English footballer
Michael Richard Dawson
(born 18 November 1983) is an English former professional
footballer
and sports pundit.
As a player, he was a
centre back
. Dawson started his career at Nottingham Forest playing alongside veteran defender
Des Walker
before moving to
Tottenham Hotspur
with teammate
Andy Reid
for a fee of £8 million. While at Tottenham, Dawson won the
League Cup
in 2008. His form in the
2009?10 season
saw him included in England's preliminary
2010 FIFA World Cup
squad. Although he initially failed to make the final 23-man squad, an injury to captain
Rio Ferdinand
saw him drafted in as replacement.
In August 2014,
Hull City
signed Dawson from Tottenham for a fee believed to be £3.5 million. Although relegated with Hull at the end of the 2014?15 season, he helped them return to the
Premier League
when they beat
Sheffield Wednesday
in the
2016 Championship play-off final
. He returned to former club Nottingham Forest in May 2018. He is now a regular pundit on
Sky Sports
Soccer Saturday
.
Early life
[
edit
]
Born in
Northallerton
, North Yorkshire,
[5]
Dawson grew up in
Leyburn
and attended Wensleydale school.
[6]
He is the younger brother of fellow footballers
Andy Dawson
and
Kevin Dawson
.
[7]
Club career
[
edit
]
Nottingham Forest
[
edit
]
Dawson started his career playing for his local team, Northallerton Juniors, and also spent a year playing for Richmond before signing as a junior professional with
Nottingham Forest
at the age of 14.
[6]
He turned professional in November 2000 and made his first-team debut for Forest on 1 April 2002 against
Walsall
in a 3?2 home defeat.
[8]
In February 2003, Dawson signed a new five-and-a-half-year contract at Forest.
[9]
During the
2002?03 season
, Dawson established himself in the team alongside veteran defender
Des Walker
,
[10]
as Forest finished sixth in the
First Division
to enter the
play-offs
.
[11]
Forest played
Sheffield United
, and Dawson was sent off late in the first leg, making it his final appearance that season.
[12]
Without Dawson, Forest lost 4?3 in the second leg of the semi-final, being eliminated 5?4 on aggregate.
[13]
In the close season, Dawson contracted glandular fever whilst on duty with the
England under-21s
, causing him to miss the start of the
2003?04 season
. Forest also struggled ? winning only twice between the end of September and the beginning of February caused
Paul Hart
to be replaced by
Joe Kinnear
. The season was transformed from one battling relegation to a confident mid-table finish with the return of Dawson and
David Johnson
to the team being one of the reasons for this.
[14]
Tottenham Hotspur
[
edit
]
Dawson and one of his Forest teammates, winger
Andy Reid
, signed for
Premier League
club
Tottenham Hotspur
on 31 January 2005 deadline day transfer for a fee thought to be worth a combined £8 million.
[15]
Dawson made his debut for Tottenham towards the end of the
2004?05 season
in the 2?2 draw at
Liverpool
on 16 April 2005.
[16]
Dawson enjoyed a good
2005?06 season
, impressing many with his aerial ability and attitude. This in turn led to a contract extension until 2011.
[17]
This was followed by a call-up to the
England
squad as a standby player for the
2006 FIFA World Cup
.
[18]
On 5 November 2006, Dawson scored his first goal for Tottenham in their 2?1 win over
Chelsea
at
White Hart Lane
. His goal levelled the score at 1?1 after
Claude Makelele
's strike, with
Aaron Lennon
scoring the winner.
[19]
Dawson first
captained
the team in the
2006?07 FA Cup
quarter-final match away to Chelsea, due to injuries to stand-in captains
Robbie Keane
and
Paul Robinson
and the club's regular captain
Ledley King
.
[20]
After a season in which he played all but one of Tottenham's 59 matches, he was rewarded with a new five-year contract on 11 May 2007 which would have kept him at the club until 2012.
[21]
In the
2007?08 season
, Dawson scored his first goal in the
UEFA Cup
home match against the Cypriot team
Anorthosis Famagusta
where Tottenham won 6?1.
