David James, an English professional goalkeeper, was born on August 1, 1970 in Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire. Nicknamed “Calamity James”, he played for the England U-21 team against Republic of Ireland, and went on to play ten matches for the U-21 team and two for the England B National football team. On March 29, 1997 David James made his full debut against Mexico , keeping his first international clean sheet and helping in the team’s 2-0win. He went on to become a prominent player, featuring in all England’s matches at Euro 2004.
David James received a call-up to play a friendly match against Germany on August 22, 2007 and became the first Portsmouth player to play for the senior England team since Mark Hateley in 1984. He played his first competitive match on February 7, 2008 against Switzerland and also played friendly matches against France, the United States of America and Trinidad and Tobago, making 42 appearances for the national team as of 2008.
After finishing school in 1986, David James signed with Watford as a trainee, and he received training from Daniel Jones, a legendary player, who played an important role in developing his goalkeeping skills. He was included in the first team in 1989 and was instrumental in helping Watford lift the 1989 Football Association (FA) Youth Cup. On August 25, 1990 David James made his first league appearance in a match against Millwall and became Watford's Player of the Year for the 1990-91 season.
He was signed by Liverpool on July 6, 1992 and on August 16, 1992 David James made his debut for Liverpool in a match against Nottingham Forest at the English Premier League. On January 31, 1993 he was able to maintain his first clean sheet for Liverpool in a 1-0 win over Arsenal at a Premier League fixture and helped Liverpool lift the 1995 Football League Cup. David James featured in 277 matches for Liverpool before transferring to Aston Villa on June 23, 1999.
David James made his first appearance for Aston Villa at the first Premier League game, a match against Newcastle United on August 7, 1999, and kept a clean sheet, helping in the team’s 1-0 win. He played a vital role by saving penalties against Bolton Wanderers at the 2000 Football Association (FA) Cup semi-final and went on play a total of 67 matches during his stint with the club and became the fans’ favourite.
David James joined West Ham United by signing a four-year contract on July 11, 2001 and refined his consistency. After making 91 appearances for the Hammers, he transferred to Manchester City in January 2004, and made two crucial penalty saves, helping the club avoid relegation from the Premier League in 2003. He joined Portsmouth on August 12, 2006 and made his first appearance on August 19 in a 3-0 win over Blackburn. On April 22, 2007, David James kept his 142nd Premiership clean sheet, with Portsmouth against Aston Villa, and went on to break the record of 141 set by David Seaman.
On January 30, 2008, David James featured in a match against Manchester United, becoming the third player to cross the 500 Premiership Game mark. He also played an important role in helping Portsmouth win the 2007 Barclays Asia Trophy by saving two penalties in the finals against Liverpool. David James went on to become Portsmouth’s player of the season twice during the 2006-07 and the 2007-08 season, and to be nominated for the PFA player of the year, becoming the only goalkeeper and player outside the big four clubs, Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool to have been nominated.
David James holds the honor of making the most number of league appearances (501 as of February 2, 2008) a goalkeeper has made since the formation of the Premiership and has saved the highest number of goals. On May 17, 2008 David James contributed in the club’s victory against Cardiff at the FA Cup and has signed a new contract, which keeps him with the club until 2010.
