Patrick Bamford

At 30 years old, Patrick Bamford has this physical status:

Patrick James Bamford (born 5 September 1993) is an English professional footballer who plays for Leeds United as a striker.

Although primarily a forward, he's also able to play in an attacking midfield role. He began his career at Nottingham Forest, making his debut on December 31, 2011, and Chelsea a month later for a £1.5 million fee.

Chelsea loaned him out to Milton Keynes Dons, Derby County, Middlesbrough, with whom he was named Year's Best Player of the Year.

He continued on loans at Crystal Palace, Norwich City, and Burnley until returning to Middlesbrough for a fee that was estimated to be in the region of £5.5 million.

He joined Leeds United on July 31, 2018. Capped once for the Republic of Ireland at under the age of 18, he later changed allegiances to England, notably to Ireland, where he played up to under-21 years before returning to Ireland in 2019.

Early life

Bamford was born in Grantham, Lincolnshire, and grew up in Norwell, Nottinghamshire, a tiny, nearby village. Since playing junior football for Muskham Cougars, he joined Nottingham Forest's academy as an eight-year-old. He attended Nottingham High School as a student football player, where he played rugby union as a full-back until Year 10. In his GCSEs, Bamford earned five A*s, three As, and two Bs. He earned a degree in French, History, Biology, and General Studies at A-Level, as well as a C. Bamford, but he declined to pursue his career in England.

"not your traditional footballer," he plays the piano, violin, guitar, and saxophone, and he speaks in French, Spanish, and German. He has claimed that his more privileged upbringing has resulted in him to be handled differently in a sport in which the majority of players are from the working class.

Personal life

In 2022, Bamford became a father: "I had a baby at the start of February." Since I was ill, I could get used to the non-sleep thing," he said.

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Club career

During Forest's third round tie against Newcastle United, which was a 4–3 loss after extra time. Bamford was an unused substitute during the City Ground match on September 21, 2011. On December 31, he made his Forest debut against Cardiff City in a 1–0 home loss, ending as a replacement for Matt Derbyshire with 12 minutes remaining. On January 2, 2012, he was playing in Forest's next game and replacing Andy Reid as an added-time replacement for Andy Reid. The Forest beat Ipswich Town 3-1 at Portman Road.

Bamford joined Chelsea on a five-year contract for £1.5 million. He started training with Chelsea's first-team squad on February 8, 2012. In a friendly against Gillingham at Cobham, he made his debut for the reserves, with Chelsea triumphing 5-4. Bamford scored his first goal in Chelsea colours, rounding off a good team move and scoring his second, the champion from the penalty position. Bamford signed a new three-year deal with Chelsea on July 21, 2015, before being loaned out to Crystal Palace for the forthcoming season.

He signed on loan at Milton Keynes Dons (MK Dons) until January 7. He made his debut against Colchester United three days later and ended the match with three assists. Bamford boss Karl Robinson said he wished the team would continue until the end of season.

Since proving enough before suffering a hamstring injury, Bamford's loan was extending until May 20th. He scored his first goal of his professional career at Crewe Alexandra's Gresty Road on March 19th.

Bamford loaned MK Dons until January 5, 2014, extending the loan until January 5th. During this six-month stretch, Bamford scored 14 goals in 23 appearances for MK Dons, and was thus the object of rumors that he would be transferred on loan to a higher team. After his loan deal came to an end, Bamford will not be returning to MK Dons on December 31. Derby County was later announced as the new team's name. In the third round of the FA Cup, he made his last appearance for Milton Keynes on January 4, 2014, where he scored his 17th goal of the season in the closing stages of a 3–3 draw against the holders Wigan Athletic.

Derby County announced the loan of Bamford until the end of the season on January 3rd. In a 4–1 away loss to Leicester City on January 10, Bamford made his Derby debut as a replacement. After coming on as a 59th-minute replacement for Simon Dawkins, his first goal was in his next game, at Brighton & Hove Albion. He opened the scoring in the 76th minute. Nigel Doughty, the former Nottingham Forest chairman, devoted the game to his godfather, who was named after him. Following his month on loan at MK Dons, Bamford received the Football League Young Player of the Month award for December. In a 1–1 draw against Blackburn Rovers, he scored his 19th goal of the season. Bamford continued his excellent form against Yeovil Town on 28 January and Birmingham City on February 1st. Derby beat Hillsborough 1–0 on Sunday, thanks to Bamford's strike on February 18th. However, he failed to score in the next six games for Derby, but he did score against Ipswich in a 2–1 loss on March 25. He scored his second goal in the next game against Charlton Athletic on March 29th, scoring on an error by captain Johnnie Jackson in the 38th minute. Bamford's goalscoring form continued on as he scored his 25th game of the season against Blackpool on April 8.

