Rhian Brewster
Rhian Joel Brewster (born 1 April 2000) is an English professional footballer who plays as a striker for Premier League club Sheffield United and the England national under-21 team. In 2017, he was part of the England squad which won the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup in India and was awarded the Golden Boot award for ending as the competition's leading goalscorer.
Personal information | ||||||||||||||||
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Full name | Rhian Joel Brewster[1] | |||||||||||||||
Date of birth | [2] | 1 April 2000|||||||||||||||
Place of birth | Chadwell Heath, England | |||||||||||||||
Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)[3] | |||||||||||||||
Position(s) | Striker | |||||||||||||||
Club information | ||||||||||||||||
Current team | Sheffield United | |||||||||||||||
Number | 24 | |||||||||||||||
Youth career | ||||||||||||||||
2008–2015 | Chelsea | |||||||||||||||
2015–2017 | Liverpool | |||||||||||||||
Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||
2017–2020 | Liverpool | 0 | (0) | |||||||||||||
2020 | → Swansea City (loan) | 20 | (10) | |||||||||||||
2020– | Sheffield United | 18 | (0) | |||||||||||||
National team‡ | ||||||||||||||||
2016–2017 | England U16 | 4 | (4) | |||||||||||||
2016–2017 | England U17 | 23 | (20) | |||||||||||||
2017 | England U18 | 1 | (0) | |||||||||||||
2019– | England U21 | 9 | (0) | |||||||||||||
Honours
| ||||||||||||||||
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 09:34, 9 February 2021 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 22:38, 13 November 2020 (UTC) |
Club career
Early career
Brewster was born in Chadwell Heath, Greater London[2] to a Barbadian father and Turkish Cypriot mother.[4] Brewster attended school at Chadwell Heath Primary School before joining the Chadwell Heath and Shield Academy YFC.[5] At the age of seven, he was scouted by representatives from Chelsea, Arsenal, West Ham United and Charlton Athletic. He ultimately joined Chelsea where he developed his game under coach Michael Beale in the club's academy until the age of 14, whereafter he left to join Premier League rivals Liverpool.[5][6]
Liverpool
In 2015, Liverpool signed Brewster from Chelsea following a recommendation by Beale who had taken up a position with the club. Brewster's decision to make the move was motivated in part by his father's influence who believed that he had a better chance of breaking through to the first team through Liverpool's academy than Chelsea's.[5][7][8] He initially joined the club's U18 side before being promoted to the U23 squad, where he scored on his debut against Ipswich Town.[9] During his time with the club's academy, Brewster was placed on a special training regime which included one-on-one sessions with former Liverpool and Real Madrid winger, Steve McManaman.[6]
Brewster was then called up by manager Jürgen Klopp to the first-team for club friendlies in October and November 2016 during which he scored a hat-trick against Accrington Stanley.[7][10] Later that season, he was named on the bench for Liverpool's Premier League game against Crystal Palace on 23 April 2017, but remained an unused substitute.[11] The following season, during Liverpool's UEFA Youth League match against Spartak Moscow, Brewster was the victim of alleged racist comments from Spartak's captain, Leonid Mironov. An investigation into the incident was opened by UEFA after the match and Brewster later said in an interview with The Guardian that it had been the seventh such instance he had experienced, including once before against the same opposition.[12][13] UEFA later ruled that there was insufficient evidence to take further action against Mironov.[14]
On 12 January 2018, during an U23 match against Manchester City, Brewster received oxygen and had to be stretchered off the field after landing awkwardly following an aerial challenge.[15] He was later diagnosed with a high ankle sprain and related ligament damage and was ruled out for the remainder of the season.[16][17] In March, he had to undergo a second operation in order to repair damage to his knee which he sustained during the same incident.[18] Towards the end of the season, Brewster was the subject of intense transfer speculation which culminated in Liverpool cancelling a scheduled friendly against Borussia Mönchengladbach after the German club were alleged to have 'tapped him up'.[19]
In June 2018, Brewster signed a five-year professional contract with Liverpool.[20] He was named in the match squad for the second leg of Liverpool's 2018–19 Champions League semi-final against Barcelona on 7 May 2019, but remained an unused substitute.[21] Despite never having played in a competitive game for the club, Brewster was on the bench again in the 2019 UEFA Champions League Final against Tottenham Hotspur on 1 June 2019 so collected a winner's medal as Liverpool won 2–0.[22]
