David Seaman facts for kids
Seaman in 2012
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | David Andrew Seaman | ||
| Date of birth | 19 September 1963 | ||
| Place of birth | Rotherham, England | ||
| Height | 6 feet 4 inches (1.93 m) | ||
| Playing position | Goalkeeper | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1981–1982 | Leeds United | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1982–1984 | Peterborough United | 91 | (0) |
| 1984–1986 | Birmingham City | 75 | (0) |
| 1986–1990 | Queens Park Rangers | 141 | (0) |
| 1990–2003 | Arsenal | 405 | (0) |
| 2003–2004 | Manchester City | 19 | (0) |
| Total | 731 | (0) | |
| National team | |||
| 1984–1986 | England U21 | 10 | (0) |
| 1987–1992 | England B | 6 | (0) |
| 1988–2002 | England | 75 | (0) |
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David Andrew Seaman was born on September 19, 1963. He is a famous English former footballer who played as a goalkeeper. His career lasted from 1981 to 2004. He is best known for his long time playing for Arsenal.
David Seaman played 75 games for the England team. This makes him the country's second-most capped goalkeeper, after Peter Shilton. In 1997, he received the MBE award for his great contributions to football.
Seaman started his career in the Football League with clubs like Peterborough United and Birmingham City. He also played for Queens Park Rangers. The most successful part of his career was when he was the goalkeeper for Arsenal and England in the 1990s and early 2000s.
While at Arsenal, he helped the team win many titles. These included three league championships (1991, 1998, 2002) and four FA Cups (1993, 1998, 2002, 2003). He also won the League Cup in 1993 and the European Cup Winners Cup in 1994. During this time, he also played for England in the 1998 and 2002 FIFA World Cups. He also played in the Euro 96 and Euro 2000 tournaments.
After leaving Arsenal, he played for Manchester City in the Premier League. He stopped playing football in 2004 because of a shoulder injury. In 2012, he became a goalkeeping coach for Combined Counties League club Wembley.
Many people think Seaman is one of the best English goalkeepers ever. He was known for being a great shot-stopper. In 1996, he was ranked second in the world for goalkeepers. In 2013, he was called "the greatest goalkeeper in Arsenal's history." David Seaman was also easy to spot on the field because of his moustache and his ponytail hairstyle.
One of his most famous moments was a fantastic save against Paul Peschisolido of Sheffield United in the 2002–03 FA Cup semi-final. This save is often called one of the best ever. However, he also had some tough moments. He let in a last-minute goal from far away in the 1995 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup Final against Nayim of Real Zaragoza. Another memorable moment was when Ronaldinho scored from a free kick against him in the 2002 FIFA World Cup quarter-final. Seaman is left-handed, but he threw the ball with his right arm and kicked with his right foot.
Contents
Club Career Highlights
Starting Out
David Seaman was born in Rotherham, England. He started his football journey at Leeds United, the team he supported as a boy. However, he was not kept by the manager there.
In August 1982, Seaman moved to Peterborough United for £4,000. This was a Fourth Division club. He started to show his skills there.
Two years later, in October 1984, Birmingham City paid £100,000 for him. They were in the Second Division and got promoted that season. But they went down again the next year. Seaman then moved to Queens Park Rangers in August 1986 for £225,000. Playing for this bigger club, he was called up to the England national football team for the first time in November 1988. At QPR, he was coached by Bob Wilson, who later worked with him at Arsenal.
Time at Arsenal
In 1990, Arsenal wanted to sign Seaman. They had won the league in 1989. Arsenal manager George Graham paid £1.3 million for Seaman. This was a record fee for a goalkeeper in Britain at the time.
Seaman's time at Arsenal was very successful. In the 1990–91 season, he played every game. Arsenal won the league title and only let in 18 goals.
Arsenal won both the FA Cup and the League Cup in 1993. A year later, they won the European Cup Winners' Cup. In the League Cup, Seaman saved three penalties in a shootout against Millwall to help his team win.
In 1995, Arsenal almost won the Cup Winners' Cup again. Seaman became known for saving penalties. He saved three penalties in a semi-final shoot-out against U.C. Sampdoria, even though he had two cracked ribs. Arsenal lost in the final to Real Zaragoza. Their player, Nayim, scored a goal from 40 yards over Seaman in the last minute of extra time.
In August 1996, Arsène Wenger became Arsenal's new manager. Wenger thought highly of Seaman. In 1998, Seaman helped the team win both the Premier League and the FA Cup. This was called a "double" win.
In 1998–99, Seaman played all 38 league games. Arsenal only let in 17 goals. They almost won the league again and reached the FA Cup semi-finals. The next season, Seaman reached the 2000 UEFA Cup Final. Arsenal drew 0–0 but lost on penalties.
In 2002, Seaman won the Premier League and the FA Cup again. This was his second "double" with the team. A great moment that season was when Seaman saved a penalty from Gareth Barry as Arsenal won 2–1 against Aston Villa.
