The Sheffield United midfielder agreed to join Spurs on Christmas Eve 2003 and was signed on the day the transfer window opens on 1st January for a fee believed to be about £500,000.
The former Manchester City player was not a huge hit in the Premiership with the Citizens, showing that his youth had not fully developed his skill and temperament, but he has matured at Bramall Lane to become a sought after player.
Born in the North-East in 1977, Brown moved to City and in 1995 made his debut in the first team. Although he became a regular, he was in and out of the side before he went out on loan to Portsmouth and Sheffield United in 1999, eventually signing for the Blades in 2000. He came to prominence in the red and white Stripes during the run to the FA and League Cup semi-finals in 2002-03 and he notched twenty two goals in that time.
Brown gave Martin Jol the battling qualities he needed to fight for dominance in midfield at the time. His non-stop harrying of opponents was his greatest attribute and one which particularly annoyed Patrick Vieira of Arsenal. But that was not the extent of his ability, as he moved the ball with short passes and also possessed a fine shot, which he used far too infrequently.
His attitude was fine while he was at Tottenham, but before and after his time at the Lane, he suffered with disciplinary problems and this was an aspect of his game which won him few friends.
He eventually fell out of favour, as Jol introduced younger legs and Brown wanted a longer contract than Tottenham were willing to offer, so he was sold to Fulham in the January 2006 transfer window for £1.7 million, as they offered him a three year deal. However, with a change in management at the Cottage, Brown moved on again in July 2007 to Wigan Athletic in a deal worth around £1.5 million on a three year deal.
Once more, he did not let the grass grow under his feet and his next stop was at Portsmouth in 2009 for a small fee and captained the team as they got relegated and lost in the final of the FA Cup 0-1 to Chelsea in the same season. Unable to be selected for fear of triggering an appearance payment, Portsmouth kept Brown out of action for the best part of a season before he negotiated a move to Leeds United.