Adam Lallana won his first trophy as a professional at Wembley on 28 March 2010, scoring in Southampton’s 4–1 victory over Carlisle United in the Football League Trophy final. Born Adam David Lallana on 10 May 1988 in St Albans, Hertfordshire, he is an English attacking midfielder who spent most of his career at Southampton. He won the Premier League and the Champions League with Liverpool, played four seasons for Brighton & Hove Albion and won 34 caps for England between 2013 and 2018.
Academy years and first steps
Lallana began in the youth ranks at AFC Bournemouth and joined Southampton’s academy in September 2000, while still a schoolboy. He turned professional in 2006 and made his first-team debut on 23 August that year in a League Cup tie against Yeovil Town, which Saints won 5–2. In October 2007 he spent a month on loan at Bournemouth, then in League One, making three league appearances. Back at St Mary’s, he scored his first professional goal on 28 April 2008 against West Bromwich Albion.
Captain of Southampton’s rise
The 2010 trophy was followed by his breakthrough campaign. In 2010–11 he scored 11 league goals, was named in the League One PFA Team of the Year and helped Southampton to promotion as runners-up. A year later the club went up again as Championship runners-up, and Lallana made that division’s PFA Team of the Year as well. He was handed the captaincy in 2012 and wore the armband on his Premier League debut on the opening weekend of 2012–13. In 2013–14 he was selected in the Premier League PFA Team of the Year. His first spell at the club brought 265 appearances and 60 goals in all competitions, 48 of them in 235 league matches.
Six seasons at Liverpool
On 1 July 2014 he joined Liverpool for a reported fee of £25 million. In 2015–16 he reached the League Cup and Europa League finals with the club, losing both, and in 2018 he was on the losing side again in the Champions League final. Redemption came in 2018–19 with the Champions League, whose final against Tottenham Hotspur he watched from the bench. He added the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup in 2019, then the Premier League title in 2019–20. He left Anfield as a free agent in the summer of 2020 after 178 appearances and 22 goals in all competitions.
Brighton and the return to St Mary’s
On 27 July 2020 he signed for Brighton & Hove Albion on a free transfer. He made 104 appearances and scored 4 goals on the south coast, and in 2022, after Graham Potter’s departure, he assisted interim manager Andrew Crofts as a coach. He announced his exit on 13 May 2024, citing family reasons, and rejoined Southampton on 14 June. His second debut for Saints came on 28 August 2024 in a 5–3 League Cup win away at Cardiff City. He played 14 league games in 2024–25 and, after Ivan Jurić left in April 2025, helped interim manager Simon Rusk. He announced his retirement on 25 June 2025.
England
Lallana represented England at under-18 level, scoring on his debut, as well as at under-19 and under-21 level. His senior debut came on 15 November 2013 at Wembley, when he started a 2–0 defeat to Chile. He was called up for the 2014 World Cup, making his tournament debut off the bench against Italy on 14 June in a 2–1 loss, and was part of the squad for Euro 2016. All three of his international goals came in 2016: a stoppage-time winner against Slovakia on 4 September, one in a 3–0 win over Scotland on 11 November and another in a 2–2 friendly draw with Spain four days later. On 30 January 2017 he was named England Player of the Year for 2016. His international career ended in 2018 with 34 caps and 3 goals.
Coaching
After retiring he stayed at Southampton as a first-team coach alongside Carl Martin. In November 2025 he took interim charge of the under-21 side when Tonda Eckert moved up to lead the first team, and on 30 January 2026 he was appointed under-21 manager on a permanent basis.
