german football player

Lewis Harry Holtby ( bear 18 September 1990 ) is a german professional football player who plays as a midfielder for 2. Bundesliga side Holstein Kiel. [ 2 ] Holtby began his professional career with Alemannia Aachen before signing for Schalke 04 two years late. He was subsequently loaned to VfL Bochum and Mainz 05 before returning to Gelsenkirchen where he lifted the DFL-Supercup in 2011. He then spent two seasons in England with Premier League sides Tottenham and Fulham between 2013 and 2014 before returning to Germany to sign for Hamburger SV. There, he spent five seasons, including the 2017–18 Bundesliga campaign in which the club was relegated for the first clock in history, and made over 100 appearances before outgo two seasons with EFL Championship side Blackburn Rovers between 2019 and 2021.

Holtby besides represented Germany at assorted youth levels from 2008 to 2013 and captained the state at the 2013 UEFA european Under-21 Championship. He made his senior introduction against Sweden in 2010 and has since won 3 caps for the national slope .

Club career [edit ]

early career [edit ]

Lewis Harry Holtby was born on 18 September 1990 in Erkelenz, West Germany. [ 3 ] He began playing football at the age of four with amateur side Sparta Gerderath, a baseball club with whom his beget had besides previously played, before signing for Borussia Mönchengladbach when he was 11-years honest-to-god. [ 4 ] [ 5 ] [ 6 ] He spent three seasons in Gladbach ‘s academy before the club let him go in 2004, deeming him to be excessively little and dense to make it as a professional football player. [ 7 ] Following his handout, Holtby elected to sign for Alemannia Aachen in the second tier of german football at the historic period of 14. [ 5 ]

aachen [edit ]

After three years in Aachen ‘s academy, Holtby signed a professional shrink with the clubhouse during the 2007–08 season. [ 8 ] He was then handed his first-team debut at the long time of 17 by caretaker director Jörg Schmadtke in December 2007, coming on as a moment half substitute for Mirko Casper in a 2–2 puff with FC St. Pauli. [ 9 ] [ 5 ] His introduction was one of entirely two appearances for the season, with his second coming in a 3–1 passing to TuS Koblenz on the final match day of the political campaign. [ 6 ] The be season, Holtby was converted to the leftover wing position by raw baseball club coach Jürgen Seeberger. [ 8 ] excel in his new function, he scored his first goal for the clubhouse on 8 December 2008 against 1860 Munich before netting a brace in a 6–2 cream of Nürnberg in February the follow year. [ 10 ] [ 8 ] He ultimately made 31 appearances for the season and scored eight goals as Aachen ended the campaign in fourth station, narrowly missing out on a point in the promotion playoffs. [ 8 ] Holtby ‘s human body for the season saw him awarded the Gold Fritz Walter Medal for the best german U19 player in 2009, ahead of runner-up Konstantin Rausch and André Schürrle. [ 4 ]

Schalke 04 [edit ]

Having impressed in the second division with Aachen, Holtby was courted by a issue of Bundesliga sides ahead of the 2009–10 season. Schalke emerged as the successful suitors and in July 2008 signed him on a four-year deal for a report fee of €2.5 million. [ 11 ] He was handed his introduction for the club on 1 August 2009 by director Felix Magath, with whom he would belated fall out with, in a 4–0 DFB Pokal win over Germania Windeck. [ 12 ] He featured nine times in the league, during which he registered two assists, and doubly in the cup before being loaned to fellow Bundesliga side Bochum in January for the remainder of the temper. [ 13 ] [ 14 ]

Loan spells with Bochum and Mainz [edit ]

