Full name Tyler Roberts Playing position Years Team Weight 75 kg | Place of birth Gloucester, England Number 27 Height 1.8 m Date joined 2016 (Oxford United F.C.) | |
 | ||
Date of birth (1999-01-12) 12 January 1999 (age 18) Current team Shrewsbury Town F.C. (#27 / Forward) Similar Kane Hemmings, Chris Maguire, Joe Rothwell, Marvin Johnson, Ryan Ledson | ||
Tyler Roberts (born 12 January 1999) is a Welsh professional footballer who plays as a forward for Shrewsbury Town, on loan from West Bromwich Albion, and the Wales national under-19 football team. He is an academy graduate of West Brom and made his senior debut for the club in May 2016, aged 17.
Contents
West bromwich albion academy prospect tyler roberts
Early career
Having spotted him playing for junior side Tredworth Tigers at a Gloucester Festival, West Brom decided to sign Roberts for their academy when he was just seven years old. Having then gone on to represent the club at age group level, Roberts was named on West Brom's bench for the first time on the final day of the 2014–15 season against Arsenal. However, he did not make it on to the pitch. Following Roberts' inclusion in the squad, he was listed by Match of the Day magazine as one of the 20 wonder-kids to look out for in 2016.
2015–16 season
On 14 January 2016, just two days after his 17th birthday, Roberts signed his first professional contract with West Brom, putting pen to paper on a 2 1⁄2-year contract. He made his Premier League debut for the club on the final day of the 2015–16 season in a 1–1 draw with Liverpool, coming on as a second-half substitute for fellow Albion academy graduate Jonathan Leko. Shortly after coming on, Roberts was booked for a rash challenge on Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson. Upon making his debut, Roberts became only the second player born in 1999 to play in the Premier League, following on from teammate Leko who had done so the month before.
2016–17 season: Loans to Oxford United and Shrewsbury Town
On 28 July 2016, Roberts joined League One side Oxford United on a six-month loan deal until January 2017. He made his debut for the club on the opening day of the 2016–17 season, coming off the bench for Chris Maguire in a 1–1 draw with Chesterfield. His League Cup debut came the following week when he entered the field of play as an extra-time substitute in Oxford's 1–0 win over Birmingham. He then scored his first goal for the club, and the first professional goal of his career, in a 4–2 victory over League Two club Exeter City in the 2016–17 EFL Trophy on 30 August. On 5 November, Roberts made his FA Cup debut and scored in a 5–0 win over Merstham of the Isthmian League. A month later, on 6 December, he scored the winning penalty in a shootout against Southend United, after a 1–1 draw in the second round of the EFL Trophy.
Later that month, Oxford manager Michael Appleton lodged a request to West Brom to extend Roberts' loan until the end of the season. However, on 17 January 2017, Roberts joined fellow League One side Shrewsbury Town on loan until the end of the season. He made his debut for the club four days later, starting in a 1–0 league win over Oldham Athletic. Roberts scored his first goal for the club, and his first in league football, on 4 February when he netted the opener in a 2–1 win over Bury.
Welsh national youth teams
Roberts was selected for England at schoolboy level but elected to play for Wales instead, qualifying for selection as both of his grandparents are Welsh. In 2014 he captained the Wales U16 side to glory in the Victory Shield, scoring in the final against Northern Ireland. The result was Wales' first outright triumph in the competition since the 1948/49 edition. In May 2015, Roberts, along with Liverpool winger Harry Wilson, was called up by Wales manager Chris Coleman to train with the senior squad. He returned to the U16 side in November and was part of the squad that retained the Victory Shield title. In June 2016, while not included in the tournament squad, Roberts was once again invited to train with the senior national side, this time alongside 15-year-old Ethan Ampadu of Exeter City in the buildup to Euro 2016.
Club
As of match played 25 March 2017.1 Includes Football League Trophy matches.