Lee Cattermole

At 36 years old, Lee Cattermole has this physical status:

Lee Barry Cattermole (born 21 March 1988) is an English professional footballer who plays for the Dutch club VVV-Venlo as a central midfielder. Catole, an England youth product, has a reputation as a tough-tackling midfielder due to his lengthy criminal record.

He began his playing career at Middlesbrough in 2005, progressing through the club's academy.

He made his debut for the club in January 2006 and was the youngest man to captain Middlesbrough at 18 years and 47 days, scoring four goals.

In July 2008, he joined Wigan Athletic.

Cattermole made a name for himself in Wigan by winning 35 games from 2008 to 2009.

He joined Sunderland in August 2009 after attracting attention from other Premier League clubs.

Despite a few injuries early in his career, coach Steve Bruce selected him as captain for the 2010–11 season, a position he would retain for three seasons until Paolo di Canio gave John O'Shea the captaincy before the 2013-14 season. Cattermole also starred England under the age of 16, 17, under-17, under-18, under-19, and under-21.

Personal life

Cattermole was banned from serving three years in the borough of Stockton in December 2008. After being arrested for disorder after a night out in Yarm, he was added to the PubWatch blacklist of troublemakers. Around 11:40 p.m., police were called by door workers, and Cathosole was detained. Following a unanimous vote by the members of PubWatch in March 2011, Cattermole's ban would be extended to December 2012. Catole refused to comment on these subjects.

Cattermole and then-teammate Nicklas Bendtner were arrested on December 6, 2011 in Newcastle, just south of St James' Park, after a night out with colleagues. The trial at Newcastle Magistrates Court was postponed until April 16, 2012. Charges against Bendtner were subsequently dropped. Catharpole paid more than £4,000 in damages as a result of a conditional warning.

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Club career

Cattermole made his debut in the Tyne-Teees derby against Newcastle United on January 2nd, 2006, playing the full 90 minutes in a match that concluded 2–2 for the England youth international in which the England youth international received the Man of the Match award. "We wanted people to stand up and be counted," boss Steve McClaren said later.

After losing by 4–0 at home to Aston Villa, he was caught on camera in tears and had to be consoled by captain Gareth Southgate. However, the team won seven out of their next eight games, as well as defeating Chelsea 3–0, the team's second consecutive loss of the season. Cattermole scored his first league goal for Middlesbrough on 2 April, a 1–0 victory over Manchester City, and he played for Middlesbrough in the 2006 UEFA Cup Final.

Cattermole was Middlesbrough's youngest-ever captain, aged 18 years and 47 days, when he skipped the team's 1–0 loss to Fulham on May 7, 2006. Colin Cooper, Middlesbrough's oldest player, came on as a substitute, and Cattermole generously gave the captain's armband, without warning, to Cooper, who was playing his last game before retirement.

Cattermole, a poet from the United Kingdom, agreed a new four-year contract on October 20th to keep him at Middlesbrough until 2010.

Cattermole left Wigan Athletic on a three-year contract, worth £3.5 million on the 29th of July 2008. In a 2–1 loss, he made his West Ham United debut against them. In a 4–1 League Cup victory over Ipswich Town on September 24, Cattermole scored his first goal for Wigan. He scored his first league goal against Blackburn Rovers on December 13, 2008. In the home loss to West Ham, he was given a straight red card for his second of the season. Despite being tied to a three-year contract, Cattermole's stellar season with Wigan culminated in him being a target for other clubs.

Cattermole had performed a medical at Sunderland and charged for a £6 million fee on August 12, 2009. The midfielder joined the club on a four-year deal, reuniting with Wigan coach Steve Bruce. In a 1–0 victory over Bolton Wanderers, he earned the Man of the Match award in Sunderland. Despite missing several games due to a heel injury, he returned to action in the next few games of the season. In the victory over Liverpool on October 17, he sustained his knee and was suspended for a year. Jordan Henderson came back as a second-half replacement for Jordan Henderson in a 2–0 loss to Aston Villa on December 15th. In the 4–3 loss to Manchester City, he continued to play the whole match and captained the team.