He made his competitive debut for the club on 25 September 2019 in an EFL Cup match against Milton Keynes Dons.[23]
Loan to Swansea City
—Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp on Rhian Brewster's development at Swansea.[24]
On 7 January 2020, Brewster joined Championship side Swansea City on loan for the remainder of the season, where he reunited with former England U-17 manager Steve Cooper.[25][26] He made his debut for the club in the South Wales derby against Cardiff City on 12 January, which ended in a goalless draw, before scoring his first professional goal in a 2–1 win over Wigan Athletic at the Liberty Stadium six days later.[27][28]
In March 2020, the Championship season was temporarily suspended due to the outbreak of the Coronavirus disease. Following the season's restart in June, Brewster scored two goals in a 3–0 win over Middlesbrough, increasing his tally to 6 goals in 12 games.[29] Brewster finished the season with 11 goals in 22 appearances.[30]
Return to Liverpool
Brewster returned to Liverpool following his loan spell at Swansea to begin preseason training prior to the beginning of the 2020–21 Premier League campaign. He continued his scoring form, netting in a friendly against VfB Stuttgart,[31] and then scoring a brace against FC Red Bull Salzburg in Liverpool's next friendly to bring them level from 2–0 down.[32]
Thereafter, Brewster appeared as a substitute in the 2020 FA Community Shield. The game ended 1–1 and went to penalties, with Brewster hitting the crossbar on his attempt, leading to Arsenal winning the shootout and lifting the trophy.[33]
Sheffield United
On 2 October 2020, Sheffield United announced the signing of Brewster from Liverpool on a five-year deal, for a reported fee of around £23.5 million.[34] The deal includes a buy back clause of £40 million, valid until 30 June 2023.[35]
International career
Brewster is an England youth international and has represented the nation at various youth levels but remains eligible to play for Turkey through his Turkish Cypriot mother[36][37] and Barbados through his Barbadian father.[38]
Having previously represented England at U16 level, Brewster scored six goals in five appearances for England U17 in 2016, including a hat-trick against Croatia and a brace against Germany.[7] He then led the nation's attack at 2017 UEFA European Under-17 Championship and featured in the final against Spain. England ultimately lost on penalties with Brewster one of the players who missed his spot-kick.[6][39] He ended the tournament with a return of three goals in six appearances.[40]
Later that year, Brewster gained widespread press attention [41] after scoring successive hat-tricks against the USA and Brazil in the quarter-final and semi-finals of the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup.[6][42][43][44] He then scored England's opening goal in the final as the team overcame Spain 5–2 to claim the trophy.[45] Brewster's return of eight goals for the tournament saw him win the Golden Boot award for the top scorer and he was also awarded the Bronze Ball for his individual performances.[46] In December 2017, Brewster revealed in an interview with The Guardian that his teammate Morgan Gibbs-White was racially abused by a Spanish player during the match with the FA reporting the incident to FIFA.[47]
On 30 August 2019, Brewster was included in the England U21 squad for the first time [48] and made his debut as a 79th minute substitute during the 3–2 2021 U21 Euro qualifying win against Turkey on 6 September 2019.[49]
Career statistics
- As of match played 9 February 2021
Club | Season | League | FA Cup | EFL Cup | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
Liverpool | 2018–19[50] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |
2019–20[51] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
2020–21[52] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[lower-alpha 1] | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
Total | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||
Swansea City | 2019–20[51] | Championship | 20 | 10 | — | — | — | 2[lower-alpha 2] | 1 | 22 | 11 | |||
Sheffield United | 2020–21[52] | Premier League | 18 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 19 | 0 | ||
Career total | 38 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 45 | 11 |
- Appearance in FA Community Shield
- Appearances in Championship play-offs
Honours
Liverpool
England U17
Individual
- FIFA U-17 World Cup Golden Boot: 2017[46]
- FIFA U-17 World Cup Bronze Ball: 2017[46]
References
- "2017 Under-17 World Cup squad lists" (PDF). FIFA. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 October 2017. Retrieved 31 October 2017.
