Dwight Gayle

Gayle was born in Walthamstow, London.[5] He started his career in the academy of Arsenal but was released as a teenager. In 2007 he dropped down to the Essex Olympian Football League to play for Ryan,[6] before moving up to join Essex Senior League club Stansted in 2009, where he went on to score 57 goals in the 2010–11 season.[7]

In the summer of 2011, he signed for League Two club Dagenham & Redbridge. In August 2011, he was sent out to Bishop's Stortford on a season-long loan,[8] during which he scored 29 goals in 42 appearances in the Conference North.[9] He then signed a three-year professional contract with Dagenham & Redbridge in July 2012.[10] He made his professional debut for the Daggers on 18 August 2012, in a 2–0 defeat to Cheltenham Town.[11]

Gayle playing for Peterborough United in 2012

In November 2012, Gayle joined Peterborough United on loan with an option to make the move permanent in January 2013.[12] His Peterborough debut came on 24 November as a 53rd-minute substitute for Saido Berahino in a 1–1 away draw with Ipswich Town.[13] Gayle's first Peterborough goal was on 1 December: he picked up a poor backpass by Blackpool's Alex Baptiste to score what was only a consolation goal in a 4–1 home defeat.[14] Peterborough manager Darren Ferguson said of Gayle: "He listens. He picks up things quickly, which is always a sign of a good player. He's going to be a really good player the boy".[15]

On 24 December, after scoring five goals in six matches during his loan spell, Gayle agreed to sign permanently for Peterborough. He joined on 2 January 2013 on a four-and-a-half-year contract for a fee of £500,000 which could rise to £750,000.[16] On 2 March, he scored a hat-trick in a 3–2 win against Blackburn Rovers.[17]

On 3 July 2013, Gayle signed a four-year contract for newly promoted Premier League club Crystal Palace for an undisclosed fee, reported as a club record £4.5 million.[18] His former club Dagenham & Redbridge received £1 million of the initial transfer fee plus 20% of any extra payments made due to a sell-on clause added when he signed for Peterborough United.[19][7] He made his Palace debut playing 90 minutes in a home match against Tottenham Hotspur on 18 August in a 1–0 loss.[20] On 31 August, Gayle scored his first goal for the club and his first in the Premier League by successfully converting a penalty against Sunderland after he was fouled by John O'Shea.[21] On 5 October, he scored in a 3–1 defeat against Liverpool at Anfield.[22] On 25 December, he scored the only goal in a 1–0 away win against Aston Villa in added time at the end of the match.[23] In part due to injury, he found first team appearance opportunities limited for the remainder of the season.[24] He returned towards the end of the season scoring two goals as Palace came back from 3–0 down to draw 3–3 at home to Liverpool, which effectively ended their chances of the League title.[25]

On 26 August 2014, Gayle scored his first hat-trick for Crystal Palace, scoring three times in the first half to give Palace a 3–0 win over Walsall in the second round of the League Cup.[26] Four days later, he scored his first goal of the Premier League season in the opening minute of a 3–3 draw at Newcastle United.[27] On 23 November, Gayle scored in the home fixture against Liverpool for the second consecutive season as Palace defeated the Merseyside team 3–1.[28] On 4 January, Gayle scored his first goal of 2015 in a 4–0 win over Dover Athletic in the third round of the FA Cup. He then scored three goals in the team's next two matches; a 2–1 home win over Tottenham Hotspur and a 3–2 defeat of Burnley at Turf Moor.[29][30] Gayle ended the season as top scorer in all competitions for Crystal Palace, despite, like the season before, struggling to hold down a consistent place in the starting eleven.[31]

On 11 August 2015, Bristol City manager Steve Cotterill confirmed that Crystal Palace had accepted an undisclosed bid for Gayle.[32] On 15 August, the transfer broke down as it was confirmed that Bristol City were no longer interested in signing Gayle.[33] Gayle failed to hold down a regular first-team place, due to a series of injuries throughout the season.[34] On 12 April 2016, Gayle signed a contract with Crystal Palace to keep him at the club until 2019.[35] On 7 May 2016, the penultimate match of the season, Gayle scored two goals in a 2–1 victory over Stoke City to confirm Crystal Palace's safety in the Premier League. For the third season in a row Gayle, despite being unable to hold down a consistent place in the team, finished the season as top scorer in all competitions for Crystal Palace.[36]