After Lorik Cana's departure, Cattermole was named as the replacement captain by boss Bruce on the eve of the 2010–11 season. He was also given the vacant number 6 shirt. In the first game of the season against Birmingham City for a second bookable offence, he was issued a red card. Later, Bruce referred to Anthony Taylor as "out of his depth." Cattermole was involved in Sunderland's 3–0 away victory over Chelsea on Saturday, but the victory was pivotal in the victory. He then received the Man of the Match award for his West Ham home appearance, a match in which Sunderland defeated 1–0. Catole's tough tackling style has put him into a slew of referee situations. Bruce, who endorsed Cattermole as the club's captain, said that his discipline record must be improved. Cattermole had a tough season this season, with 24 appearances in total (two more than the previous season).

In the first two games against Liverpool and Newcastle, Catole remained captain at the start of the 2011–12 season, receiving yellow cards. In a loss to Manchester United, he was immediately out of favour, with his next full match not coming until October 5th. Following Bruce's dismissal and the recruitment of Martin O'Neill as his replacement, it was predicted that Cattermole would lose the captaincy, particularly after he and Nicklas Bendtner were arrested for reportedly damaging cars in Newcastle city centre. However, he led the team in his first appearance under O'Neill, winning by 3–2 at QPR. In their 1–0 victory over Manchester City on New Years Day 2012 and their 4–1 victory over Wigan two days later, Cattermole had arguably two of his best performances for the Black Cats. "Well done, absolutely brilliant," O'Neill told his captain after winning over Manchester City. You've got a lion's heart. In the FA Cup fifth-round match against Arsenal on February 18, the skipper put in another strong defensive showing. When they had possession, they pressed the Arsenal players, making mistakes, and with counter-attacking football, the Black Cats defeated 2–0.

Cattermole was arrested in the first minute of the Tyne-Wear derby in 2012 for a challenge to Newcastle's Cheick Tioté. After addressing referee Mike Dean, he was given a red card at the end of the match. Catole's sending off was described as "foolish," according to Martin O'Neill, Newcastle were "luck" to finish with 11 players. For the incident, Cattermole received a four-match suspension. According to sources, Cattermole could be barred from the captaincy for his conduct at the Tyne-Wear Derby match, but O'Neill denied this. Cattermole returned to Sunderland on March 27th in an FA Cup quarter-final replay against Everton, losing 2–0. Cattermole had been booked 32 times and received four red cards in all competitions during his 73 games for Sunderland.

Cattermole was recalled as captain by John O'Shea and his number 6 shirt was given to new signing Cabral at the start of the 2013-14 season. The number 33 jersey was assigned to Catole. In a 5–1 loss to Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane on April 7, 2014, he scored his first league goal for Sunderland.

In a 2–2 draw against West Brom, Cattermole earned his number 6 shirt at the start of the 2014–15 season, scoring Sunderland's first goal of the season, with a 25-yard screamer that he referred to as 'the best goal he's ever scored.' Cattermole agreed to a five-year deal with Sunderland on July 2, 2015, extending his involvement with the club until 2021.

Cattermole captained Sunderland against Leicester City at the King Power Stadium on the first day of the 2015-16 season, but Cattermole was forced to leave him after 30 minutes, with his team losing 3–0 down and Cattermole forfeiting a penalty. Sunderland is expected to lose by 4–2.

Cattermole returned to the first team late in the season after suffering from injuries during the 2016–17 season, earning acclaim from Sunderland fans for his appearance against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium on May 16, 2017, defeating the Black Cats 2–0 due to Alexis Sánchez's brace. Catole was relegated to Sunderland after the club finished last in the top flight on only 24 points, snapping their ten-year tenure in the top flight.

Cattermole's penalty was saved by Craig MacGillivray in a 5–4 loss on penalties for Sunderland after a 2–2 draw after extra time on March 31, 2019. Cattermole will leave Sunderland after ten years with the club, and has been confirmed on July 1, 2019. "It's the right time to face a new challenge," Cattermole said in a tweet. He appeared in court with Ethio's VV-Venlo in August.

Cattermole moved to Dutch football after signing a year with Eredivise side VVV-Venlo, joining them on a free transfer on August 22.

Cattermole was released on May 27, 2020, shortly after the season was called off due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he was released on the grounds that his deal had ended and the club decided not to renew it.

International career

Catole was given his first call-up to the England under-21 squad for the October 2006 play-offs against Germany. On June 15, 2009, Cattermole scored his first international goal and the first goal of the U-21 European Championships. Gabriel Agbonlahor, an Aston Villa striker, was the goalkeeper. When they came from behind to defeat Macedonia U21s in a 2–1 win in the 83rd minute, Cattermole came from behind to defeat Macedonia U21s, scoring his third goal in an England shirt.

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