Billy O'Brien (footballer)
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Billy Thomas O'Brien [1] | ||
| Date of birth | 21 November 1995 | ||
| Place of birth | Bury, England | ||
| Playing position | Goalkeeper | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2006–2014 | Manchester City | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2014–2017 | Manchester City | 0 | (0) |
| 2014 | → Hyde FC (loan) | 13 | (0) |
| 2017 | → St Mirren (loan) | 15 | (0) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2013–2014 | Wales U19 | 2 | (0) |
| 2015– | Wales U21 | 8 | (0) |
|
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 7 May 2017. ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 22 April 2017 | |||
Billy O'Brien (born 21 November 1995) is a professional footballer who last played for St Mirren in the Scottish Championship, on loan from Manchester City. Internationally, he plays at youth level for Wales.[2]
Career
Club
O'Brien, a fan of Manchester City, joined the team in 2006 after having taken part in trials with both them and Manchester United.[2][3] At the club, he played for their youth teams and took part in competitions such as the UEFA Youth League before signing a professional contract with Manchester City in July 2014.[4]
He spent the first half of the 2014/2015 season on loan at Hyde FC, debuting for the club in a defeat to Hednesford Town.[5] In the latter half of 2016, O'Brien played in the Premier League 2 as part of Manchester City's squad and was also selected by manager Pep Guardiola to travel with the first team on a number of occasions including as a backup keeper against Celtic in the Champions League.[4][6][7] O'Brien went on loan until the end of the season to St Mirren in January 2017.[8] He became a regular starter for the club, keeping a clean sheet on his debut against Dundee and playing in the final of the Scottish Challenge Cup.[9][10]
O'Brien revealed he would leave City after his contract expired in June 2017.[11]
International
O'Brien played in two matches of the Wales U19 team's attempt to qualify for the 2014 UEFA European Under-19 Championship in 2013 and 2014. [1] By 2015, O'Brien had moved up to the Wales U21 squad, playing for them in eight games of their campaign to qualify for the 2017 UEFA European Under-21 Championship. O'Brien made 15 saves while conceding 10 goals throughout all eight games.[12]
Career statistics
- As of 7 May 2017
| Club | Season | League | Scottish Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Hyde FC | |||||||||||
| 2014–15 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 0 | |
| Total | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 0 | |
| St Mirren | 2016–17 | 15 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 20 | 0 |
| Total | 15 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 20 | 0 | |
| Career total | 28 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 33 | 0 | |
Honours
- St Mirren
References
- 1 2 "Billy O'Brien". Soccerway. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
- 1 2 "Billy O'Brien". St Mirren Football Club. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
- ↑ "Billy O'Brien Reflects Upon Wales U21s & Life at Man City". FA Wales. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
- 1 2 "Billy O'Brien". Manchester City. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
- ↑ "Hednesford 4-1 Hyde". Hyde United. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
- ↑ "Man City boss Guardiola springs a surprise in his first Blues squad". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
- ↑ "Billy Big-Time". Scottish Sun. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
- ↑ "Billy O'Brien Joins On Loan". St Mirren Football Club. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
- ↑ "Dundee 0-2 St Mirren". BBC Sport. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
- 1 2 "Dundee Utd 2-1 St Mirren". BBC Sport. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
- ↑ "Manchester City academy player ends 11-year stay". City Watch. 18 May 2017. Retrieved 27 May 2017.
- ↑ "Billy O'Brien". UEFA. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
External links
- Billy O'Brien at Soccerbase
- Billy O'Brien at Soccerway