Emile Heskey

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Emile Heskey
Emile Heskey as a player of England national football team.jpg
Heskey in the jersey of the England national team (2009)
Personnel
Surname Emile William Ivanhoe Heskey
birthday January 11, 1978
place of birth Leicester ,  England
size 188 cm
position striker
Juniors
Years station
1987-1994 Leicester City
Men's
Years station Games (goals) 1
1994-2000 Leicester City 154 (40)
2000-2004 Liverpool FC 150 (39)
2004-2006 Birmingham City 68 (14)
2006-2009 Wigan Athletic 82 (15)
2009–2012 Aston Villa 92 0(9)
2012-2014 Newcastle United Jets 42 (10)
2014-2016 Bolton Wanderers 45 0(3)
National team
Years selection Games (goals)
1996-2000 England U-21 16 0(?)
1998 England B 1 0(1)
1999-2010 England 62 0(7)
1 Only league games are given.
Status: end of season 2015/16

Emile William Ivanhoe Heskey (born January 11, 1978 in Leicester ) is a former English football player with Antiguan roots. The striker , who could be used as a center forward and across the (mostly left) wing, celebrated his greatest successes with Leicester City and Liverpool FC . Between 1999 and 2010 he scored seven goals in 62 international A matches and took part in two world ( 2002 and 2010 ) and two European championships ( 2000 and 2004 ). Characteristic of his style of play was above all the ability to hold the ball in front of the opponent on the offensive, to create space and to stage teammates.

Athletic career

Leicester City (1987-2000)

Born in Leicester , England, Emile Heskey was part of the Leicester City youth department from the age of nine ; He had previously made his first footballing steps at Ratby Groby Juniors and clearly stood out from his fellow players in terms of talent. He spent seven years in various youth teams at the club before making his Premier League debut on March 8, 1995 against the Queens Park Rangers . During the subsequent 1995/96 season, Heskey won a regular place with the "Foxes", made 30 championship appearances, scored six more goals after his first goal against Norwich City (1-0) and helped the club, which had meanwhile been relegated to the second division to return to the major league.

In the 1996/97 season "Bruno", as the muscular striker was called due to his resemblance to the popular boxer Frank Bruno , suddenly caught the attention of the highest national level and, after ten league games in 35 games, was considered one of the most promising talents in English football at all. In addition, as a teenager he won the League Cup in 1997 with the team supervised by Martin O'Neill . He initially forced a replay with his 1-1 equalizer in the final against Middlesbrough FC two minutes before the end of extra time, which Leicester again won 1-0 ten days later.

With the performances shown, Heskey recommended itself for larger clubs and those interested included Leeds United and Tottenham Hotspur . However, Heskey was initially still connected to his home country and had another 1997/98 season follow, in which he repeated the ten league goals of the previous year. The final breakthrough in the direction of a future top scorer was of course not and when he only scored six championship goals in the 1998/99 season, the accusations that he contributed too few goals increased. In addition, there was criticism that he went to the ground too quickly for a strongly built striker. Heskey put his style of play increasingly in the service of the team and created space for his teammates with speed and physical presence. The aging newcomer Tony Cottee , who scored a total of 23 league goals at Heskey's side between 1998 and 2000, benefited from this . With this storm formation Leicester City 2000 won the league cup again after a 2-1 final victory against the Tranmere Rovers .

Liverpool FC (2000-2004)

Before the end of the 1999/2000 season Heskey joined for the transfer fee of eleven million pounds for Liverpool , which at that time the most expensive transfer for the club at the Merseyside showed. He made his first game on March 5, 2000 against Sunderland AFC and scored three goals in the remaining 13 league games. In interaction with Michael Owen , who was just under two years younger and at whose side he also increasingly played in the English senior team, and under the reign of coach Gérard Houllier , Heskey was dangerous for goals, scored 23 competitive goals - 14 of them in the Premier League - and won three important titles in what was probably his best year as a professional. In addition to another league cup and the FA Cup , this included the UEFA Cup , especially after a spectacular 5-4 final victory over Deportivo Alavés ; This trophy collection was joined shortly afterwards by the successes in the European and English Super Cup .

