A signing for £4 million of an £8 million double deal for Andy Reid and himself, Michael Dawson had proved to be a shrewd signing for Tottenham.  While other clubs had looked at him and decided to wait, Spurs nipped in to bring him to White Hart Lane and his brave and determined performance set him out as a player who will be a firm favourite at the club for his never-say-die attitude.

Attended the Wensleydale School in Leyburn, North Yorkshire.

Michael's older brother Andy played for Hull City as a defender and another brother Kevin dropped out of the game after breaking a leg and now works for Middlesbrough's Football in the Community scheme.  Michael broke into the Nottingham Forest side as a 19 year old.  His height was a great advantage for him and his aerial ability was matched by a good footballing brain and good distribution of the ball.  Forest failed to get promoted that season, losing out to Sheffield United in the play-off final, with Dawson missing the second leg after getting sent off in the first game. 

During the summer, Michael travelled with the Under-21s and picked up glandular fever, which ruled him out of the start of the following season, in which he picked up a number of niggling injuries.  When he returned, he found manager Paul Hart, who gave him his break, had been replaced by Joe Kinnear, who transformed the campaign into one of safety rather than a fight against relegation.  The impact he made, despite being in the First Division, was such that he was called up to train with the full England squad in November 2002, just six months after his debut.

However, the following season was not a lot better and Gary Megson was brought into the hot seat, but could not prevent Forest dropping into the Second Division/League One.  By this time, Andy Reid, who Spurs had chased for many months, was signed, along with Michael Dawson for a combined fee of £8 million (£4 million each) on 31st January 2005.

Not fully fit when Michael arrived at the club, he had to wait until near the end of the season for his debut and had a fine game against Liverpool - the club he supported as a youngster and one of the clubs who dithered over signing the central defender while Tottenham made a decisive move for him.

When paired with Ledley King, they form the strongest defensive pairing Spurs have had in many a long year.  Ledley's pace and ability on the floor perfectly complement Dawson's aerial domination and his blocking and tackling.  Michael has also taken the armband, firstly against Chelsea in the FA Cup quarter final against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in March 2007.

His game has improved after Tottenham's involvement in the UEFA Cup and although he was only named as a stand-by player for the 2006 World Cup finals, he surely has a future in the England team in years to come.

A player who missed only one game in 2006-07, Michael showed his commitment to Tottenham by signing a five year contract in May 2007 and it is one signing that Spurs fans will welcome with open arms, as Dawson plays the game with a smile on his face and that is exactly what he puts on the supporters faces too - especially when his header at home to Chelsea in November 2006 helped Tottenham to their first win over the Pensioners in many years.

Unfortunately, through injury Michael missed out on the League Cup Final of 2008, which saw Spurs beat Chelsea and the defender was not favoured by manager Juande Ramos, but when Harry Redknapp replaced the Spanish Head Coach, he re-instated Dawson as one of the players who gave everything for the cause.  Daws was also named as captain on a couple of occasions.

Once more injury struck Michael, as he picked up an Achilles injury in a pre-season friendly at Bournemouth and was set to miss the start of the 2009-2010 season.  Came back to fitness and was a regular in the middle of the defence with Ledley King's on-going knee injury keeping him out, until his impressive form was interrupted when Daws suffered another Achilles knock against Portsmouth at home in the Premier League.

Following a season when he was instrumental in helping the club into the Champions League, Dawson was included in the initial squad of 28 for the World Cup, but was cut from the final 22 and made his way home, only to be called to South Africa when Rio Ferdinand injured himself in training.  Michael didn't play in the tournament, but did get a first cap when he came on as a half time sub at Wembley in the friendly against Hungary just before the start of the 2010-11 season.

Forever throwing his body in the line of shots, Dawson's courage knew few bounds, but an ankle injury early in the 2011-12 season ruled him out for the whole campaign and two ankle operations meant he would not be ready until the following pre-season.

With new Head Coach Andre Vilas-Boas coming in, Michael did not seem to fit into his plans and with no prospect of being a first choice, Spurs accepted an offer from Queens Park Rangers of £7.5 million (with £2.5 million on conditions being met) with the player needing to pass a medical to complete the deal in late August 2012.

However, Dawson said that he wanted to stick with the club and prove he was worth a place in the team.  Having sat down and spoken with AVB, the captain went about proving his point and was a stalwart of the defence in the season that saw Spurs miss out on Europe by a point, but such was his turnaround of the coach's opinion of him, Daws put pen to paper on a contract extension in October 2013 to stay until July 2016.

However, with the new manager Mauricio Pochettino coming in during the summer of 2014, new players arrived in the middle of defence and Michael was deemed to be a player who was allowed to move on, returning to his native Yorkshire with Hull City.

A player who always conducted himself in the utmost professional manner and never raised a fuss when it looked like he was being eased out of the club, Dawson lead the team in a similar fashion and gave his all for Tottenham.  He will be remembered as a true Spur and one who gave great service in his nine years at White Hart Lane.

Married to Anna.