Daniel Crowley (footballer)

Early life

Crowley was born in Coventry and was a pupil of Christ the King Primary School. He later attended Cardinal Newman Catholic School in Coventry. He started his playing career at Aston Villa's academy.

Aston Villa

While at Aston Villa, Crowley made appearances for the under-16s at the age of 12 and the under-18s at age 15. Crowley was also involved in Aston Villa Under-19's victorious NextGen Series campaign during the 2012–13 season, and despite being only 16, appeared in Villa's 2–0 final win over Chelsea. While with Villa, Crowley earned plenty of plaudits for his passing ability, with his playing style described as being similar to current England international Jack Wilshere.

Arsenal

During the summer of 2013, Crowley moved from Aston Villa to Arsenal, before signing his first professional contract with the club in 2014 on his 17th birthday. Aston Villa strongly opposed the move's terms under the Elite Player Performance Plan and filed a formal complaint at the fixed rate, limited compensation received for the player due him being under 16, noting that he had represented their under-18 side in the league that season and should be treated as an under-18. Villa's Academy Director, Bryan Jones, commented that compensation at the level Villa received for Crowley, only £209,000 for nine years of investment, would deincentivise clubs from developing young players in the English game.

After impressive performances with the Arsenal under-18s and under-21s in his first two seasons, Crowley was included in the Arsenal squad for their pre-season tour of Singapore in summer 2015.

Loan to Barnsley

On 31 July 2015, it was announced that Crowley would join League One side Barnsley on loan until 3 January 2016. He made his professional debut for the club on 9 August 2015 in their opening fixture against Chesterfield, starting the match and playing 57 minutes as Barnsley lost 3–1. On 26 August, he scored his first goal for the club in the 60th minute of a Football League Cup match at home against Everton, but could not help prevent a comeback from the away side as Barnsley lost 5–3 after extra time. On 30 October, Crowley's loan was terminated early as he was recalled by Arsenal. After Crowley was recalled Barnsley manager Lee Johnson, himself an Arsenal academy graduate, expressed his disappointment at losing the player, claiming he is "the best 18-year-old I've ever seen".

Loan to Oxford United

On 1 July 2016, League One side Oxford United signed Crowley on loan until the end of the season. He scored his first goal for the club, an injury-time consolation goal in a 2–4 EFL Cup second-round defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion, on 23 August, and his first League goal, another injury-time consolation, after coming on as a substitute in a 2–1 defeat to Coventry City on 18 October. In the next game, his full League debut for the club, Crowley scored the second Oxford goal in a 2–2 draw with Port Vale. His loan ended six months early in December 2016 at Oxford's instigation. He made 11 appearances in all competitions (six as a substitute) and scored three goals.

Loan to Go Ahead Eagles

In December 2016 Crowley undertook a successful trial at the Dutch club Go Ahead Eagles and joined the club on loan in the Eredivisie. Crowley scored his first goal at the De Adelaarshorst for Eagles on 26 February 2017 in a league game against Vitesse. In April 2017, Crowley again scored for Go Ahead in a game against Heracles in the Eredivisie.

Willem II

On 9th July 2017 it was announced that Crowley would be in a three year deal, making a permanent move to Dutch club Willem II.

International career

Crowley is eligible to play for both England and Ireland at international level, qualifying for Ireland through his grandparents.

Crowley made his debut for England's under-16 team against Northern Ireland in October 2011. He was called up to Ireland's under-16 squad in January 2012 for a double-header against Portugal, going on to make appearances for both countries at under-16 level over the course of the 2011–12 season.

In August 2012, Crowley made the first of twelve appearances for England under-17s in the St George’s Park International Tournament. In February 2013, the Football Association of Ireland announced that Crowley had pledged his allegiance to Ireland and selected him for two under-17 friendlies against Croatia. However, the following month, Crowley returned to the England set-up to play in the 2013 UEFA European Under-17 Championship elite round – his first international games in official competition at any level. He made his final appearance for England under-17s against Italy in September 2013. He was named again in an England under-17 squad in January 2014.

In September 2015, it was reported in the Irish Times that Crowley was on the verge of declaring for Ireland, with Republic of Ireland senior manager Martin O'Neill confirming that he had spoken to the player's father. However, in October 2015, Crowley received his first call-up to an England under-19 squad.

Career statistics

Honours

Aston Villa U19