[22]
In November 2007, Tottenham went away to
West Ham United
in the Premier League and drew 1?1, Dawson scored the away goal.
[23]
During the course of the season, Tottenham reached the
2008 League Cup Final
at
Wembley Stadium
, where they beat Chelsea 2?1 to earn Dawson his first ever silverware,
[24]
though he missed the final through injury.
[25]
In October 2008, when Tottenham played away to Stoke,
Vedran ?orluka
suffered an injury in the 77th minute. Dawson replaced him only to be sent off in injury time.
[26]
In March 2009, Tottenham reached the
League Cup final
again and faced Manchester United. Dawson was available and was selected for the final which ended 0?0 after 90 minutes. However, Tottenham lost 4?1 on penalties.
[27]
In April 2009, Dawson sustained an injury against
Newcastle United
which left him out for the rest of the
2008?09 season
.
[28]
The
2009?10 season
was to be judged by many as Dawson's finest season in a Spurs shirt to date as he helped the club to a fourth-place finish, their highest league finish for 20 years and qualification for the
2010?11 UEFA Champions League
.
[29]
On 27 January 2010, he signed a new five-year contract with Tottenham, taking him to 2015.
[30]
Dawson's excellent performances throughout the course of the season saw him awarded Tottenham's Player of the Year award.
[31]
His form that season led to
Manchester City
striker
Carlos Tevez
calling him "the best English defender I have played against" due to his strength.
[32]
Dawson missed the rest of the
2011?12 season
after rupturing an ankle ligament during Tottenham's 3?1
FA Cup
fifth round win over
Stevenage
on 7 March 2012.
[33]
At the beginning of the
2012?13 season
, Dawson could have signed for Tottenham's Premier League rivals
Queens Park Rangers
as the two clubs had agreed a £7.5 million fee, but the move collapsed as Dawson had "an issue with personal terms".
[34]
Instead, Dawson was appointed club captain and signed a new three-year contract with Tottenham in October 2013.
[35]
He scored his first goal of the season in a 3?1 win over
Reading
at White Hart Lane on 1 January 2013.
[36]
Hull City
[
edit
]
On 26 August 2014, he joined Premier League club
Hull City
on a three-year contract for an undisclosed fee understood to be £3.5 million.
[37]
He made his debut on 31 August 2014 at
Villa Park
in a 2?1 defeat to
Aston Villa
.
[38]
During the course of the
2014?15 season
, Dawson established himself in the team and was selected captain on 17 occasions.
[
citation needed
]
With five matches left to go in the Premier League season, Hull played Liverpool, in which Dawson scored his first goal for the club and the only goal in the match, earning a vital three points in their fight against relegation.
[39]
However, this was not enough as Hull went on to lose their next three matches and in their final match against
Manchester United
they only drew 0?0, sending Dawson and Hull to the Championship for next season.
[40]
Dawson scored in their home match against Queens Park Rangers on 19 September 2015.
[41]
The
2015?16 season
saw Hull finish fourth in the table
[42]
and were promoted back to the Premier League via the play-offs, beating
Sheffield Wednesday
1?0 at Wembley Stadium in the
final
.
[43]
At the start of the
2016?17 season
, Dawson picked up an injury in a pre-season friendly against
Mansfield Town
, which ruled him out for three months.
[44]
At the end of the
2017?18 season
, he entered into discussions with Hull about a new contract.
[45]
Return to Nottingham Forest
[
edit
]
Dawson re-signed for Championship club Nottingham Forest on 30 May 2018 on a two-year contract,
[46]
and has since served as club captain. He scored his first goal since his return to the City Ground on 17 August 2019 in a 3-0 win over
Birmingham City
[47]
Forest manager
Sabri Lamouchi
praised Dawson's attitude and leadership, saying "I have never seen in my professional life one guy who is this clever, who has the background he has and who is as professional and positive as him".
[48]
On 17 June 2020, he signed an additional one-year contract with Forest.
[49]
Dawson made no appearances for Forest during the 2020-21 season, and was released by Forest at the end of his contract. Dawson said: “It’s been frustrating that I haven’t been able to say goodbye to the fans in person but I hope to be back at the City Ground again very soon. Forest has been a massive part of my life since I first put the shirt on at the age of 9. It will always be close to my heart and I leave with some fantastic memories."