Bamford joined Middlesbrough on loan from 29 August 29th to 1 January 1st. In a 1–0 home loss to Reading, Bamford made his debut as a replacement on August 30, 2014. Boro's first game came in on September 20th: a 4–0 home win over Brentford in his first appearance for the club.

In the third round of the League Cup against Liverpool on September 23, Bamford's Grant Leadbitter was replaced for the final eight minutes of extra time. In addition, he was fouled by Kolo Touré for a penalty that he converted himself to make the score 2–2, resulting in a penalty shootout. Despite the fact that Simon Mignolet's penalty in the shoot-out was saved, he scored one in sudden death, but Middlesbrough lost 14–13 on penalties.

After scoring in the League Cup against Liverpool on September 23, Bamford went through a dry stretch of four games without scoring. In a 3–0 victory over Rotherham United on November 1, he scored the first goal. Boro defeated Norwich City 4–0, with the scoring scoring again three days later. The match was ended in a 1-1 draw after Bamford came off the bench in the 55th minute against Wigan Athletic and within three minutes of being on the field, scoring the goal that levelled the game. Boro's only goal on 29 November to divide the points with Blackburn Rovers was shared in a 5-1 victory over Millwall on December 6th.

In a game against league leaders Derby County on December 13, Bamford again impressed, scoring the first six minutes within the first six minutes and then winning a penalty which was converted by Leadbitter in a 2–0 victory. Given the results, his team secured a second position in the Championship, with Bournemouth on points. His loan was extended for the remainder of the season on December 31.

Middlesbrough defeated reigning Premier League champions Manchester City 2–0 away on January 24, 2015, exploiting Fernando's mistake to open the scoring.

Middlesbrough defeated Wigan Athletic 11-0, sending him to the top of the Championship table on April 3rd. He scored his 18th goal of the season against Rotherham United on April 11th, but he missed a penalty during stoppage-time after battling it out with fellow striker Kike who won the penalty initially. Bamford revealed that he was the designated penalty taker and apologized to his teammate for missing the penalty later today. He was also nominated for Championship Player of the Year and Young Player of the Year at the Football League Awards earlier this year. He received the first award, with the second going to Milton Keynes Dons' Dele Alli.

With 19 goals in total, Bamford's season ended last season, making him the team's top scorer for the season.

Bamford signed a loan for Crystal Palace for the forthcoming season on July 21, 2015. Bamford was an ineffective substitute for Palace's opening match against Norwich City on August 8th, following a fruitful pre-season with Crystal Palace that included a hat-trick against Bromley. In a 2–1 home loss to Arsenal, he made his competitive debut for Palace eight days later, losing James McArthur for the final ten minutes.

After playing as a replacement in the 0–0 draw against Swansea City on December 28, Bamford ended his loan contract and returned to Chelsea. Bamford cited a lack of first-team experience as the reason for his departure. It was later announced that Bamford's decision had been made by himself alone, and that the two clubs involved were due to hold talks about him.

After completing his loan with Crystal Palace, Bamford joined Norwich City on loan until the end of the season. On his arrival, Bamford was given the number 11 jersey. In a 2–0 away loss to Aston Villa in the 56th minute, Bamford made his Canaries debut on February 6, 2016, replacing Wes Hoolahan in the 56th minute. With Manchester City, where he had the best chance of the game to score with a shot from 25 yards out that hit the bar, he got off to a 0–0 draw on March 12, 2016, his first Premier League start in a 0–0 draw.

Burnley's Burnley's Bamford signed Burnley on a season-long loan on August 30, 2016. In the 80th minute of a 1–1 draw against Hull City, he made his debut by replacing Andre Gray. After six Premier League appearances, his loan was cut short, with Chelsea recalling him on January 14th, 2017, according to Bamford citing a clash of personalities with Burnley boss Sean Dyche during his time with the club.

