Darren Malcolm Eadie (born 10 June 1975) is an English football manager and 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 ...

, who is joint-manager of

Leiston Leiston ( ) is an English town in the East Suffolk non-metropolitan district of Suffolk, near Saxmundham and Aldeburgh, about from the North Sea coast, north-east of Ipswich and north-east of London. The town had a population of 5,508 at th ...

. As a player, he made his name as a pacy left-sided midfielder with

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 ...

before later joining

Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city lies on the River Soar and close to the eastern end of the National ...

. He featured in both the

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 Fo ...

and Football League for both teams. He was capped seven times by

England U21 The England national under-21 football team, also known as England under-21s or England U21(s), is considered to be the feeder team for the England national football team. This team is for England players aged under 21 at the start of the calen ...

, scoring twice before being called up to the full

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

team in 1997. He was part of England's squad that took part in the Tournoi de France, where he was a substitute, and did not go on to win a full cap.

Early life

Born in Chippenham, Eadie attended the Corsham School in Wiltshire.

Club career

Eadie was a product of Norwich City's youth system and made his debut in a

UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay ...

match against Vitesse Arnhem in September 1993. By the time they were relegated at the end of the following season, he was Norwich's regular left winger. Even though he was unable to inspire Norwich to a return to the Premier League, his form for the club was such that his name was being linked with a number of Premier League clubs by 1997, although he would ultimately remain at Carrow Road for some three years more. He missed the start of the 1999–2000 season through a knee injury, and in December 1999, as a result of Norwich's financial problems and risk or relegation, he was sold to Leicester City F.C. for almost £3 million, finally giving him the chance to establish himself as a Premier League player. Eadie was to only play a total 40 matches for Leicester, this number being cut short due to repeated knee injuries, and he retired in the summer of 2003, aged 28. He was cup-tied for their victory in the

2000 Football League Cup Final The 2000 Football League Cup Final was played between Leicester City, in their third final appearance in four years, and First Division side Tranmere Rovers at Wembley Stadium on 27 February 2000. It was the 34th and last League Cup Final to be ...

International career

Between 1994 and 1997, Eadie made seven appearances for the

team, scoring two goals. In the summer of 1997, Eadie was called up to the

squad for the Tournoi de France.

Managerial career

In March 2020 Eadie was appointed joint manager of

alongside Chris Wigger although Chris does most of the work.

Personal life

In 2002, Eadie was voted an inaugural member of the Norwich City Hall of Fame, which was established to celebrate the club's centenary. In an interview for the Norwich City matchday programme on 13 August 2005, Eadie stated that he had found retirement difficult, particularly as many of his friends were still playing professional football. It was reported in July 2012 that he had fought severe depression and suffered panic attacks.

Honours

Individual * First Division PFA Team of the Year: 1996–97

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Eadie, Darren Living people 1975 births People from Chippenham English footballers Association football midfielders England under-21 international footballers Premier League players Norwich City F.C. players Leicester City F.C. players English football managers Leiston F.C. managers