Aaron Hughes

Birth Date: November 8 1979
Birth Place: Cookstown, County Tyrone
Birth Nation: Northern Ireland
Height: 183cm
Weight: 71Kg
Nationality: Irish
Position: Defender

He made his Northern Ireland debut on 25 March 1998 v Slovakia at Windsor Park. This was less than a year after making his Newcastle debut on the 26 November 1997 v Barcelona at the Nou Camp in the Champions League.

He joined the Portadown Boys at the age of 12 and was involved in the Manchester United School of Excellence which meant travelling to Belfast every week. He was picked up by Newcastle after playing against them in the Milk Cup for the Boys Brigade team.

His versatility has both helped and hindered him, like Liverpool's Jamie Carragher, he has played in both full back positions and as a centre back.

In May 2005 he surprisingly left Newcastle to sign for Aston Villa for ?1.5 million, where he has taken the squad number of 18.

Aaron Hughes