Where is Jonathan Woodgate now?
Although injury blighted his professional career, Jonathan Woodgate still racked up nearly 400 appearances before hanging up his boots after four seasons playing in the Championship with Middlesbrough in 2016.
A fans favourite wherever he played, many were surprised when he signed for Real Madrid in 2004 for £13 million but unfortunately his playing career for the Spanish giants was severely hampered by injuries and he famously scored an own goal and got sent off on his debut for the club.
However, he endeared himself to the Real Madrid fans by learning the language in his spare time during his injury lay-offs and often used to speak to the Spanish media in their native tongue.
After Woodgate retired from playing at the end of the 2015-16 season, he was recruited by Liverpool to work as a scout in Spain and Portugal but returned to the UK in March 2017 to join former club Middlesbrough where he worked with interim manager Steve Agnew as a first team coach.
After the appointment of Garry Monk as manager, a coaching staff reshuffle saw Woodgate appointed as assistant manager of the Middlesbrough under-18’s side having worked closely with some of the academy players towards the end of his playing days when he was working towards his UEFA ‘B’ licence.
In June 2019 Woodgate was appointed as Middlesbrough’s first team manager but his tenure only lasted a year before he was sacked with his side languishing near the bottom of the league and fighting for Championship survival.
He made a return to coaching in January 2021 when he joined AFC Bournemouth as first-team coach until the end of the season but was thrust into a caretaker manager role within days after manage Jason Tindall was sacked.
After three wins and a draw in his first five games Woodgate was appointed as head coach until the end of the 2020-21 season and guided them to the Championship play-offs before leaving the club in June upon the appointment of new manager Scott Parker.
He returned to the club in his current role as assistant manager in October 2022 upon the appointment of Michael Carrick as head coach.
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Back to Leeds United / Middlesbrough / Newcastle United / Stoke City / Tottenham Hotspur
#One2Eleven (4-4-2 Formation)
Jonathan Woodgate was a guest on Sky Sports programme The Fantasy Football Club in April 2014 where he picked the eleven best players he had ever played with in their #One2Eleven section of the show.
GK – Nigel Martyn – had a big effect on my career. Top bloke but didn’t have the best dress sense in the world.
RB – Gary Kelly –had a tremendous career. He was a great influence on me, off the pitch and on the pitch.
LB – Roberto Carlos – just awesome going forward. I’ve never seen a pair of thighs as back as his in my life.
CB – Rio Ferdinand – got to be one of the best English defenders in history. It was good for me when he came to Leeds because I could learn from him and push myself to try to be as good as him.
CB – Ledley King – everyone who’s ever played with him would put him in their team. Left foot, right foot, good in the air, quick, he would mark anyone out of the game. Top, top defender.
LM – Gareth Bale– in the early days at Spurs when he couldn’t get in the team I couldn’t believe it because he was brilliant in training. So quick. When he played with Assou-Ekotto on the left for Spurs they were unbelievable.
RM – David Beckham – great bloke. When he got left out of the England squad he took it on the chin and worked so hard to get back in and ended up proving everyone wrong. Same thing happened to him at Madrid and he worked his way back in and they won the league.
CM – Luka Modric – only slight in build but his first touch was unbelievable. He wasn’t the quickest but over the first five yards he was rapid.
CM – Zinedine Zidane – an obvious choice and one of the greatest players in the world. He was on a different level to everyone else. Tall and slim but also had big legs.
ST – Ronaldo – he was one of the nicest footballers I think I’ve ever met. We got on really well and he used to invite me to his house and take me out in Madrid. He had a tremendous burst of pace in matches. Everybody used to think he was fat but when he took his top off he was ripped.
ST – Alan Shearer – when I went to Newcastle I didn’t want to just impress the manager, I wanted to impress Shearer too. When I played against him it was possibly the hardest game I had ever had.
Jonathan Woodgate: Premier League Statistics
| Nationality | English |
| Position | Defender |
| Appearances | 244 |
| Goals Scored | 6 |
| Yellow Cards | 35 |
| Red Cards | 0 |
| Premier League Teams Played for | Leeds United, Middlesborough, Stoke, Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur |
Statistics courtesy of www.premierleague.com
Last Updated on 24 October 2022 by Admin