Holtby joined Bochum at the end of January 2010, initially on an 18-month long loanword deal. [ 14 ] [ 15 ] He made his debut for the club on 6 February in a 1–1 Bundesliga pull with Bayer Leverkusen in which he registered the aid for Zlatko Dedic ‘s second-half equalizer. [ 16 ] On 13 March, he scored his first goal for the club, and his first in the Bundesliga, in a 4–1 get the better of at the hands of Dortmund. [ 17 ] He made 14 appearances in total for Bochum and scored twice before his lend was cut short circuit at the end of the season following the golf club ‘s relegation. [ 13 ] [ 18 ] Upon his return to Schalke, Holtby was once again loaned out for the 2010–11 temper, this fourth dimension to Mainz. [ 18 ] Under the management of Thomas Tuchel at Mainz, Holtby formed a potent partnership with attackers Ádám Szalai and André Schürrle which helped the cabaret to seven consecutive wins at the begin of the season. [ 4 ] His impressive form for the club caught the center of national team coach Joachim Löw who selected him for the senior Germany police squad in November 2010. [ 13 ] He ultimately made 32 appearances for the season across all competitions and scored 6 goals as Mainz ended the temper in fifth place, 18 points ahead of Schalke, and qualified for a spot in the UEFA Europa League for the future season. [ 4 ] [ 19 ] Upon the exhalation of his lend at Mainz, Holtby paid protection to Tuchel, describing him as a brilliant coach who had made him a much better actor. [ 4 ]

return to Schalke [edit ]

Holtby scored 13 goals in 79 appearances for Schalke across all competitions. Following his render to Schalke, Holtby was named in the starting line-up for the 2011 Supercup on 23 July and scored the inaugural penalty in a penalty shoot-out victory over Dortmund. [ 20 ] He scored his first base goal for the club the following calendar month, netting Schalke ‘s third base in a 5–1 league win over Köln. [ 21 ] Having previously played as an attacking fielder and winger, Holtby was converted to a deep function under modern director Ralf Rangnick due to spanish caption Raúl occupying the more advanced attacking situation in the team. [ 22 ] In cattiness of his more defensive function, Holtby managed to record a career best tally of nine goals for the season across 41 appearances, helping Schalke finish the political campaign in fifth position in the league and as semi-finalists in the Champions League. [ 23 ] At the start of the follow temper, Holtby said that he would not be extending his narrow with the cabaret which was set to expire at the end of the campaign. [ 24 ] During the January transfer window, Premier League side Tottenham announced that they had signed Holtby on a pre-contract, with the player to join the club in July 2013. [ 25 ] On 18 January, during his foremost couple following the announcement, he scored what proved to be the gain goal for Schalke in a 5–4 get the better of of Hannover 96. [ 26 ] He played only one more equal for the club, however, as Tottenham reached an agreement with Schalke to fast-track Holtby ‘s remove to January following a serious injury to Sandro. [ 27 ] [ 28 ]

Tottenham Hotspur [edit ]

On 28 January 2013, Holtby signed a four-and-a-half-year compress to complete a £1.5 million motion to Tottenham Hotspur. [ 28 ] He made his Spurs debut two days belated, coming off the bench in the 71st infinitesimal to replace Clint Dempsey in a 1–1 pull with Norwich City off at Carrow Road. [ 29 ] His home introduction followed on 9 February in a 2–1 victory against Newcastle United. [ 30 ] He made a sum of 11 appearances as Tottenham ended the campaign in fifth stead, ultimately missing out on a Champions League position by one point. Holtby scored his beginning Tottenham goal during the club ‘s hatchway equal of the following season on 29 August 2013, finding the back of the net from 25 yards ( 23 meter ) in a 3–0 Europa League play-off round win over Dinamo Tbilisi. [ 31 ] He then scored his first Premier League goal for the cabaret on 4 December, netting the winner in a 2–1 wallow over Fulham at Craven Cottage. [ 32 ] [ 33 ] The goal proved to be his beginning and final goal for Tottenham in the league as the following calendar month, after struggling to break into the first gear team under coach Tim Sherwood, he signed for Fulham on lend for the remainder of the season. [ 34 ]

lend to Fulham [edit ]

Holtby playing for Fulham in 2014 Fulham completed the loan sign of Holtby on 31 January 2014, concluding the bargain anterior to the transplant window closing. [ 35 ] [ 34 ] Upon joining Fulham, Holtby told the club ‘s official web site that he was motivated to help them survive relegation and play his way into Germany ‘s 2014 FIFA World Cup squad. [ 36 ] [ 37 ] He made his debut the follow day and played the wide 90 minutes in a 3–0 kill at home to Southampton. [ 38 ] Two weeks late, Holtby was reunited with former Schalke coach Felix Magath when the German was appointed as raw club director following the displace of René Meulensteen. [ 39 ] Prior to his appointment, Magath was the subject of negative comments made by Holtby to german newsworthiness publication Bild in which he said that he “ survived ” Magath ‘s methods during their partake time at Schalke. This followed from reports of a feud between the two stemming from Magath ‘s decisiveness to loan Holtby out on two occasions at Schalke. Holtby later said that he was surprised by Magath ‘s appointment but denied that there was a rift between them. [ 40 ] In May, Holtby scored his first finish for the Cottagers, temporarily drawing Fulham charge against Cardiff City in a match that ultimately ended as a 3–1 loss. [ 41 ] It was the only goal he scored in his 13 appearances with Fulham, and the golf club were relegated to the backing at the end of the temper with a match still to be played. [ 42 ]

