Luke Harry Chadwick (born 18 November 1980) is an English former professional
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...
who played as a
midfielder
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...
.
Chadwick began his career at
Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
where he made 25 Premier League appearances in four seasons. While at
Old Trafford
Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after Wemb ...
he spent time out on loan at
Reading
Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch.
For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...
and
Burnley
Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Bru ...
before joining
West Ham United
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...
on a permanent basis in the summer of 2004.
A year later, he joined
Stoke City
Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...
on loan before making the move permanent in January 2006. He remained at Stoke until November 2006 making 55 appearances before joining
Norwich City
Norwich City Football Club (also known as The Canaries or The Yellows) is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. The club competes in the EFL Championship following their relegation from the Premier League in the 20 ...
. Injuries restricted his time at
Carrow Road
Carrow Road is an association football stadium located in Norwich, Norfolk, England, and is the home of EFL Championship side Norwich City. The stadium is located toward the east of the city, near Norwich railway station and the River Wensum.
N ...
and he moved to
Milton Keynes Dons
Milton Keynes Dons Football Club (), usually abbreviated to MK Dons, is a professional association football club based in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the third tier of the English football league system. The ...
in October 2008. In March 2014, Chadwick joined
Cambridge United
Cambridge United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Cambridge, England. They compete in EFL League one , the 3rd tier of the English football league system. The club is based at the Abbey Stadium on N ...
, the club he supported as a child. He was released at the end of the 2014–15 season.
Club career
Manchester United
Born in
Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
,
Chadwick had a three-week trial at his favourite club Cambridge United at the age of 10. After a spell at Arsenal, he was signed to the
Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
youth system.
He made his professional debut on 13 October 1999 in the third round of the
League Cup
In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...
as a young United side lost 3–0 at
Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...
. After loans at
Royal Antwerp
Royal Antwerp Football Club, often referred to as Royal Antwerp or simply Antwerp, is a Belgian football club based in the city of Antwerp. Founded around 1880 as ''Antwerp Cricket Club'' by English students residing in Antwerp, 15 years before ...
in Belgium, he made his
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
debut on 11 November 2000 in a 2–1 home win over
Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area.
Until the early 1800s, the a ...
as an added-time
substitute for
Dwight Yorke
Dwight Eversley Yorke CM (born 3 November 1971) is a Trinidadian and Tobagonian former professional footballer and current manager of Australian A-League club Macarthur FC. Throughout his club career, he played for Aston Villa, Manchester Unit ...
. On 17 December, he came on in the 80th minute for
Dennis Irwin
__NOTOC__
Dennis Irwin (November 28, 1951 in Birmingham, Alabama - March 10, 2008) was an American jazz double bassist. He toured and recorded with John Scofield and the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra among others, and played on over 500 albums.
Bio ...
at home to
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
and was sent off for a foul on
Vladimír Šmicer
Vladimír Šmicer (, born 24 May 1973) is a Czech former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He started his senior career at Slavia Prague, the only Czech club he ever played for. In 1999, Šmicer moved to England where he played ...
in a 1–0 loss. He scored two league goals in the title-winning 2000–01 season, one in a 3–0 win at
Bradford City
Bradford City Association Football Club is an English professional football club in Bradford, West Yorkshire. The team competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system and are currently managed by Mark Hughes.
Th ...
on 13 January 2001 and the other on 3 March in a 1–1 draw at
Leeds United
Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire in England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of England's football league system, and plays its home matches at Elland Road S ...
.
After playing rarely for United in 18 months, Chadwick went on a one-month loan to
First Division team Reading in February 2003. He was inspired by
Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
's
Matthew Upson
Matthew James Upson (born 18 April 1979) is an English former professional footballer who played as a centre back. Upson played for England at full international level including at the 2010 World Cup.
Upson started his career with Bedfordshire ...
increasing his standing by making the same move. On his debut for the Royals on 10 February, he equalised in a 2–1 home win over
Gillingham. His deal was extended until the end of the season. He helped the club to the play-off semi-finals, where they were ousted by eventually promoted Wolverhampton Wanderers.
In July 2003, Chadwick was loaned for the season to First Division side
Burnley
Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Bru ...
. He missed pre-season due to two jaw operations as part of a two-year treatment. In 40 total games he scored six goals, including two in a 4–0 win over Bradford on 20 September; after that game, he conceded that he may have to leave United.
West Ham United
On 2 August 2004, Chadwick moved to
West Ham United
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...
of the newly renamed
Championship
In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion.
Championship systems
Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship.
