# Sammy Lee (footballer)
**Sammy Lee** (Samuel Peter Lee, born 1959 in Liverpool) is an English former footballer and coach, a diminutive midfielder who won five First Division titles, four League Cups, two European Cups, and an [FA Cup](https://www.edgepedia.org/fa-cup) with Liverpool between 1978 and 1986, and later served as assistant manager of the England national team.[1](https://www.transfermarkt.com/sammy-lee/profil/spieler/175877) • [2](https://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/liverpools-greatest-no59-sammy-lee/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1959, Liverpool, England; full name Samuel Peter Lee[1](https://www.transfermarkt.com/sammy-lee/profil/spieler/175877) |
| Position | Midfielder, about 5 ft 4 in (163 cm)[3](https://lfchistory.net/players/355) • [4](https://www.11v11.com/players/sammy-lee-32329/) |
| Liverpool career | 1978–1986, 295 appearances, 19 goals[2](https://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/liverpools-greatest-no59-sammy-lee/) |
| Liverpool honors | First Division 1979-80, 1981-82, 1982-83, 1983-84, 1985-86; League Cup 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984; European Cup 1981, 1984; FA Cup 1986[2](https://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/liverpools-greatest-no59-sammy-lee/) |
| England | 14 caps, 2 goals, 1982–1984[5](https://www.bwfc.co.uk/news/2020/may/from-player-to-manager-sammy-lee) • [6](https://www.englandstats.com/player.php?pid=961) |
| Management | Bolton Wanderers manager April–October 2007, 14 games in charge[5](https://www.bwfc.co.uk/news/2020/may/from-player-to-manager-sammy-lee) |
| Coaching | Liverpool reserve and first-team coach, England assistant under Eriksson and Allardyce, Liverpool assistant manager 2008–2011[5](https://www.bwfc.co.uk/news/2020/may/from-player-to-manager-sammy-lee) • [7](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/jun/29/sammy-lee-liverpool) |
## Playing career at Liverpool
Lee came through the academy at Liverpool and made his first-team debut in April 1978 under [Bob Paisley](https://www.edgepedia.org/bob-paisley), scoring against Leicester City in a 3-2 win.[5](https://www.bwfc.co.uk/news/2020/may/from-player-to-manager-sammy-lee) • [4](https://www.11v11.com/players/sammy-lee-32329/) Despite the scoring debut, he had to wait for a regular place, and it was only at the start of the 1980-81 season that he took over from Jimmy Case in the heart of the midfield.[2](https://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/liverpools-greatest-no59-sammy-lee/) In that first full season he played 55 games, ending with a start in the 1-0 European Cup final win over Real Madrid at the [Parc des Princes](https://www.edgepedia.org/parc-des-princes), and was the overwhelming winner of the Liverpool FC Supporters Club's Player of the Year poll.[2](https://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/liverpools-greatest-no59-sammy-lee/) • [3](https://lfchistory.net/players/355)
Three successive league championships followed, and in the 1983-84 season, when Joe Fagan's side won the First Division, League Cup, and European Cup, Lee appeared in all 67 games.[2](https://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/liverpools-greatest-no59-sammy-lee/) Paisley, who managed him early in his Anfield career, said of him: "With the character and attitude he shows, they'd make him Mayor of Liverpool if he was a few inches taller."[2](https://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/liverpools-greatest-no59-sammy-lee/) Opportunities became limited in his final two years, and he left in the summer of 1986 with 295 appearances and 19 goals for the club.[2](https://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/liverpools-greatest-no59-sammy-lee/)