Bamford joined Middlesbrough, later in the Premier League, for a four-and-a-half season, reuniting him with Aitor Karanka. In a 3–1 loss to West Ham United three days later, he made his debut off the bench for the first time. In a 3–0 loss at Stamford Bridge on May 8, 2017, Bamford met Chelsea, resulting in Middlesbrough's relegation. In a 2–1 loss to Southampton on Wednesday, Bamford made his first appearance of the season and scored his first ever Premier League goal.

Bamford's role as a lone striker under new owner Tony Pulis, who flourished against Leeds United in February 2018 after suffering an injury, and Rudy Gestede's first hat-trick against Leeds United was transferred from out wide to a lone striker role. He was nominated for the Player of the Month award for March 2018, but Aleksandar Mitrovi, a Fulham striker, was disqualified.

In 44 appearances in all competitions during the 2017-2018-18 season, Bamford scored 13 goals in 44 appearances to help Middlesbrough advance to the Championship play-off semi-finals, where they were defeated by Aston Villa.

On July 31, 2018, Bamford joined Leeds United for an undisclosed fee on a four-year contract. For the season, he was given the number 9 shirt. The fee was estimated to be £7 million (rising up to £10 million depending on bonuses), making Bamford Leeds' most costly signing since Robbie Fowler joined Leeds in 2001. He made his Derby County debut on August 11th in a 4–1 victory. Bamford made his debut for Leeds in an EFL Cup match against Bolton Wanderers on August 14th, scoring his first goal for the club in a 2–1 victory.

Bamford's under-23 team against Bristol City started on September 7th, 2018. In a 5–0 victory, he scored his first goal of the game, but he was forced to leave the field after half an hour due to a possible knee injury. Leeds revealed next week that the striker had sustained a posterior cruciate ligament injury and was facing four months on the sidelines.

Bamford's first league victory over Bolton was on December 15th as a second-half replacement for the club's first league victory. However, he sustained another knee ligament injury in preparation for the following game against Aston Villa, and was suspended for several weeks.

On February 2, 2019, Bamford returned from injury to first-team action, defeating Norwich City 3–1. In Leeds' 1–1 draw against his old side Middlesbrough on February 9, 2019, he made his first appearance in the league.

After scoring a brace in a 4–0 victory over West Bromwich Albion on March 1, he increased his total score for the season to six (one in an EFL Cup home tie against Bolton in August). Despite starting with the game's only goal at Bristol City a week later, Bamford's form in March dropped during March, with missing penalties against Elland Road against Millwall on March 30, but Leeds's second goal in their shocking 1–2 loss to 10-man Wigan ten days later.

The Football Association gave Bamford a two-match suspension after accusing him with "successful deception of a match official" during a home game against Aston Villa, in which Bamford suffered injury in a brawl involving Anwar El Ghazi. The FA and Bamford cancelled El Ghazi's red card, and Bamford was banned from deception for two matches. Despite no contact being made, replays revealed that Bamford had fallen to the ground clutching his face.

In an injury-hit season, Bamford played 25 games in all competitions, scoring 10 goals in an injury-plagued season, having dropped out of automatic promotion positions with three games remaining following Leeds' loss to 10-man Wigan on 19 April. Leeds qualified for the playoffs, with Bamford suspended, Kemar Roofe launched the first leg of the Championship play-offs at Pride Park on May 11, 2019, netting the sole purpose of the game against sixth-placed Derby County for Roofe's 15th goal of the season.

However, Roofe was still missing in the Elland Road return leg by a returning (from suspension) Bamford after Roofe sustained an injury in the second half of the 1–0 victory at Pride Park. Leeds, however, was defeated 4-3 on aggregate over the two legs: Roofe was injured, Leeds lost the home leg 4–2 in an encounter that culminated in both teams' lowest to ten men and Derby losing their home leg 4–2 to Villa (which Villa won, rejoining already-promoted Norwich City and Sheffield United in the Premier League for the 2019-20 season). Bamford scored 13 goals in 44 games for Leeds, the highest level for the season.

Bamford, one of the main stars of Amazon Prime documentary Take Us Home in August 2019, told the tale of the 2018-19 season. Russell Crowe, an Academy Award-winning actor and Leeds fan, appeared in numerous episodes, and the series was narrated by Academy Award-winning actor and Leeds fan Russell Crowe.