Title match system
In this system ...
on a free transfer. He was signed by
Alan Pardew
Alan Scott Pardew (born 18 July 1961) is an English football manager and former professional footballer, who is the current manager of Greek Super League club Aris.
Pardew's highest achievements in the sport include reaching the FA Cup Final th ...
, who had led him at Reading. In his
only season, he scored a goal on 10 December to open a 1–1 home draw with Leeds.
Stoke City
Chadwick joined
Stoke City
Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...
on loan at the start of the
2005–06 season. On 4 January 2006, the transfer was made permanent for a fee of £100,000, on a deal lasting until the summer of 2008 with the option of one more year.
In the season opener away to
Southend United
Southend United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England. As of the 2022–23 season, the team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of English football. Southend are known as ...
on 6 August 2006, Chadwick was carried off after collapsing. It was confirmed that he was suffering only from dehydration.
Norwich City
On 13 November 2006, Chadwick signed on loan for
Norwich City
Norwich City Football Club (also known as The Canaries or The Yellows) is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. The club competes in the EFL Championship following their relegation from the Premier League in the 20 ...
until 3 January; he was signed by
Peter Grant, who had worked with him at Reading and West Ham. On his debut six days later, he opened the scoring in a 3–1 loss at rivals
Ipswich Town
Ipswich Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. They play in League One, the third tier of the English football league system.
The club was founded in 1878 but did not turn profession ...
. He suffered a knee injury in that match, ruling him out until March. After his loan ended, he signed a 2-year deal for a 200,000 fee. He said that his transfer was due to his wife and children returning to Cambridge.
His injury problems continued into the following season as he struggled for fitness.
Milton Keynes Dons
On 1 October 2008, Chadwick was loaned to
League One
The English Football League One (often referred to as League One for short or Sky Bet League One for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League One from 2004 until 2016) is the second-highest division of the English Football Leag ...
club
Milton Keynes Dons
Milton Keynes Dons Football Club (), usually abbreviated to MK Dons, is a professional association football club based in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the third tier of the English football league system. The ...
for three months. He scored three goals in the eight games of his loan, including a brace on 28 October in a 2–1 win at
Leyton Orient
Leyton Orient Football Club is a professional football club based in Leyton, East London, England, who compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. They are the second oldest football club in London to play at a professio ...
. He returned to Norwich in the middle of November due to a knee injury. He moved permanently on a 2-year deal at the turn of the year, on a free transfer.
Chadwick was MK Dons' Player of the Season for 2009–10 and 2010–11, with the latter season ending in a 4–3 aggregate elimination in the playoff semi-finals by
Peterborough United
Peterborough United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England. The team compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Peterborough have a long-standing ...
. In March 2011, his contract was extended by two more years. On 23 August that year, he scored twice in a 4–0 win at former club Norwich in the League Cup second round. A year and five days later, he did the same at the same stage in a 2–1 home win over
Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...
.
In March 2013, Chadwick signed a further two-year extension to his MK Dons deal.
Cambridge United
On 18 March 2014 Chadwick joined his hometown club
Cambridge United
Cambridge United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Cambridge, England. They compete in EFL League one , the 3rd tier of the English football league system. The club is based at the Abbey Stadium on N ...
on loan. He made his debut the same day in a 2–1 home win against
Welling United
Welling United Football Club is a professional football club, based in Welling in the London Borough of Bexley, England. The club's first team play in the National League South, at the sixth tier of English football.
History
Welling United Foot ...
in the
Conference National
The National League, known as the Vanarama National League for sponsorship reasons, is the highest level of the National League System and fifth-highest of the overall English football league system. It is the highest league that is semi-profes ...
. He signed permanently on 7 June, after the team won promotion in the play-off final against
Gateshead
Gateshead () is a large town in northern England. It is on the River Tyne's southern bank, opposite Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle to which it is joined by seven bridges. The town contains the Gateshead Millennium Bridge, Millennium Bridge, Sage ...
.
In 2014–15, Chadwick played a part in Cambridge's run in the FA Cup, scoring in their 2–2 home draw with
Mansfield Town
Mansfield Town Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in the town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Stags', they ...
in the second round. In the fourth round against his former club Manchester United, he played in a goalless home draw and a 3–0 replay loss on his return to
Old Trafford
Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after Wemb ...
; both sets of fans gave him a standing ovation when he was substituted in the latter game. At the end of the season he was released.
Soham Town Rangers and move into coaching
After leaving Cambridge United, Chadwick signed for
Isthmian League Division One North
The Isthmian League () is a regional men's football league covering Greater London, East and South East England, featuring mostly semi-professional clubs.
