team and won the Gold Cup in January 2002 . He was also in the squad for the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea and was in the starting line-up in the round of 16 and quarter-finals against Mexico and Germany . He contributed the cross to Landon Donovan's 2-0 in the encounter against Mexico .

Lewis was obliged after the World Cup for an unofficial transfer fee from the second division Preston North End and developed there as a regular player. After three years, he moved to the more ambitious club Leeds United at the beginning of the 2005/06 season and was also an extremely successful player on the left wing. Both in the duel against the opposing right-back and in situations with the resting ball, he performed so well that he immediately became a crowd favorite in Leeds.

During the qualification for the 2006 World Cup in Germany, he was regularly appointed to the national team and was part of the squad for the tournament itself as a left full-back .

After the economic downturn at Leeds United, which was now relegated to the third division, Lewis moved to Derby County in the Premier League in August 2007 . From the 08/09 season, Lewis will play for Los Angeles Galaxy in his home country.

After the 2010 season, he announced the end of his career.

successes

• CONCACAF Gold Cup winner: 2002

Web links

• Eddie Lewis in the soccerbase.com database
• Lewis information at www.ussoccerplayers.com
• Eddie Lewis in the MLSSoccer.com database

Individual evidence

1. ↑ "Derby signs United States midfielder Eddie Lewis to two-year contract from Leeds" (International Herald Tribune)
2. ↑ "Los Angeles Galaxy brings US international Eddie Lewis" (www.transfermarkt.de August 22, 2008)
3. ↑ http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/lewis-says-hes-finished-after-end-season