After the summer, Bamford's first goal of the 2019-20 season came against Bristol City on August 4th, citing the fact that he was now "more aggressive" after the summer. Bamford took his total number of goals from five Championship games to his name in the away tie at Wigan on August 17th and a goal at Stoke the following week.

He was one of six players selected for the Championship PFA Player of the Month in September for August 2019, but Bamford lost out to his colleague Ben White, who won the award on September 4th.

Following the striker's three-game goal drought and Derby's 91st-minute equalizer, head coach Marcelo Bielsa said through his translator at the post-game press conference that "we cannot avoid talking about the current team's attacking issues, we have to investigate." "Maybe we can be more effective with [Bamford and Nketiah] in the team," he said about the 1–1 victory, where he dominated possession but still squandering at least 10 goalscoring opportunities to Derby's one shot on goal, despite 61% possession by halftime.

Eddie Nketiah's replacement for Bamford at the 79th minute, Bielsa continued: "I was thinking [of] taking out Klich and seeing Eddie and Bamford play together, and that Eddie and Bamford play together." [took] this decision: He needs to be able[d] and he's starting to know some key names, such as Nketiah, where he's looking to figure out how he integrates with... both of them." Kalvin Phillips, a teammate from the game, said in a separate interview that the same game, that "Pat" had played really well today, to be honest. I think he was unfortunate to be dismissed early, but you know, if Pat starts scoring, he'll certainly fly because he's getting in those positions where one's going to fly eventually." Bamford, on the other hand, struggled to find the net in September or October, and virtually every game during those two months was postponed, largely by Nketiah, but he did score his 30th goal of the season against Blackburn on November 9th, in which he also scored the final ball for Jack Harrison's game-winning goal just five minutes later) broke a 10-minute goal scoring drought for the centre-forward, but he scored his tenad

In Bamford's last game for Leeds against then-second-placed West Brom, a half-time replacement for Nketiah, had an immediate effect, taking home Leeds' sole goal of the game (although a deflection saw it count as a personal goal). Leeds maintained their position on goal difference after a 1-1 victory.

However, Leeds' 2–0 victory over Huddersfield Town brought the club's striking options into sharp focus, with the departure of Nketiah, Bamford's profligacy in front of goal during the 0–2 home loss on Wednesday and the 1–0 loss at Loftus Road seven days later (where he missed a penalty).

In March 2020, the English professional football season was suspended due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which was resurgent three months later. Leeds' first home game after the break was played on Sunday, when Bamford scored the 10th-minute opening goal in their 3–0 victory over then-fourth-placed Fulham. Leeds was relegated to the top of the Championship division table after this scoreline. As Leeds defeated Blackburn 3–1, Bamford opened the scoring for the second week. The gestational 2019–20 season was finally completed in late July, and Bamford scored 16 goals, making him Leeds United's top scorer by a large margin. The club lifted the Championship trophy, bringing the club back to the Premier League after a 16-year absence.

Bamford began the season with three goals in a 4–3 loss to Fulham and a late header at Bramall Lane in a 1–0 victory over Sheffield United. Bamford was nominated for three goals and one assist in September, but he lost out to Everton's Dominic Calvert-Lewin on October 2nd.

Bamford scored his first Premier League hat trick in Leeds' second game back from the international break on October 23 in a 3–0 away victory over Aston Villa. In Leeds' 2–0 victory over Crystal Palace, he was the winner of the Professional Footballers' Association Fans' Bristol Street Motors Premier League Player of the Month for September and October, scoring his 100th professional goal on 8 February 2021, netting Leeds' second goal.

After scoring 17 goals for Queens Park Rangers this season, the first player to score as many goals for a newly promoted side since Charlie Austin scored 18 goals for the 2014–15 season, a record sett-fourth with Son Heung-min, his highest career goal rebound since scoring 17 goals with Middlesbrough, including Bruno Fernandes, Mohamed Salah, and the season's top scorer, Harry Kane. Bamford played in all 38 league games, beginning virtually every game, with Bielsa occasionally using Tyler Roberts as a tactical replacement for him in the first few weeks of the season, and Rodrigo has been a consistent goal-scoring replacement for Bamford in the season's last games.

