Brett Emerton Bio Send To Friend  

Brett Emerton finally realised his dream of playing in the Premier League in July 2003 when he joined Blackburn Rovers for a fee of £2.2million from Feyenoord.

The Australian international had been linked with Newcastle United for the previous 12 months, but in the end he moved to Ewood Park as Aston Villa also chased his signature.

During the 2006/07 season Emerton re-invented himself from a right winger to a right full-back, a position from which he turned in some accomplished performances and played an important role in Rovers achieving a top-ten finish in the Premier League.

A strong showing in the 2007/08, in which he further showed his versatility by filling a gap in central midfield, earned Emerton new contract which will tie him to Rovers until summer 2012.

Emerton, named Oceania's Player of the Year for 2002 and 2003, enhanced his reputation by scoring in Australia's 3-1 friendly win over England in February 2003 and went on to represent the Socceroos at the 2006 World Cup.

His playing career began at the Australian Institute of Sport, turning out for Sydney Olympic, before heading to Holland to build his reputation with Feyenoord.

Emerton's Rovers debut came in a 5-1 home win over Wolverhampton Wanderers in the 2003/04 season, and he marked it with his side's third goal.

He was an inspiration in the first half of the season, proving the main creative influence in the Rovers team.