Lee Bell (musician)
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Lee Bell (born 26 January 1983) 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 ...
. He is currently manager of
Crewe Alexandra Crewe Alexandra Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Crewe, Cheshire, that competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Railwaymen' because of ...
. He began his career at Crewe Alexandra, also playing for
Burton Albion Burton Albion Football Club is a professional association football club in the town of Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The club moved its home groun ...
,
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 ...
and
Macclesfield Town Macclesfield Town Football Club was an English professional association football, football club based in Macclesfield, Cheshire, that was liquidation, wound-up after a High Court of Justice, High Court ruling on 16 September 2020. Initially kno ...
, before returning in succession to Crewe, Burton Albion and latterly Macclesfield Town on loan from Burton. Bell retired from playing in the summer of 2015, aged 32, and rejoined Crewe as under-18s coach, later becoming under-18s manager (January 2017), under-23s manager (March 2022), assistant first team manager (April 2022), and then first team manager (November 2022).


Playing career


Crewe Alexandra

Bell was born in
Alsager Alsager ( ) is a town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East in Cheshire, England. It is located to the north-west of Stoke-on-Trent and east of Crewe. The town's population was 13,389 at the 2021 census. ''The Mere'' is a ...
,
Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county t ...
. He is a product of the
Crewe Alexandra Crewe Alexandra Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Crewe, Cheshire, that competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Railwaymen' because of ...
academy system, having signed schoolboy terms with the club in 1997, on the same day as David Vaughan. In January 2001 he had a training ground bust-up with
Colin Cramb Colin Cramb (born 23 June 1974 in Lanark) is a Scottish former professional footballer and coach who played as a forward from 1991 and 2009. He notably played for Hamilton Academical, Doncaster Rovers, Bristol City and Stirling Albion. Cramb ...
, who subsequently left
Gresty Road Gresty Road or the Alexandra Stadium, currently known as the Mornflake Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is a football stadium in Crewe, Cheshire, England. The home ground of Crewe Alexandra, it has an all-seated capacity of 10,153. History Cre ...
and indeed the country. Despite this, Bell was awarded a professional contract in February 2001. He made his debut for the first team, coming on as a substitute on the opening day of the 2002–03 season against
Northampton Town Northampton Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Northampton, England. The team plays in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1897, the club competed in the Midland ...
. A week later to his debut, Bell scored his first professional goal, in a 2–0 win over
Colchester United Colchester United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Colchester, Essex, England. The team competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1937, the club spent its earl ...
. His playing time at Crewe soon earned him a new contract in February 2003. He made 22 appearances in the 2002–03 promotion campaign, mostly as a substitute. However, in the 2003–04 season, Bell lost his first team place following the arrival of
Justin Cochrane Justin Vincent Cochrane (born 26 January 1982) is a former professional footballer who played as a centre-back or defensive midfielder. Born in England, he represented the Antigua and Barbuda national team at international level. He is now He ...
and joined
Football Conference The National League (named Vanarama National League for sponsorship reasons) is an association football league in England consisting of three divisions, the National League, National League North, and National League South. It was called the ...
side,
Shrewsbury Shrewsbury ( , also ) is a market town, civil parish, and the county town of Shropshire, England, on the River Severn, north-west of London; at the 2021 census, it had a population of 76,782. The town's name can be pronounced as either 'Sh ...
on loan in October 2003, but an injury restricted his opportunities and he returned to Crewe in January 2004. Bell established himself in the first team in December 2004, starting 18 times in the remainder of the 2004–05 season, and signed a new two-year contract in June 2005. After falling down the pecking order at the start of the 2005–06 season, Bell joined
Burton Albion Burton Albion Football Club is a professional association football club in the town of Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The club moved its home groun ...
on a one-month loan in October 2005, which was extended for a further month. After a two-month loan spell at Burton Albion, Bell returned to Crewe and made 18 appearances in the 2005–06 season, scoring two more goals against
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
Brighton & Hove Albion Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club (), commonly referred to simply as Brighton, is an English professional football club based in the city of Brighton and Hove. They compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league ...
. A broken foot and an ankle injury caused Bell to miss the start of the 2006–07 season. After being limited to one first team appearance, he had a request to leave Crewe granted in January 2007, and joined Burton Albion on a contract until the end of the season. After making twelve appearances for the club, Bell was released.