Bamford agreed to a new five-year deal with Leeds on August 19th, 2021. In a 1–1 draw at Burnley on August 29, he scored his first goal of the season with an 86th-minute equalizer. However, Bamford's forwards were forced to play in a 1–1 draw against Newcastle United, where Luke Ayling sustained a knee injury while playing in a 1–1 draw, despite the fact that a 17 September ankle injury, a game in which Luke Ayling was also injured, was used in various ways in November. Bamford scored the 95th-minute equalizer in a 2–2 home draw with Brentford in his 5 December return game, where he appeared as a 68th-minute substitute for Junior Firpo. The Brentford match coincidentally marked Ayling's return, and the defender provided the support for Bamford. However, the striker sustained his hip in the post-goal celebration, which barred him from attending the remainder of December's games, and he did not play any games in January 2022, nor did not play any games that month or February.

Bamford made his return to the bench in Jesse Marsch's first game in charge (a 1-0 loss at the King Power Stadium) on March 5th, the striker's first game in charge since December, and on March 10 he arrived as a 58th minute replacement for Jack Harrison. Bamford's first game in almost six months came as a result of Leeds's 2-1 victory over Norwich City, before being replaced by Robin Koch in the 60th minute. However, his debut in the game on March 18th saw him in apparent pain from the whistle, prompting him to be substituted by Sam Greenwood in the 23rd minute. In a wide-ranging interview with BBC Radio Leeds on April 9, 2022, following his re-injury against Wolves, he discussed the injuries he sustained during his blighted season, particularly the Wolves game.

Despite being in contention in the lineup for the crucial, last game of the season, Bamford made no further appearances for Leeds in the 2021-22 season, although he was ill-healthy with a bad case of Covid.

Bamford's litany of injuries continued into the new season in 13 August's first game against Southampton, but he was only active in two of them, with Dan James replacing him in the first half due to an adductor tear, and in the eight subsequent appearances he has made, he has only started two of them, remaining on the field for just over an hour.

International career

Bamford played for the Republic of Ireland at under the age of 18, as he prepares to play for Ireland under grandparent rule. In a friendly against the Czech Republic on February 28, 2012, Bamford made his first appearance for the England under-19s. Todd Kane, Chelsea's second half teammate, was brought on at halftime and 20 minutes into the second half, and Bamford was firmly on target for his first England under-19 goal. After a terrific start to the season, having scored 12 goals in 20 appearances, he was called up to the England under-21 team for the first time on November 17 for the first time. In a 9–0 victory over San Marino two days later, Bamford made his under-21s debut, coming on as a 65th-minute replacement.

Bamford was included in Gareth Southgate's 27-man preliminary squad for the 2015 UEFA European Under-21 Championship, but he was forced to leave the final squad due to injury.

Martin O'Neill, the Republic of Ireland's boss, revealed he and assistant manager Roy Keane were scouting Bamford as they were considering bringing him up to the Republic of Ireland squad if the striker changes allegiance to the Ireland national team in March and July. Mick McCarthy, the new Republic of Ireland's current manager, confirmed he would be speaking to Bamford about his call to the national team on December 23, 2018, and that on March 7, 2019, McCarthy said that Bamford will be moving his allegiance back to Ireland. McCarthy said in June 2019 that he was still waiting for Bamford to make a decision about playing for Ireland, claiming he was "refusing to chase" him with former Leeds and Republic of Ireland striker Robbie Keane, who said, "He should be chasing us." He ought to come here. No problem if he doesn't want to. By the way, we shouldn't be chasing people.

In October 2020, Bamford said in an interview that "would be a dream [come true]] to play for England and make the England squad for UEFA Euro 2020 (later postponed until 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic). He also said he would like to make the squad, but he was not selected as one of Gareth Southgate's squad of 26 players or his provisional 33-player-squad announced on May 25th, 2021.

For the first time since being called up for the England national team in August 2021, Bamford was recalled for the England national team for the first time in September's 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Hungary, Andorra, and Poland. On September 5, 2021, his debut against Andorra came after he started and played 62 minutes in the 4–0 victory at Wembley Stadium (he was not named for the game against Hungary but he was an unused replacement in the Poland game against Warsaw on September 8th).

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