## QPR, Osasuna, and Bolton
Lee signed for First Division club Queens Park Rangers in 1986 and spent the 1986-87 season there, describing the period after leaving Liverpool as a low point in his career.[5](https://www.bwfc.co.uk/news/2020/may/from-player-to-manager-sammy-lee) • [8](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2025/nov/17/sammy-lee-going-to-spain-was-the-best-thing-that-happened-to-me-after-joining-liverpool) His former Liverpool teammate Michael Robinson persuaded him to join Osasuna of Pamplona, where he played three seasons in [La Liga](https://www.edgepedia.org/la-liga) from 1987 to 1990, appearing in about 28 matches but becoming one of the most fondly remembered players in the club's history.[5](https://www.bwfc.co.uk/news/2020/may/from-player-to-manager-sammy-lee) • [9](https://www.laliga.com/en-GB/news/what-became-of-sammy-lee) Lee later called the move to Spain "the best thing that happened to me after joining Liverpool," saying it enhanced him as a person and introduced him to another language and culture.[8](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2025/nov/17/sammy-lee-going-to-spain-was-the-best-thing-that-happened-to-me-after-joining-liverpool)
He returned to England during the 1989-90 season, joining [Southampton](https://www.edgepedia.org/southampton) on loan before a permanent switch to Bolton Wanderers shortly afterwards, and made only a handful of appearances for Wanderers before retiring as a professional in 1991.[5](https://www.bwfc.co.uk/news/2020/may/from-player-to-manager-sammy-lee) • [10](https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/lee-returns-to-bolton-as-coach-6917439.html)
## International career
Lee was capped 14 times by England between 1982 and 1984, scoring 2 goals.[5](https://www.bwfc.co.uk/news/2020/may/from-player-to-manager-sammy-lee) • [6](https://www.englandstats.com/player.php?pid=961) He had earlier captained England Under-21s while still waiting for a regular place at Liverpool.[8](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2025/nov/17/sammy-lee-going-to-spain-was-the-best-thing-that-happened-to-me-after-joining-liverpool)
## Coaching and management
Lee moved into coaching at Liverpool in 1993, invited by his former teammate [Graeme Souness](https://www.edgepedia.org/graeme-souness), and was kept on by Roy Evans and [Gérard Houllier](https://www.edgepedia.org/gerard-houllier), progressing from reserve team coach to first-team coach under Houllier.[5](https://www.bwfc.co.uk/news/2020/may/from-player-to-manager-sammy-lee) • [11](https://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2008/0516/231913-liverpool/) He became a part-time coach with the England team under [Sven-Göran Eriksson](https://www.edgepedia.org/sven-goran-eriksson) in 2001, ahead of the 2002 FIFA World Cup in Korea and Japan, and left Liverpool to join the national staff full-time in 2004.[5](https://www.bwfc.co.uk/news/2020/may/from-player-to-manager-sammy-lee)
**Bolton manager.** In September 2005 Lee joined Bolton Wanderers as assistant to [Sam Allardyce](https://www.edgepedia.org/sam-allardyce), turning down the England Under-21 manager's job to stay, and in April 2007 he succeeded Allardyce as manager after his resignation. He remained in the post until October 2007, taking charge of 14 games in a six-month tenure.[5](https://www.bwfc.co.uk/news/2020/may/from-player-to-manager-sammy-lee) His attempt to have Bolton play a more fluent passing game contributed to his dismissal, and he swiftly returned to Anfield.[7](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/jun/29/sammy-lee-liverpool)
**Return to Liverpool and England.** Rafael Benítez brought Lee back to Liverpool as assistant manager in May 2008; during that spell he took charge of a first-team fixture against Arsenal when Benítez was ill with kidney stones.[5](https://www.bwfc.co.uk/news/2020/may/from-player-to-manager-sammy-lee) He stayed under [Roy Hodgson](https://www.edgepedia.org/roy-hodgson) but was effectively pushed down the hierarchy once [Kenny Dalglish](https://www.edgepedia.org/kenny-dalglish) recruited [Steve Clarke](https://www.edgepedia.org/steve-clarke), and he left the club in June 2011, just over three years after returning.[7](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/jun/29/sammy-lee-liverpool) He had a third spell with Bolton as head of academy coaching from 2012 and became joint caretaker manager with Jimmy Phillips after Owen Coyle's dismissal, followed by a spell at Southampton.