Mansfield Town

After leaving Burton Albion, Bell went on a trial at
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 ...
. Following a successful trial, Bell joined Mansfield Town in August 2007. Bell made his Mansfield Town debut in the opening game of the season, in a 1–1 draw against
Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings whi ...
and then scored his first Mansfield Town goal, in a 2–1 loss against
Morecambe Morecambe ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the City of Lancaster district in Lancashire, England. It is in Morecambe Bay on the Irish Sea. Name The first use of the name was by John Whitaker in his ''History of Manchester'' (1771), w ...
on 12 February 2008. He made 27 appearances for Mansfield in the 2007–08 season, before suffering a serious knee injury in February 2008 that ruled him out for most of the rest of the season.


Macclesfield Town

After Mansfield Town were relegated to 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 ...
at the end of the 2007–08 season, Bell was released by the club, and joined
Macclesfield Town Macclesfield Town Football Club was an English professional association football, football club based in Macclesfield, Cheshire, that was liquidation, wound-up after a High Court of Justice, High Court ruling on 16 September 2020. Initially kno ...
on a one-year contract. After being on the bench in the opening game of the season against Shrewsbury Town, Bell made his Macclesfield Town debut, in a 2–0 loss against
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 16 August 2008. Four months on 12 December 2008, Bell scored his first goal for the club, in a 4–2 win over
Chesterfield Chesterfield may refer to: Places Canada * Rural Municipality of Chesterfield No. 261, Saskatchewan * Chesterfield Inlet, Nunavut United Kingdom * Chesterfield, Derbyshire, a market town in England ** Chesterfield (UK Parliament constitue ...
. He impressed at the club in 2008–09, making a total of 47 appearances, and signed a one-year extension to his contract in June 2009. He played 44 games in 2009–10, where he scored two goals against
Dagenham & Redbridge Dagenham & Redbridge Football Club is a professional association football club based in Dagenham, Greater London, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. Often known simply as Dag ...
and
Barnet Barnet may refer to: People *Barnet (surname) * Barnet (given name) Places United Kingdom *Chipping Barnet or High Barnet, commonly known as Barnet, one of three focal towns of the borough below. *East Barnet, a district of the borough below; an ...
. As a result, Bell was voted the club's Player of the Year. However, Bell was released by the club, along with ten other players, in May 2010.


Crewe Alexandra (second spell)

Bell was re-signed by Crewe Alexandra on a two-year contract in May 2010, with manager
Dario Gradi Dario Gradi, MBE (born 8 July 1941) is an Italian-English former amateur football player, coach and manager. He was associated for more than 36 years with Crewe Alexandra, where he was variously manager, director of football and director of the ...
looking to add experience to the squad. Upon re-signing for Crewe, Bell revealed he took a pay-cut, in order to join the club despite other interest. Bell's first appearance since leaving the club three years earlier came in the opening game of the season, when they lost 1–0 to
Hereford United Hereford United Football Club was an association football club based in Hereford, England. They played at Edgar Street for their entire history. They were nicknamed 'The Whites' or 'The Lilywhites', after their predominantly white kit, or 'The ...
. During the
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 ...
season, Bell was one of three regular club captains, along with
David Artell David John Artell (born 22 November 1980) is a professional football manager and former player who most recently was manager of club Crewe Alexandra. He began his career as a centre back with Rotherham United, as the "Millers" won successive p ...
and Ashley Westwood. Bell scored his first goal for the club and set up the fifth goal for
Clayton Donaldson Clayton Andrew Donaldson (born 7 February 1984) is a professional footballer who plays as a striker for club Gainsborough Trinity. He has played in the English Football League and Scottish Premier League for Hull City, Hibernian, Crewe Alexa ...
in a 5–5 draw thriller against Chesterfield on 2 October 2010. However, Bell was involved in a confrontation with the club's supporters at the end of the game, an incident which caused Bell to apologise. He went on to make 44 league appearances for the club during the 2011–12 season, having missed one game due to suspension after accumulating five
yellow cards Yellow card may refer to: * Yellow card (sport), shown in many sports after a rules infraction or, by analogy, a serious warning in other areas * Yellowcard, an American alternative rock band * Yellow Card Scheme, a United Kingdom initiative conce ...
. Ahead of the 2011–12 season, Bell said he was willing to share the captaincy with Artell and Westwood for the second time. In January 2012, Bell suffered a groin injury. He also required surgery for a hernia. In a draw against
Crawley Town Crawley Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Crawley, West Sussex, England. The club was founded as Crawley Football Club in 1896, changed its name to Crawley Town Football Club in 1958. The team co ...
on 2 April 2012, Bell conceded a penalty when he handled in the area. Crawley Town successfully converted to make it 1-1. Bell went on to make thirty appearances for the club. He helped the club to reach the play-offs in 2011–12, and was a last second substitute as the Railwaymen secured victory in the
League Two The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football Lea ...
play-off final at
Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...
. However, he was released by new boss
Steve Davis Steve Davis (born 22 August 1957) is an English retired professional snooker player who is currently a Sports commentator, commentator, musician, DJ, and author. He is best known for dominating professional snooker during the 1980s, when he rea ...
a few days later, and was heavily linked with a move to nearby
Port Vale Port Vale Football Club are a professional football club based in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England, which compete in . Vale are the only English Football League club not to be named after a place; their name being a reference to the valley o ...
.