- "Rhian Brewster". 11v11.com. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 13 October 2019.
- "Rhian Brewster: Overview". Premier League. Retrieved 13 October 2019.
- Cole, Jackson (30 October 2019). "Who is Rhian Brewster? 10 things you didn't know about Liverpool wonderkid who could feature against Arsenal in Carabao Cup". Retrieved 18 April 2020.
- Chowdhury, Saj (25 October 2017). "Rhian Brewster: 'I've never seen a player like him before'". BBC Sport. Retrieved 30 October 2017.
- Hunter, Andy (26 October 2017). "Rhian Brewster: England U17's natural finisher on the fast-track at Liverpool". Guardian. Retrieved 30 October 2017.
- Lusby, Jack (24 January 2017). "Rhian Brewster: Liverpool academy forward set for a breakthrough 2017". This is Anfield. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
- Kelly, Andy (4 October 2016). "Rhian Brewster — who is the Liverpool youngster who scored five in two games for England?". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
- Pearce, James (6 March 2017). "Liverpool youngster Rhian Brewster on snubbing Chelsea, sleepless nights and being inspired by Suarez". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 30 October 2017.
- Kelly, Andy (13 November 2016). "Gomez ends Liverpool injury nightmare". Liverpool Echo.
- "Liverpool 1–2 Crystal Palace". BBC Sport. 23 April 2017. Retrieved 29 October 2017.
- Taylor, Daniel (28 December 2017). "Liverpool's Rhian Brewster: 'When I'm racially abused, I just want to be left alone'". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
- "Rhian Brewster: England and Liverpool striker alleges racial abuse". BBC Sport. 29 December 2017. Retrieved 29 December 2017.
- Pearce, James (7 March 2018). "Liverpool praise Rhian Brewster for courage during UEFA investigation". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 7 March 2018.
- Jones, Adam (12 January 2018). "Rhian Brewster stretchered off during Liverpool U23s match against Man City". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
- Kelly, Andy (15 January 2018). "Liverpool striker Rhian Brewster confirmed with ligament damage". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 16 January 2018.
- Kelly, Andy (25 January 2018). "Highly-rated Liverpool striker Rhian Brewster likely to miss rest of the season". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
- Pearce, James (7 March 2018). "Liverpool youngster Rhian Brewster undergoes second operation on ankle injury". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 7 March 2018.
- "Liverpool cancel Borussia Mönchengladbach game over Rhian Brewster". Sky Sports. 19 May 2018. Retrieved 21 May 2018.
- "Rhian Brewster: Liverpool forward agrees new contract". BBC Sport. 18 June 2018. Retrieved 18 June 2018.
- "Liverpool 4-0 Barcelona (4-3 agg)". BBC Sport. 7 May 2019. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
- Taylor, Daniel (1 June 2019). "Liverpool win Champions League after Salah and Origi sink Tottenham". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
- "MK Dons 0–2 Liverpool". BBC Sport. 25 September 2019.
- Rimmer, Joe (7 July 2020). "Jurgen Klopp planning Rhian Brewster talks after Liverpool striker enjoys impressive loan spell at Swansea". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
- "Swansea City complete Rhian Brewster loan from Liverpool". swanseacity.com. 7 January 2020. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
- Vincent, Gareth (17 January 2020). "Rhian Brewster: Liverpool forward determined to shine at Swansea". BBC. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
- Vincent, Gareth (12 January 2020). "Cardiff City 0–0 Swansea City". BBC Sport. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
- Pritchard, Dafydd (18 January 2020). "Swansea City 2–1 Wigan Athletic". BBC Sport. Retrieved 19 January 2020.
