Hero England keeper destined to rule the world from age of 5!
Freddie Woodman was five years old when he emailed Gareth Southgate and asked for the captain’s armband he wore during england’s 2002 World Cup warm- up friendly against Cameroon.
‘i will be able to be captain with my friends when i play football,’ wrote young Freddie, and he finished the message with a P.S. ‘Could you get me the red england kit, like yours?’
Southgate did not make an appearance for england in the World Cup but he returned with a parcel of gifts for his godson, among them the armband as requested.
Freddie pulled it on and went outside with his ball, like the ‘king of the road’ according to his father andy — also a goalkeeper — who had forged a lasting friendship with Southgate when they met as apprentices at Crystal Palace.
Southgate is now england manager, plotting a route to the World Cup in russia next year. Freddie is a freshly- crowned world champion, having saved a penalty in Sunday’s Under 20 World Cup final against Venezuela. He also picked up the Golden Glove trophy, awarded to the best goalkeeper in South Korea, after conceding three goals in seven games.
‘i knew from a very young age he was going to be a goalkeeper,’ said Woodman Snr, speaking in an interview with The Journal in 2013, after his son left Palace’s academy for newcastle.
‘i have a very close friend who had a bet on Freddie when he was seven to play for england. it looks like his bet might be on target.’
Southgate and andy Woodman met as apprentices at Crystal Palace earning £27.50 a week and became close despite their contrasting personalities and differing professional fortunes.
Southgate was Palace captain when they reached the top flight as champions before moving to aston Villa and middlesbrough. middlesbrough Woodman left Selhurst Park, released after promotion in 1994 having never played for the club he supported as a boy.
He went on to a career in the lower leagues and cult status at northampton after appearing in
successive Wembley play-off finals, winning promotion to division Two in 1997 and saving a penalty during a defeat 12 months later, at thet same end where Southgate missedm from the spot in euro 96.
in 2004 the pair published an award- winning joint- memoir, Woody & Nord: A Football Friend
ship.s in it, Woodman recalled how hhe phoned his friend at 4am when Freddie was born. Southgate wwished him well and promised to call back the next day.
‘First thing in the morning he called,’ said Woodman. ‘Listen mate, i had the weirdest dream last night. in the dream you and anna had a boy and named him Freddie. i mean, who would call their son Fred: Fred Flintstone, Fred West, Fred the tortoise.’
Woodman’s coaching career has taken him to heights his playing career did not, working with alan Pardew, another former Palace team-mate, at West Ham, Charlton and newcastle before following him back to Selhurst Park.
ian atkins, his former manager at northampton and oxford, said: ‘He’s a big character, an absolute diamond and always great to have around the training ground, when people were down he could give them a lift. That can be worth its weight in gold and alan Pardew has recognised his value but andy has worked with some very good keepers and they speak highly of him as a coach.’
So far, Southgate has not called on his friend to be part of his backroom team but as Woodman said: ‘i don’t want him to ever feel he has to give me a job. i want to achieve my goals on my own.’
Yet Freddie, 20, is tipped to reach the top, representing england at all levels from Under 16s.
‘He probably isn’t under the same pressure as someone like Kasper Schmeichel,’ atkins added. ‘His dad wasn’t a top international keeper but goalkeeping is in his genes — and he will be there to give his son all the help and advice he can.’
arsenal and Liverpool have already tried to lure Freddie from newcastle. They were among the clubs interested when he left Palace at 16 but his father’s position on Pardew’s staff at newcastle proved influential.
a short spell on loan at Crawley was curtailed when he was called back to Tyneside because of a serious knee injury to Tim Krul and he spent the latter part of last season on loan at Kilmarnock.
There are goalkeepers ahead of him in the pecking order at newcastle and he understands it will take hard work if he is to fulfil his potential, regardless of his heroics in South Korea.
even so, it will be useful to have advice, role models and figures of influence on speed dial.
and there may yet come a day when Woodman Snr is watching with his best mate on the touchline and Freddie is in the squad.