[50]
After retirement
[
edit
]
In August 2021, Dawson returned to Tottenham Hotspur as one of the club's ambassadors.
[51]
International career
[
edit
]
England U21
[
edit
]
Dawson made his debut for the
English under-21 team
against
Italy
on 11 February 2003.
[52]
He went on to earn 13 England under-21 international
caps
, captaining the team on several occasions. His last appearance for the under-21 team was in a 2?1 loss to
France
on 15 November 2005.
[53]
England B
[
edit
]
Dawson was capped twice for the
English B team
, his first cap coming in their 2?1 loss to
Belarus
at Reading's
Madejski Stadium
on 25 May 2006.
[54]
His second cap came in their 3?1 win over
Albania
at
Burnley
's
Turf Moor
ground exactly a year later.
[55]
England senior team
[
edit
]
Dawson was named in England's 30-man provisional squad for the
2010 FIFA World Cup
, but was not selected for the final 23-man squad.
[56]
Rio Ferdinand
was withdrawn from the squad due to an injury sustained in the team's first training session, and Capello announced Dawson as Ferdinand's replacement.
[57]
He made his first appearance for England in a warm-up match against the
Platinum Stars
; however, the match was not counted as a full international, merely a training match, so he did not receive a cap for his appearance.
[58]
However, Capello did not use Dawson at the World Cup, and he was the only uncapped member of the squad.
[59]
He made his full international debut in a
friendly
against
Hungary
on 11 August 2010, coming on as a half time substitute and was involved in a controversy over Hungary's goal.
[60]
After making a mistake in the build-up, he got back to clear the ball off the line ? a goal was given, however replays suggested the ball had actually not crossed the line.
[61]
On 3 September 2010, Dawson made his first competitive start for England in the
UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying
match against
Bulgaria
. He sustained a knee injury and left the field on a stretcher after 56 minutes.
[62]
Career statistics
[
edit
]
Club
[
edit
]
International
[
edit
]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team
|
Year
|
Apps
|
Goals
|
England
|
2010
|
2
|
0
|
2011
|
2
|
0
|
Total
|
4
|
0
|
Honours
[
edit
]
Tottenham Hotspur
Hull City
Individual
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"EFL: Club retained and released lists published"
. English Football League. 23 June 2016
. Retrieved
28 May
2018
.
- ^
"Michael Dawson: Overview"
. ESPN
. Retrieved
5 April
2020
.
- ^
"Michael Dawson"
. Nottingham Forest F.C
. Retrieved
15 July
2019
.
- ^
"Michael Dawson"
.
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. Retrieved
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2019
.
- ^
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.
11v11.com
. AFS Enterprises
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.
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.
The Northern Echo
. Darlington. 22 November 2002
. Retrieved
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2018
.
- ^
Buckingham, Philip (3 October 2015).
"Hull City's 'model professional' Michael Dawson prepares for Nottingham Forest reunion"
.
Hull Daily Mail
. Archived from
the original
on 8 October 2015
. Retrieved
14 April
2017
.
- ^
"Nottm Forest 2?3 Walsall"
.
BBC Sport
. 1 August 2002
. Retrieved
15 September
2016
.
- ^
"Dawson commits to Forest"
.
BBC Sport
. 13 February 2003
. Retrieved
17 August
2011
.
- ^
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.
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on 4 November 2015
. Retrieved
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2017
.
- ^
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.
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. 10 May 2003
. Retrieved
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.
- ^
"Blades overcome brave Forest"
.
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. 15 May 2003
. Retrieved
15 September
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.
- ^
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.
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. Retrieved
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.
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.
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. Retrieved
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.
- ^
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.
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. 16 April 2005
. Retrieved
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.
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.
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. Retrieved
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.
- ^
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.
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. 21 May 2006
. Retrieved
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.
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"Tottenham 2?1 Chelsea"
.
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. Retrieved
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2009
.
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Sinnott, John (19 March 2007).
"Tottenham 1?2 Chelsea"
.
BBC Sport
. Retrieved
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.