Hamburger SV [edit ]

Following his lend spell at Fulham, Holtby returned to Tottenham and by the conclusion of August 2014 had made three appearances, included in which were two in the Europa League. however, having struggled to make an affect at White Hart Lane with Spurs, and after the golf club signed Benjamin Stambouli from Montpellier, Holtby elected to return to Germany to join Hamburg on loan the following calendar month. [ 43 ] In terms of the loan agreement, Hamburg retained the option to purchase Holtby outright for a fee of £6.5 million. [ 44 ] [ 45 ] Despite breaking his clavicle during the Rückrunde, Holtby made 22 Bundesliga appearances in his introduction season for Hamburg and started in both legs of the club ‘s relegation playoff victory over Karlsruher SC. [ 46 ] [ 47 ] [ 48 ]

On 1 July 2015, it was confirmed that Hamburg had exercised their choice to make Holtby ‘s loan be active permanent for a report fee of £4.6 million. [ 49 ] [ 50 ] [ 51 ] He scored his first gear finish for the golf club on 29 August 2015, netting the undoer in a 2–1 loss to Köln, and scored doubly more for the season, including one in a 3–1 win over Dortmund in November, as Hamburg improved to end the campaign in tenth place. [ 52 ] [ 53 ] [ 54 ] During the pre-season for the 2016–17 campaign, Holtby was ruled out for eight–ten weeks after breaking his clavicle for a second time when he was involved in a cycle accident in Switzerland. [ 55 ] In December, he received his first career crimson card when he was dismissed for fierce behave after striking Dominik Kohr in a 1–0 winnings over Augsburg. [ 56 ] He subsequently received a two-match abeyance for his indiscretions. [ 57 ] [ 58 ] Holtby made his three-hundredth aged career appearance on 1 April 2017, and marked the occasion by netting an extra-time achiever in a 2–1 man of the meet performance against Köln. [ 59 ] [ 60 ] He then recorded two assists in the concluding two matches of the temper to help Hamburg avoid the relegation play-offs once again, with the club beating Wolfsburg on the final day to steer themselves clear of the drop. [ 61 ] [ 62 ] At the start of the succeed season, Holtby made history when he scored the latest goal in the Bundesliga history, netting in the hundredth moment of 4–1 acquire over Köln. [ 63 ] He soon found himself on the periphery at Hamburg, however, with coach Markus Gisdol and then Bernd Hollerbach both electing to use him from the workbench, or not at all. He returned to the starting line-up following the date of Christian Titz and scored five times in the final eight matches of the season against Stuttgart, Schalke, Freiburg, Wolfsburg and Gladbach, between which he besides made his hundredth league appearance for the club in a 3–0 defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt. [ 64 ] [ 65 ] [ 66 ] [ 67 ] [ 68 ] His solid performances towards the second of campaign were, however, not adequate to prevent Hamburg from suffering delegating from the Bundesliga for the first time in the club ‘s history. [ 68 ] He ended as Hamburg ‘s top goalscorer for the temper with six goals, despite only playing 16 matches and on 24 May, with his contract set to expire, signed a annual extension on a significant pay-cut in ordering to remain with the golf club. [ 69 ] Holtby then started in the club ‘s first-ever 2. Bundesliga match on 3 August against Holstein Kiel. He was named captain for the match in the absence of the hurt Aaron Hunt but was ineffective to prevent his side suffering a 3–0 kill. [ 70 ] Later that month, he scored his first-ever cup goal for the clubhouse when he opened the seduce in a 5–3 DFB Pokal first-round succeed over TuS Erndtebrück. [ 71 ] Towards the end of the season, and following revelations that Holtby ‘s contract with Hamburg would not be renewed, a group of supporters started an on-line petition, which gained thousands of signatures, in an attack to convince the baseball club to extend his stay. [ 72 ] His compress was ultimately not renewed and he left Hamburg at the conclusion of the temper after the club failed to secure promotion. [ 73 ] [ 74 ]