Burton Albion

After leaving Crewe Alexandra for the second time, Bell went on trial at
Burton Albion Burton Albion Football Club is a professional association football club in the town of Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The club moved its home groun ...
, linking with them for the third time of his career. Bell was then involved in a pre-season friendly against
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 ...
, where he impressed. Following his trial, Bell signed a one-year contract with Burton. Bell re-debut for Burton Albion for the third time in the first round of League Cup, in a 2–2 draw against
Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games at ...
and played 120 minutes. Bell was the only Burton Albion's player to be missed, as they beat them 5–4 in the penalty shoot-out. In the next game in the opening game of the season against
Rotherham United Rotherham United Football Club, nicknamed The Millers, is a professional football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The club's colours were initially yellow and black, but changed to red and white around 1 ...
, Bell started in the match, but was sent-off in the 62nd minute after a second bookable offense, in a 3–0 loss. After serving a suspension, Bell was able to make amends when he scored his first Burton Albion goal of the season, in a 3–1 win over
York City York City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of York, North Yorkshire, England. As of the 2022–23 season, the team compete in the National League, at the fifth tier of the English football league sys ...
on 19 September 2012. In the second round of the FA Cup, Bell captained Burton Albion for the first time against his former club, Crewe. Weeks later, on 29 December 2012, Bell scored his second goal for the club and setting up the second goal of the game, in a 2–0 win over
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 ...
. Bell later added two more goals later in the season against
Exeter City Exeter City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Exeter, Devon, England. The team play in , the third tier of the English football league system. Known as "the Grecians", the origin of their nickname is subject to ...
and Dagenham & Redbridge. During the season, Bell, who had captain the team for a number of games during the season, helped the club to their highest ever finish in the football league. Their 4th place in
League Two The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football Lea ...
saw them face
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 ...
in the playoffs. Bell, however, received a four-game suspension for a red card given towards the end of the season and was unavailable for the final, should Burton Albion have reached it. After the club were unsuccessful in the play-offs, Bell made 43 appearances in his first full season at the club. Bell won the club's Player of the Year award and was rewarded with a new one-year contract in April 2013. In the 2013–14 season, Bell was appointed as the new club captain. However, Bell was in and out of the starting eleven during the season, often featuring on the substitute bench. Later in the season, Bell scored his first goal of the season, in a 3–0 win over
Hartlepool United Hartlepool United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Hartlepool, County Durham, England. The team competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. They were founded in 1908 as Hartle ...
on 19 April 2014. For the second time running. Bell helped the club reach the play-offs by finishing sixth place and ultimately reaching the
final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
, which they lost 1–0 against
Fleetwood Town Fleetwood Town Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Fleetwood, Lancashire. Established in 1997, the current Fleetwood Town F.C. is the fourth incarnation of the club; it was originally formed in ...
. After making 34 appearances for the club, Bell was once again rewarded with a one-year contract extension for the second time running. In the 2014–15 season, Bell missed the start of the season, due to a knee injury, which he sustained in the play-offs final three month earlier. After making a brief return against
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 ...
, Bell find himself competing with newly signing John Mousinho over the starting eleven squad. Bell scored his first Burton Albion goal of the season, in a 4–3 win over
Carlisle United Carlisle United Football Club ( , ) is a professional association football club based in Carlisle, Cumbria, England. The team compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. They have played their home games at Brunton Par ...
on 21 October 2014. Following
Gary Rowett Gary Rowett (born 6 March 1974) is an English professional football manager and former player, who is currently manager of Championship club Millwall. As a player, he was a defender, and played in the Premier League for Everton, Derby County, ...
's departure to
Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. Since 2011, the first te ...
,
Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink Jerrel Floyd "Jimmy" Hasselbaink ( ; born 27 March 1972) is a Dutch professional football manager and former player who was most recently the manager of League One club Burton Albion. Born in Suriname, he and his family would later move to th ...
was appointed new manager of the club. Under his management, Bell was rarely used in the first team, making only one substitute appearance, and was informed by Hasselbaink that he would not feature in the team and he should look for a move.


