PLAYER PROFILE

Phil Jagielka

Position: Defence

Height: 5'11

Weight: 13st 1lbs

Date of Birth: 1982-08-17 Manchester, England

Phil Jagielka

Phil Jagielka is a versatile young midfielder who came through the youth ranks at Sheffield United.

Making his first appearance for the Blades in the 1999-2000 (as a substitute), he went on to make a further 18 appearances in the following season, once again improving his tally in the next campaign.

It wasn't until the 2002/03 season, however that he truly became the vital player that he is. Making an impressive 56 appearances in the United white and red, he became a regular in Neil Warnock's first team, a situation which remained the same into the 2005/06 season where he made his 200th league appearance and picked up a number of awards including the Championship Player of the Year in 4-4-2 magazine as well as the Capital One Player of the Year.

The season was a special one for the Jagielka family as a whole as Phil's older brother Steve also gained promotion, helping Accrington Stanley re-enter the Football League.

However, the 2006/07 season ended on a low not for Phil as he and the Blades were relegated from the top flight on the final day.

He therefore moved on from Bramall Lane in July 2007, joining Everton for £4million.

His first season proved a highly successful one, as he became a regular starter and even earned a call-up to Fabio Capello's England squad. He continued this fine form in 2008/09 and became an integral part of David Moyes's Everton squad as he formed a resilient partnership with Joleon Lescott in the heart of the Toffees defence.

He scored the winning penalty in the FA Cup semi-final shoot-out victory over Manchester United but missed the final due to an injury he picked up in an April league match against Manchester City.