Daniel Lee Rose (born 2 July 1990) is an English former professional footballer who played as a left-back. He was known for his tendency to play attacking football, with particular focus placed on his speed, decision-making, and defensive abilities, all of which often had him likened to Tottenham Hotspur legend Cyril Knowles.
Rose started his professional career at Leeds United in 2006, having progressed through the club's youth ranks, but left for Tottenham Hotspur in July 2007 before making an appearance. Following various loans to Watford, Peterborough United, Bristol City, and Sunderland, he established himself as a first-team player at Tottenham over the next six seasons, as well as starting in the 2019 UEFA Champions League final. Following a brief loan to Newcastle United in 2020, he departed Tottenham in June 2021, and subsequently returned to Watford for a season.
Rose played for England at the under-17 and under-19 levels before making his under-21 debut in 2009. In March 2016, he earned his first senior England cap in a 3–2 victory against Germany. He was then included in the squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
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Early and personal life
Rose was born in Doncaster, South Yorkshire. His younger brother Mitch Rose plays for Buxton. He also is the cousin of footballer Michael Rankine, whose uncle Mark Rankine also played professional football.
In June 2018, Rose stated that he had been diagnosed with depression.
On 23 December 2020, Rose was arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving after his car reportedly collided with the central reservation on the A45 in Northampton.
Club career
Leeds United
Rose is a product of the Leeds United youth academy. Rose was named on the bench for the Leeds first team against Barnet in the League Cup on 20 September 2006. The manager who named Rose on the bench, Kevin Blackwell, was dismissed immediately after the match. Rose was not involved again in a squad for Leeds that season. Leeds were subsequently relegated from The Championship to League One, and with the club entering administration, Rose was sold to raise some much needed money for the club.
Tottenham Hotspur
On 25 July 2007, Tottenham Hotspur signed Rose for a transfer fee in the region of £1 million. A regular for both the Academy and Reserves, Rose was named as an unused substitute for the league fixture against Sunderland in January 2008. His progress was temporarily curtailed, however, by a serious knee injury in September of the same year. Rose made his first start for Spurs in 2–2 FA Cup draw against his former club Leeds United in January 2010.
Rose made his league debut against Arsenal, scoring the first goal of the match after ten minutes as Tottenham won 2–1 in the Premier League on 14 April 2010. The goal was subsequently described as "a volley so thunderous that you could hear the whack off his boot above the din of the raucous crowd" in The Times. Rose won Goal of the Season, with votes run by Sky Sports and by the Tottenham website. On 7 May 2011, Rose started against Blackpool to fill in for regular left-back Benoît Assou-Ekotto, although playing out of his usual position, he was specifically praised by manager Harry Redknapp for his performance in the 1–1 draw. Redknapp later explained that he convinced Rose at that time to convert from a left winger to a left-back by arguing that it would be Rose's only way to play for the England national team. Rose would continue to fill in at left-back for the remaining three matches of the season, turning in excellent performances in a narrow loss to Manchester City and wins over Liverpool and Birmingham City.
In March 2009, Rose went on loan to Watford for the remainder of the 2008–09 season. Watford manager Brendan Rodgers described Rose as a "highly talented, committed player" who possesses "good energy and real intelligence with the ball." He made his debut in Watford's 2–1 away victory at Doncaster Rovers on 4 April 2009.
On 29 September 2009, Rose joined Peterborough United on loan until January 2010. He then went into that night's team where they played Plymouth Argyle, losing 2–1 at home. Rose returned to Tottenham on 11 November 2009, following the departure of Peterborough manager Darren Ferguson.
On 9 September 2010, Rose joined Championship club Bristol City on a season-long loan deal subject to a recall clause which becomes active after 28 days at the club. On 13 November, Rose came on as a second-half substitute against Leeds United and was booed by the home supporters. The match was the first time he had played at Elland Road after leaving the club. Rose returned to Tottenham Hotspur in February 2011 after a series of minor injuries had limited his impact and appearances at Bristol City.
Return to Watford
On 16 June 2021, Watford announced the free transfer of Rose on a two-year contract. Rose made just nine appearances for the club during the 2021–22 season, the last of which came in December 2021 during a 3–1 loss to Manchester City.
On 12 July 2022, Rose was in the starting lineup for Tottenham Hotspur U21 in a friendly match against Enfield Town. He had previously asked to appear for Tottenham "one last time" and was granted his wish despite being under contract with Watford for another year. He wore his well-known number 3 shirt. The match ended 3–2 to Enfield. It was also reported that he wanted to leave Vicarage Road following Watford's relegation to the EFL Championship. On 1 September 2022, Watford terminated Rose's contract by mutual agreement.
Retirement
Following his release from Watford, Rose trained with National League York City to regain fitness in early 2023. He also worked as a pundit during this period. Rose formally announced his retirement from professional football in July 2024. Rose had commented earlier in 2019 that he "couldn't wait to retire" because of frustrations with racism in the game.
International career
England U21s
On 1 June 2009, Rose was called into the England under-21 team for the European Championships taking place later in the month when striker Danny Welbeck was ruled out through injury. He made his debut with a substitute appearance in a 7–0 friendly win over Azerbaijan on 8 June.
Rose scored his first goal for England U-21s on 14 November 2009 in a 2011 European Championship qualifier win against Portugal. His second goal came in a 2–0 victory against Uzbekistan on 10 August 2010. His third goal for the team came on 5 June 2011 in a 2–0 win against Norway, the final warm-up match before the 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.
On 16 October 2012, Rose was shown a red card during a 2013 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification play-off match against Serbia, after he kicked a football into the crowd after the match had finished. Rose had been racially abused by members of the crowd throughout the match and after the match whilst celebrating the victory with his England teammates, which sparked a mass brawl between players and coaching staff of both teams.
Great Britain Olympic football team
On 2 July 2012, Rose was named in Stuart Pearce's final 18-man Great Britain Olympic football squad for the 2012 Summer Olympics.
England senior team
On 28 August 2014, Rose was named in the senior England squad for the first time, ahead of a friendly against Norway and a Euro 2016 qualifier against Switzerland in September, but did not feature. Rose made his debut as a starter in a 3–2 away win over Germany in a friendly on 26 March 2016.
Rose was previously eligible to play for Jamaica through his Jamaican grandfather, and was contacted by the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) in early 2015 over the possibility of representing Jamaica at international level.
He was named in the 23-man England national team squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. He started their group stage match against Belgium, where he played in midfield. They went on to lose 1-0, when Adnan Januzaj scored.
Career statistics
Honours
Tottenham Hotspur
Football League Cup: 2007–08; runner-up: 2014–15
UEFA Champions League runner-up: 2018–19
England U17
UEFA European Under-17 Championship runner-up: 2007
England U21
UEFA European Under-21 Championship runner-up: 2009
England
UEFA Nations League third place: 2018–19
Individual
Sunderland Young Player of the Season: 2012–13
PFA Team of the Year: 2015–16 Premier League, 2016–17 Premier League