Lennon: Aaron Justin (Aaron)

2003-2005 (Player Details)

Right Wing

Born: Chapeltown, Leeds: 16-04-1987

Debut: v Tottenham Hotspur (a) (substitute): 23-08-2003

5’5” 9st 12lb (2007)

Lennon came through the junior ranks at Leeds and was always seen as someone special. His elder brother Tony was also an exciting prospect when taking the same route, but unfortunately he never progressed to the first team. Lennon turned professional with Leeds on 1st July 2003 and quickly progressed into the first team and he was still only sixteen when he made his debut, in fact at sixteen years and one hundred and twenty-nine days he was the youngest player ever to have played in the EPL. He was not rushed into the first team but eased into it mostly as a substitute but the star quality was there for all to see. Extremely fast and elusive with outstanding dribbling skills, he stood out as a quality player. Leeds were going through a spell of financial uncertainty and their star players left in droves and soon they were plummeting down the Leagues and Aaron found himself playing in the CCCL with a team low on confidence and high expectancy from their supporters. He scored his first and only goal for Leeds in a rare 3-2 win in the Boxing Day 2004 clash with Sunderland at the Stadium of Light, when he was still only seventeen. He won the club’s young player of the year award. As befits a quality player he was on a good wage, based on the number of games he played and as these grew it became a problem as Leeds fought relegation in the 2004-05 season. After several offers from EPL clubs, he took a cut in pay to sign for Tottenham Hotspur in June 2005, for a bargain £1,000,000, as he sought to play in a League more befitting his ability and where his potential could be realised. He made his Tottenham debut in August 2005 and scored his first EPL goal in March 2006, in which month he signed a contract extension for Spurs for another four years. His progress continued and after being elected third best “Young Player of the Year” by the PFA for the 2006-2007 season, he signed a further contract extension at £20,000 per week in January 2007 for another five and a half years to June 2012. He had been called up for the England Under-Twenty-one team in 2005, and was called up for the 2006 World Cup squad in May 2006. He was named “Man of the Match” for England “B” against Belarus in May 2006 and made his England debut as a substitute against Jamaica in June 2006. After several substitute appearances he made his starting debut for England against Israel in March 2007. A regular at White Hart Lane, he also started to score some memorable goals as he mesmerized the opposition with his speed and intricate dribbling skills. He gained his first trophy as Spurs beat Chelsea at Wembley to lift the League Cup with a 2-1 extra time win at Wembley in 2008. He also gained a runners' up medal the following season as Spurs were beaten in the Final of the same competition in a penalty shoot-out by Manchester United. In March 2009 he signed an extended contract designed to keep him at White Hart Lane until 2014, after Liverpool and Real Madrid had shown interest in him. In the 2008-09 season he was the Tottenham "Player of the year", "Young Player of the Year", and was also awarded the club's "Moment of the Year" for his last minute equaliser in a 4-4 draw with Arsenal. He was also nominate for PFA "Young Player of the Year" for the third time. He started the 2009-10 season in irrepressable form as he scored twice in the first four games as Spurs led the EPL with four successive wins.Unfortunately he was injured in late October. He returned a month later to score one and make three others as Spurs pulverised Wigan Athletic 9-1. He then suffered a groin injury in December which kept him out until late April but soon staked his claim for inclusion in the England World Cup squad. His record at White Hart Lane to the end of the 2009-10 season shows he has scored fifteen goals in the League from one hundred and fourteen starts and twenty-five games from the bench, while in the F.A. Cup he has scored once in eight starts and three games from the bench, one goal in the League Cup from thirteen starts and four substitute appearances and one goal in European and other games in nineteen starts and four games from the bench. He was honoured by England at Under-Nineteen, and has played five times for the Under-Twenty-one, twice for the “B” and nineteen times for the full international team, winning man-of-the-match in the game against Croatia in a World Cup Qualifier on 9th September 2009. He featured in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa in the first two Group games but not against Slovenia or Germany.