The 2002–03 season was Seaman's last at Arsenal. It ended very well. He saved a penalty from Freddie Kanoute in a draw. In the FA Cup, he made an amazing save against Sheffield United's Paul Peschisolido in the semi-finals. Many people, including former goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel, called it "the best save I've ever seen." This match was Seaman's 1,000th professional game.
Seaman then became the captain for the 2003 FA Cup Final. He kept a clean sheet as Arsenal beat Southampton 1–0. His last act with Arsenal was lifting the FA Cup. This was his ninth major trophy with the team. Seaman played more games in goal for Arsenal than anyone else. He is also second in all-time Premier League appearances for Arsenal.
Manchester City and Retirement
After leaving Arsenal, Seaman joined Kevin Keegan at Manchester City in 2003. However, his time there was short. He announced his retirement in January 2004 at age 40 due to a shoulder injury. His last action at City was helping Keegan choose his replacement, David James.
In 2005, Seaman was asked to play in an FA Cup game for Walsall. But he had to say no because of his retirement insurance for his shoulder injury.
International Career
Seaman played for England for 15 years in a row, which was a national record.
He first played for England in November 1988 in a friendly game against Saudi Arabia. He was chosen for the 1990 FIFA World Cup but had to leave the squad due to an injury.
Seaman became England's main goalkeeper when Terry Venables became manager. He played every minute of every game during Euro 96. Seaman saved two penalties in that tournament. One was from Scotland's Gary McAllister in a group match. The other was from Miguel Ángel Nadal in a shootout against Spain in the quarter-finals. England lost in the semi-finals to Germany on penalties. Seaman was named in the UEFA "Team of the Tournament" and was also named "Player of the Tournament."
He remained the first-choice goalkeeper for the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France. England reached the round of 16 but lost to Argentina on penalties. Kevin Keegan chose him for UEFA Euro 2000. Seaman played in two games but got injured before the third game and was replaced. England lost that match and left the tournament early.
Seaman was part of Sven-Göran Eriksson's 2002 FIFA World Cup squad. He played every game as England reached the quarter-finals. He helped England beat Argentina 1-0 in the group stage. In the quarter-final against Brazil, Seaman was caught off his line by Ronaldinho's long-range free kick. England lost 2-1, and Seaman blamed himself for the goal.
This goal led to questions about whether Seaman should still be England's number one. His last game for England was in October 2002 against Macedonia. He let in a goal directly from a corner kick. After this, Eriksson chose David James as England's main goalkeeper.
Life After Football
After retiring from playing, David Seaman started working on coaching. He also appeared on British television shows. He had a small role in a BBC film called My Summer with Des. He was also a spokesman for Yorkshire Tea.
In December 2004, he took part in Strictly Ice Dancing, an ice skating show. He joined with only eight days to prepare and won the competition! He returned to the ice for another show, Dancing on Ice, in 2006 and finished in fourth place. He has also appeared on All Star Family Fortunes.
Seaman hosts a "Safe Hands" charity golf event every year. He has also released two football DVDs. He has played in all six Soccer Aid charity matches for England.
In June 2012, Seaman became a goalkeeping coach for Wembley for their 2012–13 FA Cup journey. This was part of a TV show. Other famous players joined the team, and former England manager Terry Venables was an advisor.
In 2019 and 2020, Seaman was in the ITV show Harry's Heroes. This show followed former England footballers trying to get fit again for a game against German legends.
In 2021, he started his own podcast series called Seaman Says. The podcast followed England during UEFA Euro 2020 and continued for a second series.
In October 2022, Seaman and his wife Frankie Poultney appeared on The Masked Dancer as "Pillar and Post". They were revealed in the fifth episode.
Personal Life
David Seaman has been married three times. He married his first wife, Sandra, in 1985. He then married Debbie Rodgers in 1998. On February 7, 2015, Seaman married his third wife, Frankie Poultney. She is a professional skater from Dancing on Ice. They met in 2008. David Seaman has four children: two sons from his first marriage and a son and daughter from his second marriage.
Seaman's autobiography, called Safe Hands, was released in 2000.
Honours
Arsenal
- Football League First Division: 1990–91
- Premier League: 1997–98, 2001–02
- FA Cup: 1992–93, 1997–98, 2001–02, 2002–03
- Football League Cup: 1992–93
- FA Charity/Community Shield: 1991 (shared), 1998, 2002
- European Cup Winners' Cup: 1993–94
- European Super Cup runner-up: 1994
- UEFA Cup runner-up: 1999–2000
Individual
- Premier League Player of the Month: April 1995
- UEFA European Championship Team of the Tournament: 1996
- PFA Team of the Year: 1990–91 First Division, 1996–97 Premier League
- Ballon d'Or Nominated: 1998
- Premier League 10 Seasons Awards (1992–2002):
- Domestic Team of the Decade
- Goalkeeper with most clean sheets (130)
- Most Premier League clean sheets: 1993–94, 1998–99
- English Football Hall of Fame: 2016
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