On 1 July 2016, Gayle signed a five-year contract for newly relegated Championship club Newcastle United.[37] He made his debut for the club on 5 August, in a 1–0 defeat to Fulham.[38] He scored his first goal for the club on 13 August, in a 2–1 defeat to Huddersfield Town. After having his spot kick saved, he scored from the rebound with his head.[39] Gayle would score in the next two matches for Newcastle, with a brace in a 4–1 win over Reading,[40] and the only goal of the game against Bristol City.[41] It was not until over a month later when he found the net again, scoring a hat-trick against Norwich City, coming back from 3–1 down to win 4–3 in stoppage time.[42] During October, Gayle scored braces in consecutive victories against Brentford[43] and Barnsley,[44] and on 20 November, Gayle scored another brace, this time against Leeds United.[45] On 10 December, Gayle scored a hat-trick against Birmingham City.[46] He would later score in matches against Burton Albion and Nottingham Forest, ending 2016 as the league's top scorer with 19 goals.[47][48]

On 14 January 2017, Gayle scored the opening goal in an eventual 2–1 win over Brentford, and in doing so, became the first Newcastle player since Alan Shearer to score 20 league goals in a season. A few minutes later however, he sustained a hamstring injury, and had to be substituted off.[49] This injury kept him out for the next four matches; he would make his return against Norwich City,[50] and started the match against Aston Villa, but once again, had to leave the pitch early.[51] It would become a recurring problem for Gayle, and on three occasions from February to April, he had to be substituted off in the first half.[52][53][54] Unsurprisingly, his goal tally also suffered, as he scored twice during this period, netting against Huddersfield Town and Wigan Athletic.[55][56] Gayle was absent for the rest of April, and made his return on the final day of the season, scoring in a 3–0 win over Barnsley, as Newcastle edged out Brighton & Hove Albion by a point to win the Championship.[57]

On 18 November 2017, Gayle scored the opening goal in an eventual 4–1 loss to Manchester United. His goal was the first that the Red Devils had conceded from open play since 31 December 2016.[58] On 2 December, Gayle again scored the opening goal, this time, in a 3–1 loss to Chelsea.[59] On 9 December, Gayle was involved in both Newcastle goals in a 3–2 loss to Leicester City, assisting Joselu for the first and then scoring the equaliser.[60] In the second half of the season, Gayle remained a first team regular, but only scored three more goals for Newcastle – a brace against AFC Bournemouth in a 2–2 draw on 24 February 2018,[61] and a goal against Chelsea in a 3–0 win, the final day of the season.[62]

On 6 August 2018, Gayle joined newly relegated Championship club West Bromwich Albion on a season-long loan deal from Newcastle. The deal included Salomón Rondón going the other way for the 2018–19 season.[63] On 11 August, Gayle drew a foul from his former Newcastle teammate Tim Krul, now of Norwich City, with the resulting penalty scored by Jay Rodriguez.[64] On 18 August, Gayle scored his first goal for the club, the fourth goal in an emphatic 7–1 win over Queens Park Rangers. He was also the fouled player for both of Rodriguez's penalties.[65] During September, Gayle scored four times in three consecutive home match wins over Stoke City, Bristol City and Millwall.[66][67][68] On 29 September, he scored the third goal, a free-kick, in a 3–2 win over Preston North End.[69] For his performances, he was awarded with the Championship Player of the Month by the EFL.[70] On 6 October, Gayle scored a brace in a 4–1 win over Reading.[71]

On 14 February 2019, Gayle was suspended for two matches after accepting a charge of "successful deception of a match official", following an incident in the match against Nottingham Forest earlier that week when he "won" a late penalty enabling his team to take a 2–2 draw.[72] He finished the regular season with 23 goals as joint 4th-place goalscorer in the Championship, including two hat-tricks against Preston and Rotherham.[73] West Brom finished the season in 4th place,[74] setting up a derby playoff with Aston Villa in which Gayle led the scoring at Villa Park in the 11 May tie that Villa went on to win 2–1 and in which Gayle received a sending-off (a second yellow in the 88th minute) for a challenge on Villa keeper, Jed Steer, ruling him out of the return leg on 14 May.[75] Gayle ended the season as the club's Supporter's Player of the Season, whilst also picking up the club's Goal of the Season with his first goal in a 2–1 home victory against Stoke City.[76]