Aaron Cresswell
Aaron William Cresswell (born 15 December 1989) is an English professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Premier League club West Ham United and the England national team. Cresswell made his first-team debut for Tranmere Rovers in 2008 and made 70 league appearances for the club before signing for Ipswich Town in 2011, following a tribunal to agree the value of the transfer. He made 138 appearances for Ipswich scoring six goals, before joining West Ham United in July 2014. He made his international debut for England in November 2016 in a friendly against Spain  at Wembley Stadium. Early life. Cresswell was born in Liverpool, Merseyside. Club career. Tranmere Rovers. Cresswell started his career with Liverpool, working his way through the academy before being released at the age of 15. Following his release from Liverpool he joined the Tranmere Rovers youth system before signing his first professional contract in July 2008. He made his first-team debut on 1 November 2008 in a League One match with Milton Keynes Dons which ended in a 1–0 loss. Although he was offered a new contract by the club at the end of the 2010–11 season, Tranmere manager  Les Parry expected Cresswell to turn down the contract offer saying "Aaron has got four or five Championship clubs trying to sign him; if I had to guess I would say Aaron might be leaving us this summer." Ipswich Town. In June 2011, the media reported that Ipswich Town had won the race to sign the player beating the likes of West Brom and Doncaster Rovers for his signature, although the clubs had failed to agree a fee and resolution of this was expected to go to a transfer tribunal. A three-year contract was later announced to have been  signed. He made his debut for the club on 6 August 2011, starting in a 0–3 away win over Bristol City at Ashton Gate. He scored his first goal for the club on 17 March, netting a late winner in a 3–2 home win over Peterborough United at Portman Road. He made 46 appearances in all competitions during his first season at Portman Road, scoring once. He won the club's Player of the Year award for the 2011–12 season. In the summer of 2012, fine performances for Ipswich Town, led to Cresswell being linked with Premier League clubs such  as Aston Villa. He continued to keep his place as a first team regular during the 2012–13 season. He scored his first goal of the season in a 3–1 win over Bristol Rovers in a League Cup first round tie. He made 49 appearances over the course of the season, scoring 4 goals. He also won the club's goal of the season award for his strike in a 3–0 win over Crystal Palace on 16 April. He scored his first goal of the 2013–14 season on 17 September, scoring the winning goal in a 2–1 win over Yeovil Town . He made 43 appearances during the season, scoring 2 goals and earning a place in the PFA Championship Team of the Year. West Ham United. On 3 July 2014, Cresswell joined West Ham United on a five-year contract for an undisclosed fee believed to be in the region of £3.75 million, plus add on clauses. He made his West Ham debut on 16 August 2014 in a 1–0 home defeat to Tottenham Hotspur. On 29 November he scored his first goal for the club, in the 1–0 victory over Newcastle United at the Boleyn Ground. In May 2015 , Cresswell was named Hammer of the Year and Player's Player of the Year. Cresswell played all 38 league matches and all four FA Cup matches for West Ham in 2014–15. In June 2015, Cresswell signed a new contract which would keep him with West Ham until 2020, with the option for a further two years. Cresswell made the highest number of appearances of any West Ham player in 2015–16, playing in 47 matches. He featured in 37 of the possible 38 Premier League matches scoring two goals, away to Aston Villa on 26 December, and at eventual champions Leicester  City in a 2–2 draw on 17 April. In July 2016, Cresswell was injured in a 3–0 pre-season victory over Karlsruher SC. Suffering a knee-ligament injury, Cresswell was initially expected to be out of action for four months. Cresswell recovered in time to make his return in West Ham's 1–0 victory away at Crystal Palace on 15 October, assisting Manuel Lanzini for the winning goal, however his comeback was cut short after he was sent-off for two yellow cards within a minute. In September 2019, Cresswell scored a 25-yard free kick against Manchester United to  seal a 2–0 victory. Less than a week later Cresswell scored the final goal in a 2–2 draw against AFC Bournemouth. He scored in consecutive league appearances for the first time in his professional career. In October 2019 he signed a new contract until 2023 with West Ham. In November 2019, he scored a late winner against Chelsea, to seal West Ham a 1–0 away victory. On 11 December 2020, Cresswell made his 200th Premier League appearance for the club in a 2–1 away win against Leeds United, during which he recorded an assist for Angelo Ogbonna's winning header . On 21 March 2021, in a 3–3 draw with Arsenal, Cresswell recorded his 217th Premier League appearance, becoming West Ham's second highest Premier League appearance maker, behind club captain Mark Noble. Cresswell recorded a total of eight assists for West Ham during the 2020–21 season, one more than right-back Vladimír Coufal. The duo recorded the most assists for a full-back pairing during the 2020–21 Premier League season. International career. On 7 November 2016, Cresswell received his first international call-up to the England squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifier with Scotland and a friendly with  Spain, following Danny Drinkwater's withdrawal from the squad due to injury. He made his debut on 15 November, replacing Danny Rose in a 2–2 draw with Spain at Wembley Stadium. Honours. Individual