- "Middlesbrough 0–3 Swansea City". BBC Sport. 20 June 2020. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
- Vincent, Gareth (30 July 2020). "Rhian Brewster: Swansea City hope to land Liverpool striker on second loan". BBC Sport. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
- "Brewster scores on return as Liverpool start pre-season with Stuttgart win". teamtalk.com. 22 August 2020. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
- "Salzburg 2-2 Liverpool: Rhian Brewster at the double". This Is Anfield. 25 August 2020. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
- Malam, Charlie (29 August 2020). "Arsenal 1-1 Liverpool: Gunners WIN Community Shield 5-4 on penalties". Express.co.uk. Retrieved 30 August 2020.
- "Patient Blades land new record signing". Sheffield United F.C. 2 October 2020. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
- "Transfer agreed for Aston Villa 'target' Rhian Brewster as Liverpool buy-back clause 'revealed'". Birmingham Mail. 2 October 2020. Retrieved 12 December 2020.
- Sarigul, Emre (23 April 2017). "Exclusive: Liverpool wonder-kid Rhian Brewster can represent Turkey". Retrieved 29 October 2017.
- "Hülya Hassan: Rhian hat-trick yapınca ağladım". Halkın Sesi. 7 November 2017. Retrieved 30 April 2018.
- "The (Golden) Boy Next Door: Fearless Rhian Brewster will 'do whatever is necessary' to fulfil his potential..." JOE. Retrieved 18 April 2020.
- "Spot-on Spain claim record third U17 EURO title". UEFA. 19 May 2017. Retrieved 30 October 2017.
- "Uner-17 - Rhian Brewster". UEFA. Retrieved 30 October 2017.
- Smith, Rory (28 December 2017). "For England's Next Generation, Shine of Youth Trophies Only Carries So Far". The New York Times. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
- Harris, Daniel (25 October 2017). "England in U17 World Cup final after Rhian Brewster hat-trick sinks Brazil". The Guardian.
- Selvaraj, Jonathan (21 October 2017). "Brewster announces himself with complete performance against U.S." ESPN.
- "England have reached another World Cup final". The Independent. 25 October 2017.
- Unwin, Will (28 October 2017). "England Under-17s overwhelm Spain to land spectacular World Cup win". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 October 2017.
- "Brazao, Brewster and Foden lead individual honours". FIFA. 28 October 2017. Retrieved 30 October 2017.
- Taylor, Daniel (28 December 2017). "Liverpool's Rhian Brewster: 'When I'm racially abused, I just want to be left alone'". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
- "ENGLAND U21S KICK-OFF A NEW CAMPAIGN AND AIDY BOOTHROYD HAS PICKED HIS SQUAD". The FA. 30 August 2019. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
- "EDDIE NKETIAH AND REISS NELSON SCORE AS ENGLAND U21S WIN OPENING EURO QUALIFIER". The FA. 6 September 2019. Retrieved 7 September 2019.
- "Games played by Rhian Brewster in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 October 2019.
- "Games played by Rhian Brewster in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 25 September 2019.
- "Games played by Rhian Brewster in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
- McNulty, Phil (1 June 2019). "Tottenham Hotspur 0–2 Liverpool". BBC Sport. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
- Rose, Gary (14 August 2019). "Liverpool 2–2 Chelsea". BBC Sport. Retrieved 15 August 2019.
- Shamoon Hafez (17 January 2019). "England's U17 World Cup winners - where are they now?". BBC Sport. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
- Andy Walker (19 May 2017). "Young Lions beaten on penalties in UEFA Euro U17 Championship final". The FA. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
External links
- Profile at the Liverpool F.C. website