Hal Robson-Kanu

At 34 years old, Hal Robson-Kanu has this physical status:

Thomas Henry Alex "Hal" Robson-Kanu (born 21 May 1989) is a professional footballer who plays for West Bromwich Albion.

Despite playing on the wings initially, he has also been used as a forward, most notably during Wales' campaign to the semi-finals of UEFA Euro 2016. Robson-Kanu began his career as a schoolboy at Arsenal but was fired at 15 years ago and moved to Reading.

He spent time on loan at Southend United and Swindon Town before returning to Reading and making his first team debut in 2009.

He was limited to mainly replacement appearances in his first season, but he was a key team member of the 2011-12 Championship winning team, with regular participation.

He made his Premier League debut in 2012 and went on to score 30 goals in 228 games for the club before being released in 2016.

He then signed for West Bromwich Albion. Robson-Kanu began representing the country of his birth, England, at under-19 and under-20 levels.

He changed allegiance to Wales, the country of his grandfather's, while playing for the under-21 team against Croatia on May 23.

Robson-Kanu was chosen to represent Wales in the UEFA Euro 2016, where they reached the semi-finals.

Source

Club career

Robson-Kanu was born in Acton, London, and began his career at Arsenal as a schoolboy aged 10. He went on to play with the Acton Ealing Whistlers for a number of seasons. After talking to then academy boss Brendan Rodgers, he was released by the club at 15 and joined Reading. He signed his first professional contract with the Academy in July 2007, completing a two-year contract with the club. Robson-Kanu appeared in South Korea for the first time with appearances against River Plate and Shimizu S-Pulse. Robson-Kanu was selected for the FA Cup third round match against Tottenham Hotspur for the first time on January 5, 2008, despite Steve Coppell's policy of resting first-team players for cup matches.

Robson-Kanu's first appearance in Reading's first team came on January 30, 2008, when he joined Southend United on loan until the season's end. He made his debut three days later in a 2–2 draw at Leyton Orient and scored his first goal against Nottingham Forest in his first ever appearance. In the next two games against Huddersfield Town and Swansea City, he scored twice more and then returned to Reading with three goals in eight appearances. Robson-Kanu was back in the first squad in 2008-09 pre-season, scoring a goal against Didcot Town in July. On August 21, 2008, he returned to Southend on a month's loan, and after one goal in six appearances lasted his tenure for a second month, he returned to the city for a second month. During his second spell at Reading, he came to an end after his three-month spell came to an end.

He was one of the substitutes for the FA Cup third round match against Cardiff City on January 3, 2009. He will have to wait for his debut, but he will still be a back-and-forth bench as Cardiff defeated the match. He signed Swindon Town on a one-month loan and after six games, was extending for a further month. He joined Reading midway through his time in Swindon, having impressed on loan as well as Southend before, and has signed a new deal with the club until 2011. He secured a regular spot in the Swindon squad and appeared in all 20 of his appearances for the club before returning to Reading after three months. Danny Wilson, the club's chairman, lauded Robson-Kanu and fellow loanee Gordon Greer for their "fantastic appearance" during their season, which helped the club avoid relegation.

Brendan Rodgers, Robson-Kanu's former Academy boss, took over as Reading's manager in the 2009-10 season. During the first game of the tour of Sweden, he scored five goals during pre-season, including a hat-trick against Jonsereds IF in just 28 minutes. In a 0–0 draw with Nottingham Forest on the first day of the season, Robson-Kanu made his competitive debut for Reading, starting on the right wing. He was mainly used as a substitute in his first season, appearing only four times in 18 appearances.

Robson-Kanu was a member of the first team setup this season. In a 3–0 victory over Barnsley a month earlier, he scored his first Reading goal in the League Cup on Saturday, finishing with his first league goal and his first league goal. He continued to play regularly and finished the season with four straight goals, including the winner in a 2–1 victory over Preston North End and Derby County, who finished in play-off positions. He appeared as a late replacement in Swansea's 4–2 play-off final loss, but had no time to influence the game and finished the season with six goals in 34 appearances. Despite some interest from other Championship clubs, such as Millwall and Portsmouth, he signed a new three-year deal with Reading in July, keeping him with the club until 2014.

Shane Long's son was sold as a forward by Brian McDermott in August 2011, a position he was familiar with from his Academy days. He played up front twice in the warm-up games and started the season off with two goalscoring games against Leicester City and Barnsley. With injuries to both Kebe and Jobi McAnuff during various stages of the season, he quickly reverted to a role on the wings, though his season followed a similar pattern to previous years, with him playing a supporting role for the two senior wingers. His best start came in October when he was named on the teamsheet for six straight games. He scored twice more during the season, including a spectacular volley against Millwall, and ended the season with 37 appearances, the most in his career to date.

Robson-Kanu's return to the Premier League put them up against tough competition in Kébé, McAnuff, and recent signing Garath McCleary. On the first day of the season, Reading came from behind to draw against Stoke City with Kébé missing. In a loss to Tottenham Hotspur and a 3-3 draw with Fulham, limited to a substitutes role for the next three months, he still managed to score twice. His only two starts in the League Cup were against Arsenal in October, which included the 7–5 loss to Arsenal. In Reading's 2–1 victory over Everton, their first league victory of the season, he had to wait until November 17th for his next league start, and he was a regular over the next month. Despite his ambitions, Robson-Kanu had to settle for a spot on the bench in two FA Cup matches, his first appearances for the club between December and March. On March 2, he scored a late consolation goal as a replacement against Everton and returned to the lineup against Aston Villa.

