Senior Appearances (A\/Non-A): 20 (19\/1)
Senior Goals (A\/Non-A): 6 (6\/0)
Senior 'A' Debut: v Chile (lost 0-3), Chile, April 1996
Last Senior 'A' Match: v Uruguay (World Cup qualifying play-off), Sydney, November 2005
Arguably the best player to come from these shores. Wonderfully gifted, Kewell's flying runs have caused the world's best defenders major headaches either down the left side of midfield or up front, since he burst onto the scene with Leeds in his late teens. Scored some spectacular goals in his time with Leeds and was a crowd favourite, but his move to Liverpool was a bitter pill to swallow for many. The last few seasons have seen him plagued by a persistant ankle and groin injuries. Became the first Austalian to win a European Champions League medal, when Liverpool beat AC Milan, although the match was a nightmare for Kewell himself, forced to come off after 20 minutes having torn his abductor muscle. Made his debut for Australia as a 17 year old and really came to prominence by scoring in both legs in the infamous Iran matches in 1997.<\/P>
Since making his move to England from Australia as a teenage schoolboy with a rucksack and a big dream, Harry Kewell has become the most famous Australian player of his generation, arguably of all time. <\/P>
Having won three Oceania Player of the Year honours and a UEFA Champions League winner’s medal, with Liverpool in 2004\/5, Kewell has become a hero in his native land. After a promising stint in the Australian youth system including four appearances and a goal at the FIFA U-17 World Championship in Ecuador in 1995, he left the New South Wales Institute of Sport to join Leeds United.
Though he did not establish himself in the Elland Road first team until the 1997\/98 season, he took full advantage once had he made the starting XI. Roaring up through midfield with delicate control and a vicious left foot, he fast became one of the brightest lights in an exciting young Leeds side, scoring five league goals that term.
The 1999\/2000 campaign was arguably Kewell’s finest in a Leeds shirt as the then 21-year-old picked up the English Young Player of the Year Award and Leeds Player of the Year honours for his ten league goals as David O’Leary’s side finished third in the Premiership. The following year he was part of the team that reached the UEFA Champions League semi-final against Valencia but soon injuries struck and Kewell struggled for a while to recapture the form that had brought him so many admirers so quickly in the English game.
By the 2002\/03 season, Leeds were facing severe financial problems and after Kewell’s 14 league goals had helped them survive relegation, he moved to the club he had supported as a boy, Liverpool. However, persistent injuries hampered his progress at Anfield and he limped out of both the League Cup final and Champions League final in 2005, lasting just 23 minutes of the latter match against AC Milan.
After finally recovering full fitness during the 2005\/06 campaign, Kewell has earned the praise of his manager at Liverpool, Rafael Benitez, who said: “We were talking about the need for quality in the wider areas and Harry brings that. He can shoot and score goals and is a fantastic player all around.”
For the national team, Kewell has known frustration also. He missed out on the 2000 Olympic Football Tournament and the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup through injury and felt the heartbreak of failing to qualifying for Korea\/Japan 2002 after missing out at the last hurdle against Uruguay. Indeed he went into 2006 having represented Australia just 19 times.
Still, he made a significant contribution after taking the field as an early substitute in the second leg of the intercontinental play-off against Uruguay in Sydney, helping the Socceroos win through to only their second FIFA World Cup finals. That display against Uruguay was indicative of Kewell’s gradual return to his best form and for Liverpool too he has begun showing his old trickery and scoring touch.
Australia coach Guus Hiddink will now be hoping the left-footer’s revival continues into the finals in Germany, where he has made it clear Kewell will have a major role to play.
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Other Rep Honours: U\/20 - 1997 World Youth Championship qualifiers
U\/17 - 1995 Under 17 World Championship Finals (Ecuador) <\/P>","SP0envY64LDpr7Uf2h3J3A==":"999","e_index":4};