Macclesfield Town (loan) and retirement

On transfer deadline day 2 February 2015, Bell returned to Macclesfield Town on loan until the end of the season. Bell's first appearance for Macclesfield Town since leaving the club five years earlier came on 7 February 2015, playing 90 minutes, in a 3–2 win over
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 ...
. Bell then scored three goals in three consecutive matches between 6 April 2015 and 18 April 2015 against
Wrexham Wrexham ( ; cy, Wrecsam; ) is a city and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire in England. Historically in the count ...
Forest Green Rovers Forest Green Rovers Football Club are a professional football club based in Nailsworth, Gloucestershire, England. The team compete in , the third tier of the English football league system, and have played their home games at The New Lawn since ...
, and
Dartford Dartford is the principal town in the Borough of Dartford, Kent, England. It is located south-east of Central London and is situated adjacent to the London Borough of Bexley to its west. To its north, across the Thames estuary, is Thurrock in ...
. Upon returning to his parent club, Bell was released by the club.


Coaching roles


Crewe Alexandra

Bell retired from playing in the summer of 2015, aged 32, and rejoined Crewe as under-18s coach, and was promoted to under-18s manager in January 2017 during a coaching reshuffle following the appointment of
David Artell David John Artell (born 22 November 1980) is a professional football manager and former player who most recently was manager of club Crewe Alexandra. He began his career as a centre back with Rotherham United, as the "Millers" won successive p ...
as new first team manager. In March 2022, Artell reshuffled his team again and Bell was appointed under-23s manager, before being appointed the assistant manager to
Alex Morris Alex Morris (born Alexander Corfield Morris, 4 October 1977 in Barnsley, West Yorkshire, England) is an English former first-class cricketer. He was a left-handed batsman and a right-arm medium pace bowler, who, during his eight years in first ...
when he became permanent manager on 28 April 2022. On 4 November 2022, Bell was appointed Crewe Alexandra's interim manager after Morris stepped down for compassionate reasons to become assistant manager. On 1 December 2022, Bell was given the job on a permanent basis.


Playing career statistics

;Notes: *
EFL Trophy The English Football League Trophy, known for sponsorship purposes as the Papa Johns Trophy after restaurant chain Papa John's Pizza, is an annual English association football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL Le ...
& play-off results included in totals.


Managerial career statistics


Personal life

Bell was columnist for the ''
Burton Mail The ''Burton Mail'' (formerly the ''Burton Daily Mail'') is a British daily newspaper published each weekday and on Saturdays. It covers the East Staffordshire, South Derbyshire and North West Leicestershire areas. In the period December 2010 t ...
''.


Honours

Individual *
Macclesfield Town Macclesfield Town Football Club was an English professional association football, football club based in Macclesfield, Cheshire, that was liquidation, wound-up after a High Court of Justice, High Court ruling on 16 September 2020. Initially kno ...
Player of the Year: 2009–10 *
Burton Albion Burton Albion Football Club is a professional association football club in the town of Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The club moved its home groun ...
Player of the Year:
2012–13 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 ...
Crewe Alexandra *
Football League Second Division The Football League Second Division was the second level division in the English football league system between 1892 and 1992. Following the foundation of the FA Premier League, the Football League divisions were renumbered and the third ti ...
runner-up: 2002–03 *
EFL League Two The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football Lea ...
play-off winner:
2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bell, Lee 1983 births People from Alsager Living people English men's footballers Men's association football midfielders Crewe Alexandra F.C. players Shrewsbury Town F.C. players Burton Albion F.C. players Mansfield Town F.C. players Macclesfield Town F.C. players English Football League players National League (English football) players Footballers from Cheshire English football managers Crewe Alexandra F.C. managers English Football League managers