Brian McDermott's last game in charge, and Robson-Kanu, who had only played a little part under the former boss, began to play more prominently with the addition of Nigel Adkins. He missed just two games under Adkins due to a freak knee injury, and with a regular berth on the wing, the season began well, scoring against Arsenal and twice against Fulham in Reading's 4–2 victory over Fulham. Robson-Kanu was nominated for Reading Player of the Season after his most prolific season, scoring seven times. Despite all three players playing 13 or fewer league games this season, he came in third place in a fan vote. In July 2013, he signed a new deal, extending his stay with Reading until June 2016. Robson-Kanu would leave Reading after his deal came to an end in June 2016.

Robson-Kanu signed a two-year deal with West Bromwich Albion on August 31, 2016, after reportedly turning down "important offers" from Asia, Robson-Kanu announced a new one on August 31. In a 2–1 victory over Southampton on December 31, 2016, he got off to a good start of the season, finishing the game with a goal and an assist.

Robson-Kanu signed a new three-year deal with West Brom in July 2017. Robson-Kanu's second game of the 2017--18 Premier League season against Burnley was the fourth player to be called on, score then get sent off.

Robson-Kanu scored twice and assisted once as his team defeated Coventry City 5–2 to win the inaugural Regis Shield after West Brom's relegation from the Premier League in 2018. In a 4–3 victory over Norwich City, he scored his first league goal of the 2018-19 Championship season. West Brom defeated Aston Villa in 2–0 away victory, his fourth league goal of the season, as he went home in for a promotion spot. Since being sent a red card against Derby County on the final day of the season, he missed the playoffs.

Robson-Kanu came off the bench to score a late winner in a 1–0 away win over Middlesbrough on October 19th, the day after signing a contract extension to keep him at the club until 2021. He scored six goals in nine games between October and December, and as Slaven Bili's team's joint top scorer alongside Charlie Austin with ten goals, as the team's joint top scorer with ten goals won promotion.

In a 1–2 home loss to Liverpool on May 17, 2021, Robson-Kanu scored his first Premier League goal of the 2020-21 season.

Robson-Kanu will leave West Bromwich Albion after five years after the conclusion of his deal, having appeared for the team 154 times scoring 24 goals. Robson-Kanu revealed that he left Albion because the club was lacking the right direction to push for promotion a year after being released and struggling to find a new club. "I didn't agree with the way the club was going in," he told the Express & Star's Baggies Broadcast podcast. "If I was staying there, I wanted to have a long-term vision, not a scheme." I didn't want to be in a place where we were languishing in mid-table in the Championship."

International career

Robson-Kanu was born in England to a Nigerian father and an English mother of Welsh descent. Robson-Kanu appeared for England on the international stage before making his international debut against Germany in November 2007. He made his second appearance against Croatia the following year before winning one cap for the England under 20s against Montenegro in 2009.

He moved to Wales in 2010 for whom he specializes thanks to his Caerphilly-born grandmother. The change came about after Welsh coach Brian Flynn arrived at Simon Church in Reading, and Glen Little bemoan that Robson-Kanu will be eligible for Wales while on holiday there. Robson-Kanu told Flynn that the family moved to Tenby by picking up his grandmother in Caerphilly, and Flynn asked whether she was born in Wales.

He was first chosen in the Wales under-21s squad for the friendly against Austria on May 18, 2010, and made his debut in a 1–0 loss. Robson-Kanu's first cap for the senior team came just five days after losing by a 2–0 draw to Croatia in a second-half replacement for Robert Earnshaw. Since his senior debut and made three appearances on his last appearance, he continued to play for the Under-21 Football Championships, ending Wales' hopes of qualifying for the European Under-21 Football Championships. In a 2–1 World Cup qualifying victory over Scotland at Hampden Park on March 22, 2013, he scored his first senior international goal.

Robson-Kanu gained notoriety when his shorts resurfaced and he had to change shorts in the middle of the game, showing off his briefs.

In Wales' successful qualifying campaign for UEFA Euro 2016, scoring on October 13th in their 2–1 home victory over Cyprus. Robson-Kanu played nine games in the nation's triumphant qualification campaign for UEFA Euro 2016, scoring on September 13th in a 2–1 home win over Cyprus. After being selected for the final tournament in France, he appeared in lieu of Jonny Williams in place of Jonny Williams in the opener against Slovakia on June 11th. He was named as the winner in a 2–1 victory in Bordeaux. He started as a striker in Wales' historic 3–1 quarter-final victory over Belgium on July 1st, and the team's second goal was scored by Cruyff's decision. It was nominated for the best goal of the year in the FIFA Puskás Award for the best goal of the year. Following a 2–0 loss to Portugal in the semi-final of the tournament on July 6, Wales was disqualified.

As Wales failed to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, Robson-Kanu made nine appearances, scoring once.

Robson-Kanu announced his retirement from international football on August 29th. He was called up for the matches against Finland and Bulgaria in October 2020 after reversing his decision.

After violating COVID-19 regulations, Robson-Kanu, Tyler Roberts, and Rabbi Matondo were all sent home from the Wales squad in March 2021. He was not included in Rob Page's squad for UEFA Euro 2020, which was not in May.

Source