This sporting highlight from 2001 could not be repeated in the following period and especially after the 2002/03 season, when Heskey scored only nine goals in 51 competitive games, the criticism of his weak goal rate increased again. However, coach Houllier continued to express his trust in the media scolded, especially since his team had recently won the league cup again. Regardless of this, the signs increasingly pointed in the direction of parting; in addition, the Czech international Milan Baroš proved to be stubborn competition in the battle for a regular place at Owen's side in the 2003/04 season . In May 2004, Heskey finally signed a contract with Birmingham City for a total of 6.25 million pounds - of which 3.5 million pounds were due immediately - where he was to replace Christophe Dugarry and at that time was again the most expensive transfer in the club's history.

Birmingham City (2004-2006)

The two years that Heskey spent with the "Blues" were changeable. In the 2004/05 season , Heskey was still one of the most consistent players in Birmingham, scoring eleven goals and winning the most "man-of-the-match" nominations, both the club's own supporters and his teammates for best player of the past lap.

The sporting development deteriorated increasingly in the 2005/06 season . In addition, Heskey, who was again suffering from a peat low, did not succeed in avoiding the fall to the relegation ranks and after only four hits in 34 league games, Birmingham City had to start the second-rate Football League Championship . After weak performances, the crowd favorite of the preseason had become a much maligned "scapegoat" and after relegation Karren Brady from the club management said that the last 1.5 million installment from the Heskey transfer business was no longer due.

Wigan Athletic (2006-2009)

At the beginning of the 2006/07 season, Heskey moved to Wigan Athletic . The transfer fee was 5.5 million pounds and on his second use he scored the decisive goal in the first home game against Reading FC to make it 1-0; this was also his 500th league encounter and a total of eight goals in 36 games this season. Relegation was only marginally secured due to the better goal difference against Sheffield United , but especially in the decisive 2-1 success against the direct competitor on the last day of the game, journalists certified him a good performance.

In the 2007/08 season, Heskey had to fight more and more injuries. It initially caused a foot injury in September 2007 for a two-month break and in December 2007 he took from a game against Blackburn Rovers with an ankle injury that put him out of action for another month. Nevertheless, he came to 28 league appearances, in which he only got four hits. This included the 1-1 equalizer at the last minute at title contenders Chelsea , which finally undermined their championship hopes.

Heskey was also set in the striker of Wigan Athletic at the beginning of the 2008/09 season. He scored goals against Hull City , Portsmouth FC and Blackburn Rovers before signaling in the winter transfer period that he would not extend his expiring contract. Club boss Dave Whelan then signaled his willingness to sell Heskey if there was a reasonable offer. The choice finally fell in January 2009 on the Aston Villa coached by Martin O'Neill ; the transfer fee was £ 3.5 million and Heskey signed a 3½ year contract.

Aston Villa (2009-2012)

On January 27, 2009, Heskey scored the 1-0 winner for Aston Villa at Portsmouth FC on his debut. From then on, however, he could no longer get beyond the role of the supplementary player. Although O'Neill had been a sponsor of Heskey since coaching Leicester City, he often preferred the more accurate Gabriel Agbonlahor and John Carew in the front attack position . Heskey came on as a substitute 16 times in 31 Premier League games during the 2009/10 season. After the 2011/12 season, Heskey received no new contract offer and left the club after 92 Premier League appearances.

Newcastle Jets (2012-2014)

Heskey moved to Australia in September 2012 in the A-League for the Newcastle United Jets . His contract, which expired in 2014, was not renewed.

Bolton Wanderers (2014-2016)

After Heskey had been without a club at the beginning of the 2014/15 season, he signed a contract with Bolton Wanderers on December 24, 2014, which ran until the end of the season.

