Aaron Hughes, also known as Aaron William Hughes, is a Northern Irish footballer born on November 8, 1979 in Cookstown, County Tyrone. He can play in the centre-back, right-back or left–back position, but usually he plays midfield.
Aaron Hughes was selected for the Northern Ireland national team in 1998 and made his debut for the squad on March 25, 1998 against Slovakia. In April 2002, he was made captain of the team in his 24th match against Spain in Belfast. By 2003, Aaron Hughes became the permanent captain and led the team to great heights with several victories against England, Spain and Sweden. As of August 2008, he has represented Northern Ireland in 59 matches.
Aaron Hughes kick-started his football career by joining the Newcastle United youth club as a trainee in 1996. He moved to the senior division of the club the following year and made his debut in a match against Barcelona on November 26, 1997 at the Camp Nou stadium. His first league appearance for the club was in the match held in the same season against Sheffield Wednesday. During his tenure with the club, he appeared in 279 matches and scored 7 goals.
Aaron Hughes switched to Aston Villa, an English football club, in May 2005 for £1 million, and he represented the club in 64 matches during his two year stint. In June 2007, he signed with the English club, Fulham. He won the captain’s armband for the first time, when the regular captain, Brian McBride, had to leave the field due to an injury. As of August 2008, Aaron Hughes has made 31 league appearances for the club.
During all international and club events, Aaron Hughes always sports a number 18 shirt that was awarded to him by Ruud Gullit, a Dutch football coach and former player, during the 1999-00 season at Newcastle United.
