23 Facts About Lewis Holtby

Lewis Holtby was loaned to VfL Bochum and Mainz 05 before returning to Gelsenkirchen where he lifted the DFL-Supercup in 2011.

Lewis Holtby then spent two seasons in England with Premier League sides Tottenham and Fulham between 2013 and 2014 before returning to Germany to sign for Hamburger SV.

Lewis Holtby represented Germany at various youth levels from 2008 to 2013 and captained the nation at the 2013 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.

Lewis Holtby made his senior debut against Sweden in 2010 and has since won 3 caps for the national side.

Lewis Harry Holtby was born on 18 September 1990 in Erkelenz, West Germany.

Lewis Holtby began playing football at the age of four with amateur side Sparta Gerderath, a club with whom his father had previously played, before signing for Borussia Monchengladbach when he was 11-years old.

Lewis Holtby spent three seasons in Gladbach's academy before the club let him go in 2004, deeming him to be too small and slow to make it as a professional footballer.

Lewis Holtby ultimately made 31 appearances for the season and scored eight goals as Aachen ended the campaign in fourth place, narrowly missing out on a spot in the promotion playoffs.

Lewis Holtby joined Bochum at the end of January 2010, initially on an 18-month long loan deal.

Lewis Holtby made 14 appearances in total for Bochum and scored twice before his loan was cut short at the end of the season following the club's relegation.

Under the management of Thomas Tuchel at Mainz, Lewis Holtby formed a strong partnership with attackers Adam Szalai and Andre Schurrle which helped the club to seven successive wins at the start of the season.

Lewis Holtby ultimately made 32 appearances for the season across all competitions and scored 6 goals as Mainz ended the season in fifth place, 18 points ahead of Schalke, and qualified for a spot in the UEFA Europa League for the next season.

In spite of his more defensive role, Lewis Holtby managed to record a career best tally of nine goals for the season across 41 appearances, helping Schalke finish the campaign in fifth position in the league and as semi-finalists in the Champions League.

At the start of the following season, Lewis Holtby said that he would not be extending his contract with the club which was set to expire at the end of the campaign.

Lewis Holtby made a total of 11 appearances as Tottenham ended the campaign in fifth place, ultimately missing out on a Champions League place by one point.

Two weeks later, Lewis Holtby was reunited with former Schalke coach Felix Magath when the German was appointed as new club manager following the sacking of Rene Meulensteen.

Lewis Holtby later said that he was surprised by Magath's appointment but denied that there was a rift between them.

However, having struggled to make an impact at White Hart Lane with Spurs, and after the club signed Benjamin Stambouli from Montpellier, Lewis Holtby elected to return to Germany to join Hamburg on loan the following month.

Lewis Holtby subsequently received a two-match suspension for his indiscretions.

Lewis Holtby then recorded two assists in the final two matches of the season to help Hamburg avoid the relegation play-offs , with the club beating Wolfsburg on the final day to steer themselves clear of the drop.

Lewis Holtby soon found himself on the periphery at Hamburg with manager Markus Gisdol and then Bernd Hollerbach both electing to use him from the bench, or not at all.

Lewis Holtby's contract was ultimately not renewed and he left Hamburg at the end of the season after the club failed to secure promotion.

Lewis Holtby scored two goals at the tournament, one of which was against eventual runners-up Brazil in the quarter-finals.