English national team

Heskey was already active in the English youth teams. Like his future strike partner Michael Owen , he belonged to the English U-18 team, which finished third at the European Championships in France . He also made 16 international matches between 1996 and 2000 for the English U-21 team .

The tall, quick and very robust striker played for the English senior team for the first time in a 1-1 friendly match against Hungary in Budapest on April 28, 1999 , and then made his debut against Argentina at Wembley Stadium from the start and showed a good performance, which earned him the award for “best player” (“Man of the Match”). From then on, he secured a place in the squad for the following EM 2000 in the Netherlands and Belgium and came to two short appearances as a substitute during the tournament, in which England was eliminated after the preliminary round. Probably the best international match of his career, he played under Sven-Göran Eriksson in a 5-1 win over Germany in Munich , when he crowned his performance with the last goal.

As a regular player, Heskey went to Japan and South Korea for the 2002 World Cup and there he started on the left wing against Sweden . However, it was only significantly more effective when it was set up in the central attack position at the side of Michael Owen. He scored a goal in the round of 16 against Denmark , but overall could not establish himself as a permanent solution in England's attack line. Despite its small goal rate in the club, he was still an important part of the national team and took the 2: 1 win over Serbia and Montenegro in June 2003 in his home town of Leicester Michael Owen the position of team captain . Heskey was also in the national team at the 2004 European Football Championship in Portugal, but was only substituted in for the game against France at this tournament .

With the rising Peter Crouch as an alternative in the English storm, Heskey's prospects seemed progressively deteriorating. Only five goals in 43 international matches and the fact that Heskey was now with a below-average first division club (which even relegated towards the end of the 2005/06 season) indicated that comparable English strikers had advantages. Nevertheless, he celebrated his comeback on September 8, 2007 in the European Championship qualifier against Israel in the absence of the injured Wayne Rooney and the suspended Peter Crouch and was also in the next game against Russia from the start. At the 2010 World Cup in South Africa , he was again in the English squad, played the first two games in the group phase from the start and was substituted on in the second half in the last preliminary round game as well as in the round of 16 against Germany (1: 4).

After the tournament, Heskey announced on July 15, 2010, at the age of 32, his retirement from the English national team, for which he had scored seven goals in 62 games.

titles and achievements

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ "Emile Heskey seasonal balance sheet: (Part 1) 1995-00"
  2. ↑ "Emile Heskey seasonal balance sheet: (Part 2) 1995-00"
  3. ↑ "Houllier keeps faith with Heskey" (BBC Sport)
  4. ↑ "Heskey leaves the" Reds "" (kicker.de)
  5. ^ Blues prepared for the worst - Brady (Birmingham Mail)
  6. ↑ "Wigan 1–0 Reading" (BBC Sport)
  7. ↑ "Sheff Utd 1-2 Wigan" (BBC Sport)
  8. ↑ "Heskey has suspected broken toe" (BBC Sport)
  9. ↑ "Heskey faces weeks out of action" (BBC Sport)
  10. ↑ "Chelsea 1–1 Wigan" (BBC Sport)
  11. ↑ "Wigan hint at Heskey January exit" (BBC Sport)
  12. ^ "Villa sign England striker Heskey" (BBC Sport)
  13. ↑ Barry J. Hugman (Ed.): The PFA Footballers' Who's Who . Mainstream Publishing, 2010, ISBN 978-1-84596-601-0 , pp. 196 .
  14. ↑ bbc.co.uk: Emile Heskey set to leave Aston Villa after no new deal is offered (May 7, 2012)
  15. ↑ au.fourfourtwo.com: Emile's A Done Deal For Jets (Sep. 21, 2012)
  16. ↑ bwfc.co.uk: Former England international pens short-term deal after impressing on trial (24 Dec. 2014)
  17. ^ "Striker Heskey retires from international football" (BBC Sport)
personal data
SURNAME Heskey, Emile
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Heskey, Emile William Ivanhoe
BRIEF DESCRIPTION English soccer player
DATE OF BIRTH January 11, 1978
PLACE OF BIRTH Leicester