Founded in 1905 by amateur clubs in the London area, the league now consists of 82 teams ...
side
Soham Town Rangers in November 2015. He spent one season at Soham before returning to Cambridge as a full-time coach in the club's academy.
International career
Chadwick made his debut for the
England under-21s in the win against
Luxembourg
Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
in September 1999.
He played the full 90 minutes as England won 5−0 in the
2000 UEFA European Under-21 Championship
The 2000 UEFA European Under-21 Championship was the 12th staging of UEFA's European Under-21 Championship. The final tournament was hosted by Slovakia from 27 May to 4 June 2000. The tournament had 47 entrants. Northern Ireland competed for the f ...
qualifier
In linguistics, a modifier is an optional element in phrase structure or clause structure which ''modifies'' the meaning of another element in the structure. For instance, the adjective "red" acts as a modifier in the noun phrase "red ball", provi ...
at the
Madejski Stadium
The Madejski Stadium (currently known as the Select Car Leasing Stadium for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Reading. It is the home of Reading Football Club, who play in the EFL Championship. It also provides the finish for the Rea ...
.
England qualified for the finals in Slovakia and Chadwick made substitute appearances against
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
and
Slovakia
Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...
as they were eliminated at the group stages.
He featured four times during England's
qualifying campaign for
2002 UEFA European Under-21 Championship
UEFA European Under-21 Championship 2002 was the 13th staging of UEFA's European Under-21 Championship. The final tournament was hosted by Switzerland between 16 and 28 May 2002.
Czech Republic U-21s won the competition for the first time.
Qua ...
with his last appearance coming in the 5−0 win against
Albania
Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...
on 4 September 2001.
Overall, Chadwick made 13 appearances for the U21s but scored no goals.
Personal life
Chadwick and his wife Hayley have two sons. As of 2015, both were in the youth ranks of Cambridge United.
[
In May 2020, Chadwick spoke about how his ]mental health
Mental health encompasses emotional, psychological, and social well-being, influencing cognition, perception, and behavior. It likewise determines how an individual handles stress, interpersonal relationships, and decision-making. Mental health ...
had been affected by abuse about his appearance he had received as a young player. He highlighted how the media had made fun of his appearance, "spots on my face, teeth sticking out, that sort of thing", making particular mention of the abuse he had received on the BBC panel show
A panel show or panel game is a radio or television game show in which a panel of celebrities participates. Celebrity panelists may compete with each other, such as on ''The News Quiz''; facilitate play by non-celebrity contestants, such as on ' ...
, ''They Think It's All Over''. He received an apology from the show's hosts Nick Hancock
Nicholas John Hancock (born 25 October 1962) is an English actor and television presenter. He hosted the sports quiz ''They Think It's All Over'' for 10 years. He also formerly presented ''Room 101'' (1994–1999) on TV, as well as its earlier ...
and Gary Lineker
Gary Winston Lineker (; born 30 November 1960) is an English former professional footballer and current sports broadcaster. He is regarded as having been one of the greatest English strikers. His media career began with the BBC, where he has p ...
.
Career statistics
Honours
Royal Antwerp
*Belgian Second Division
The Belgian Second Division (known as the Proximus League for sponsorship reasons) was the second-highest division in the Belgian football league system, one level below the Belgian Pro League. It was founded by the Royal Belgian Football Associa ...
: 1999–2000
Manchester United
*Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
: 2000–01
Cambridge United
*Conference Premier
The National League, known as the Vanarama National League for sponsorship reasons, is the highest level of the National League System and fifth-highest of the overall English football league system. It is the highest league that is semi-profess ...
play-offs: 2013–14
Individual
*Milton Keynes Dons
Milton Keynes Dons Football Club (), usually abbreviated to MK Dons, is a professional association football club based in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the third tier of the English football league system. The ...
Player of the Year: 2009–10, 2010–11
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...
References
External links
*
Luke Chadwick
at ManUtd.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chadwick, Luke
1980 births
Living people
Sportspeople from Cambridge
Footballers from Cambridgeshire
English footballers
English expatriate footballers
England youth international footballers
England under-21 international footballers
Association football midfielders
Manchester United F.C. players
Royal Antwerp F.C. players
Reading F.C. players
Burnley F.C. players
West Ham United F.C. players
Stoke City F.C. players
Norwich City F.C. players
Milton Keynes Dons F.C. players
Cambridge United F.C. players
Soham Town Rangers F.C. players
Premier League players
English Football League players
National League (English football) players
Isthmian League players
Belgian First Division A players
Belgian First Division B players
Expatriate footballers in Belgium
English expatriate sportspeople in Belgium
Association football coaches
Cambridge United F.C. non-playing staff