Blackburn Rovers [edit ]

Following his exhaust from Hamburg, Holtby continued to train with Rot-Weiss Essen and, on 19 September 2019, he returned to England to sign for Championship slope Blackburn Rovers. [ 75 ] [ 76 ] He made his debut for the club two days late, coming on as a second-half substitute in a 2–1 win over Reading. [ 77 ] precisely one calendar month later he scored his foremost finish for the club and assisted the early in Blackburn ‘s 2–2 draw with Huddersfield Town. Following the turn of the year he scored doubly more as the clubhouse recorded its biggest league win since 2001 in a 5–0 victory over Sheffield Wednesday. [ 78 ] [ 79 ] In February, however, he suffered a lateral ligament injury in his stifle in Blackburn ‘s 1–1 draw against Middlesbrough. [ 80 ] Holtby ‘s passing from Rovers was announced at the end of the 2020–21 season. [ 81 ]

Holstein Kiel [edit ]

On 17 August, Holtby joined Holstein Kiel. [ 82 ]

International career [edit ]

The son of Chris Holtby, a former british soldier who was stationed at RAF Rheindahlen in Mönchengladbach, Holtby was eligible to represent England through parental linage vitamin a well as his native Germany. [ 83 ] [ 84 ]

youth [edit ]

Having previously represented Germany at U18 flat, Holtby made his debut for the U19s in September 2008 and earned 12 caps overall. [ 83 ] He scored the beginning of his four international goals for the german U19 team on 11 October 2008, netting in a 5–0 victory over Lithuania. [ 85 ] The keep up class, Germany youth coach Horst Hrubesch named Holtby in his team for the U20 World Cup in Egypt. [ 86 ] Holtby scored two goals at the tournament, one of which was against eventual runner-up Brazil in the quarter-finals. [ 87 ] In 2013, he captained Germany at the european Under-21 Championship in Israel and was named as the nation ‘s only representative in the team of the Tournament. [ 88 ] [ 89 ]

senior [edit ]

While on loanword with Bundesliga side Mainz, Holtby caught the attention of national team coach Joachim Löw who named him in the senior police squad for the first time for a friendly against Sweden on 17 November 2010. [ 13 ] He was named in the starting line-up and played 77 minutes before being replaced by Mainz teammate Schürrle in a 0–0 draw, former receiving the homo of the match award for his performance. [ 90 ] He made his moment appearance the following class, coming on as a late substitute for Thomas Müller in a 3–1 UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying winnings over Azerbaijan. By appearing in a competitive catch for Germany, Holtby precluded himself from representing England in the future in terms of the FIFA eligibility rules. [ 91 ]

personal animation [edit ]

Despite having played for their Premier League rivals Tottenham and Fulham, Holtby is a lifelong Everton fan, an affiliation he developed as a consequence of his don ‘s support of the golf club. When Liverpool showed pastime in him in 2012, he went on read state that he would n’t say no to Liverpool as his dream was to play in the Premier League. He said, “ I would n’t even rule out Liverpool, even if it would be tough for my dad – he ‘s an Everton winnow. ” [ 92 ] Holtby ‘s younger brother, Joshua, is besides a football player, who played for MVV Maastricht in the Eerste Divisie and nowadays plays for Preußen Münster in Germany ‘s Regionalliga West. Like Lewis, he previously trained in the academy of Gladbach. [ 93 ] [ 94 ] In 2019, he collaborated with Hamburg-based musicians Elvis & Pape on the let go of of their album titled, Hurrikan. [ 95 ]

career statistics [edit ]

baseball club [edit ]

As of matches played on 10 May 2021.[96]

International [edit ]

As of 3 April 2019[97]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Germany 2010 1 0
2011 1 0
2012 1 0
Total 3 0

Honours [edit ]

Schalke
Individual
Records

  • Latest Bundesliga goal: 100th minute, against 1. FC Köln on 25 August 2017[63]

References [edit ]