[10](https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/lee-returns-to-bolton-as-coach-6917439.html) • [5](https://www.bwfc.co.uk/news/2020/may/from-player-to-manager-sammy-lee)
In July 2016 Lee returned to the England set-up as Sam Allardyce's assistant, and after Allardyce's dismissal he supported [Gareth Southgate](https://www.edgepedia.org/gareth-southgate) during his interim period in charge. He left the role in December 2016 when Southgate, appointed permanently, assembled his own backroom team; Southgate praised his personality and professionalism and the way he had helped steady the ship through October and November.[12](https://www.thefa.com/news/2016/dec/06/sammy-lee-left-role-assistant-manager) He later worked with Allardyce again at Crystal Palace, Everton, and West Bromwich Albion.[5](https://www.bwfc.co.uk/news/2020/may/from-player-to-manager-sammy-lee) • [13](https://as.com/futbol/primera/sammy-lee-para-mi-el-athletic-es-como-el-liverpool-f202510-n/)
## Reputation
Lee is remembered at Liverpool for his energy and commitment despite his small stature, and for a trophy record that includes five league titles and two European Cups.[2](https://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/liverpools-greatest-no59-sammy-lee/) He remains a popular figure among supporters, immortalized in a terrace song, and has described playing for the club he supported all his life as living the dream.[3](https://lfchistory.net/players/355) • [2](https://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/liverpools-greatest-no59-sammy-lee/) As a coach he built a long career across club and international football, with more than three decades of work alongside managers including Paisley, Houllier, Benítez, Eriksson, and Allardyce.[14](https://www.thisisanfield.com/2007/09/exclusive-interview-sammy-lee/)
## References
1. [Sammy Lee – Player profile, Transfermarkt](https://www.transfermarkt.com/sammy-lee/profil/spieler/175877)
2. [Liverpool's Greatest – No.59: Sammy Lee, Liverpool FC](https://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/liverpools-greatest-no59-sammy-lee/)
3. [Sammy Lee – 295 appearances, 19 goals for Liverpool FC, LFChistory.net](https://lfchistory.net/players/355)
4. [Sammy Lee Football Player Statistics, 11v11.com](https://www.11v11.com/players/sammy-lee-32329/)
5. [From Player to Manager: Sammy Lee, Bolton Wanderers FC](https://www.bwfc.co.uk/news/2020/may/from-player-to-manager-sammy-lee)
6. [Sammy Lee (961), The England International Database, englandstats.com](https://www.englandstats.com/player.php?pid=961)
7. [Sammy Lee departs Liverpool as Steve Clarke set to be new assistant, The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/jun/29/sammy-lee-liverpool)
8. [Sammy Lee: 'Going to Spain was the best thing that happened to me after joining Liverpool', The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2025/nov/17/sammy-lee-going-to-spain-was-the-best-thing-that-happened-to-me-after-joining-liverpool)
9. [What became of… Sammy Lee, LALIGA](https://www.laliga.com/en-GB/news/what-became-of-sammy-lee)
10. [Lee returns to Bolton as coach, The Independent](https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/lee-returns-to-bolton-as-coach-6917439.html)
11. [Lee returns to Anfield as Rafa's number two, RTÉ](https://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2008/0516/231913-liverpool/)
12. [Sammy Lee leaves role as England's assistant manager, The FA](https://www.thefa.com/news/2016/dec/06/sammy-lee-left-role-assistant-manager)
13. [Sammy Lee: "Para mí el Athletic es como el Liverpool", AS](https://as.com/futbol/primera/sammy-lee-para-mi-el-athletic-es-como-el-liverpool-f202510-n/)
14. [Exclusive Interview: Sammy Lee, This Is Anfield](https://www.thisisanfield.com/2007/09/exclusive-interview-sammy-lee/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Association football › Football people and teams › People › Men's footballers of the British Isles (modern era) › English footballers 1970–1989*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license