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.
ontheminute.com
. 11 May 2007.
- ^
Sinnott, John (20 September 2007).
"Tottenham 6?1 A Famagusta"
.
BBC Sport
. Retrieved
6 October
2016
.
- ^
Sanghera, Mandeep (25 November 2007).
"West Ham 1?1 Tottenham"
.
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. Retrieved
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2016
.
- ^
a
b
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"Tottenham 2?1 Chelsea"
.
BBC Sport
. Retrieved
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- ^
"Tottenham defender Michael Dawson set to miss another Wembley final"
.
The Daily Telegraph
. 25 February 2009.
Archived
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. Retrieved
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.
- ^
Hughes, Ian (19 October 2008).
"Stoke 2?1 Tottenham"
.
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. Retrieved
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.
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.
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.
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.
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- ^
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.
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. 27 January 2010.
- ^
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.
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. Retrieved
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2010
.
- ^
"Tevez: Spurs star is the best Englishman I have faced"
.
Sport.co.uk
. 13 April 2010
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- ^
"Dawson set to miss rest of season"
.
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. 8 March 2012.
- ^
"Michael Dawson's QPR move in danger of collapse ? Mark Hughes"
.
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. Retrieved
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.
- ^
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.
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.
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Emons, Michael (1 January 2013).
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.
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.
- ^
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.
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. 26 August 2014
. Retrieved
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.
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a
b
c
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.
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. Centurycomm
. Retrieved
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2016
.
- ^
Reddy, Luke (28 April 2015).
"Hull City 1?0 Liverpool"
.
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. Retrieved
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2016
.
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.
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. Retrieved
2 October
2016
.
- ^
"Hull City 1?1 Queens Park Rangers"
.
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. 19 September 2015
. Retrieved
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2016
.
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. Statto Organisation. Archived from
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on 11 September 2016
. Retrieved
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2017
.
- ^
a
b
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"Hull City 1?0 Sheffield Wednesday"
.
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. Retrieved
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.
- ^
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.
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. 20 July 2016
. Retrieved
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2016
.
- ^
"David Meyler: Hull City release long-serving midfielder and offer new deals to four"
.
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. 18 May 2018
. Retrieved
18 May
2018
.
- ^
"Michael Dawson: Nottingham Forest re-sign Hull City centre-back"
.
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. 30 May 2018
. Retrieved
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2018
.
- ^
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.
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. 17 August 2019
. Retrieved
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.
- ^
Taylor, Paul.
"
'If I was the owner I would give Dawson a contract for life'
"
.
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. Retrieved
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.
- ^
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.
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. Retrieved
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.
- ^
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"Dawson Bids Farewell As Released List Confirmed"
.
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.
- ^
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.
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. 6 August 2021
. Retrieved
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.
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.
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. 11 February 2003
. Retrieved
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.
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.
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. 15 November 2005
. Retrieved
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.
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"Walcott a bright spark but England are embarrassed by 10-man Belarus"
.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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"Tottenham 4?0 Dinamo Zagreb"
.
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.
Soccerbase
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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"Games played by Michael Dawson in 2016/2017"
.
Soccerbase
. Centurycomm
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15 July
2017
.
- ^
"Games played by Michael Dawson in 2017/2018"
.
Soccerbase
. Centurycomm
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28 May
2018
.
- ^
"Games played by Michael Dawson in 2018/2019"
.
Soccerbase
. Centurycomm
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2019
.
- ^
"Games played by Michael Dawson in 2019/2020"
.
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. Centurycomm
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.
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McKechnie, David (28 April 2003).
"Henry lands PFA award"
.
The Guardian
. London
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2016
.
- ^
"PFA awards: Leicester and Spurs dominate Premier League team"
.
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. 21 April 2016
. Retrieved
5 June
2016
.
- ^
"Gareth, Daws scoop awards"
. Tottenham Hotspur F.C. 3 May 2010. Archived from
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- ^
"Michael Dawson named Hull City's Player of the Year by Mail readers"
.
Hull Daily Mail
. 3 May 2015. Archived from
the original
on 8 May 2015.
External links
[
edit
]