Fabian Delph

1.1. Childhood and Education

Delph was born in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. He attended Tong Secondary School, which he left in 2006 at the age of 16 to sign a two-year scholarship with Leeds United. He completed his studies at Boston Spa School, a partner institution to Leeds.

1.2. Youth Career

Delph began his football journey as a youngster at Bradford City. In September 2001, he moved to Leeds United at the age of 11, following a recommendation to their academy coach Greg Abbott by former Bradford manager Paul Jewell, whose son played alongside Delph. After a series of impressive performances in spring 2007, Delph was appointed captain of the Leeds Reserves team, demonstrating his leadership qualities from a young age.

2.1. Leeds United

Fabian Delph made his debut for Leeds United as a substitute on 6 May 2007, in the final match of the 2006-07 season against Derby County. He was awarded his first professional contract on 11 January 2008 and made two substitute appearances during the 2007-08 season.

In the 2008-09 season, Delph began to impress, earning praise from manager Gary McAllister and former Leeds player Eddie Gray during pre-season friendlies. He made his first League Cup start on 13 August 2008 in a 5-2 away win against Chester City. On 5 September 2008, Delph signed a new four-year contract with Leeds. The following day, he scored his first senior goal as Leeds defeated Crewe Alexandra 5-2. He continued his strong form by scoring two "superb goals" from long range against Walsall in a 3-0 victory on 25 October 2008.

His performances attracted the attention of Premier League clubs, with Arsenal reportedly considering a 6.00 M GBP bid and Newcastle United having a bid rejected by Leeds chairman Ken Bates, who stated Leeds "don't deal in petty cash." Despite the interest, Delph remained with Leeds through the January 2009 transfer window. In March 2009, his form earned him a nomination for the League One Player of the Year award, and he won the Young Player of the Year at the Football League Awards. He also received the Young Player of the Season, Goal of the Season (for his curling shot against Brighton & Hove Albion), and Players' Player of the Season awards at the club's end-of-season ceremony. After Leeds' defeat in the play-off semi-finals against Millwall, speculation about his future intensified, but he played in early pre-season matches before eventually moving to Aston Villa.

On 20 January 2012, Delph returned to Leeds United on loan, initially until 25 February 2012. He made his second debut for the club against Ipswich Town on 21 January. However, he sustained an ankle injury in a match against Coventry City and returned to Aston Villa for treatment, which ultimately led to his loan not being renewed, ending his second spell at Leeds.

2.2. Aston Villa

After Leeds failed to gain promotion from League One, several Premier League clubs, including Everton, Manchester City, Fulham, Sunderland, and Tottenham Hotspur, were linked with Delph. On 3 August 2009, Aston Villa agreed an undisclosed fee with Leeds for his transfer, which was reported to be 6.00 M GBP. The transfer was finalized the following day after Delph completed a medical and agreed to personal terms.

Delph made his full Premier League debut for Aston Villa on 15 August 2009 against Wigan Athletic on the opening day of the 2009-10 season. In a 2-0 loss, he received a yellow card and was substituted in the 61st minute. His first goal for Aston Villa came on 23 January 2010 in an FA Cup victory at home against Brighton & Hove Albion. On 17 April 2010, Delph suffered a serious knee injury during training, later confirmed to be a cruciate ligament injury, which sidelined him for up to eight months. He returned to action on 26 February 2011 in a Premier League win over Blackburn Rovers, playing as an impromptu left-back. On 3 March 2011, Delph signed a new contract with Aston Villa, extending his stay until 2015. He scored his second goal for Villa against Tranmere Rovers in the League Cup on 28 August 2012.

During the 2012-13 Premier League season, Delph established himself as a regular under manager Paul Lambert, making 24 appearances. He formed effective partnerships in central midfield with Ashley Westwood and Yacouba Sylla. The 2013-14 season saw Delph deliver some of his best performances for Villa, earning him the Aston Villa Player of the Month award for August, September, and October 2013. He came close to scoring his first Premier League goal against Arsenal, hitting the post with a long-range shot. His first goal of the season came in a 3-0 League Cup win over Rotherham United. On 4 December, he scored his first Premier League goal with a powerful strike to secure a 3-2 away win against Southampton. His consistent performances throughout the season, including standout displays against Everton, Liverpool, and Chelsea, led to him being voted Player of the Year by Aston Villa supporters.

On 25 January 2015, amid reports of his potential departure due to an expiring contract, Delph signed a new four-and-a-half-year contract, committing to Villa until 2019. On 7 March, he scored the opening goal as Villa defeated local rivals West Bromwich Albion 2-0 to reach their first FA Cup semi-final since 2010. The victory prompted a pitch invasion by fans, during which Delph claimed his captain's armband was stolen. On 19 April, he scored the winning goal in the semi-final as Villa came from behind to defeat Liverpool 2-1, reaching their first FA Cup final since 2000. On 30 May, Delph captained Aston Villa in the 2015 FA Cup Final at Wembley Stadium, where they were defeated 4-0 by Arsenal.

In July 2015, Delph was reported to be undergoing a medical ahead of an 8.00 M GBP transfer to Manchester City. However, he initially released a statement on the Aston Villa website confirming he would remain at the club. Just a week later, reports emerged that he had changed his mind again and was indeed having a medical at Manchester City.

2.3. Manchester City

On 17 July 2015, just six days after publicly stating he would stay at Aston Villa, Fabian Delph signed a five-year contract with Premier League club Manchester City for a reported fee of 8.00 M GBP. He made his debut a week later against Real Madrid in the 2015 International Champions Cup in Melbourne, but was substituted after only 18 minutes due to injury in a match City lost 1-4. Delph scored his first goal for Manchester City on 28 November 2015 against Southampton, contributing to a 3-1 victory. His third goal for the club came in a 1-0 win over Steaua Bucharest in a UEFA Champions League qualifier in August 2016.

After an injury to Benjamin Mendy, Delph successfully transitioned to playing as a left-back and established himself in that position during Manchester City's record-breaking start to the 2017-18 season. He started 14 consecutive Premier League matches, scoring once against Crystal Palace, as City set a new record of 18 consecutive league wins. In February 2018, he was sent off in an FA Cup defeat to Wigan Athletic and subsequently suffered a muscle problem, not returning to full fitness until April. During his time at Manchester City, Delph contributed to the team winning two consecutive Premier League titles in the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons.

2.4. Everton

On 15 July 2019, Delph signed a three-year contract with Everton for an initial fee of 8.50 M GBP, potentially rising to 10.00 M GBP with add-ons. He spent three seasons with the club. On 10 June 2022, it was reported that he would leave Everton at the end of the month upon the expiration of his contract.

3.1. Youth International Career

Delph began his international career in March 2008, making his debut as a substitute for the England national under-19 team. In November 2008, he received his first call-up to the England under-21 squad by manager Stuart Pearce. He earned his first under-21 cap on 18 November as a late substitute for Craig Gardner in England's 2-0 victory over the Czech Republic.

3.2. Senior International Career

On 28 August 2014, Delph was named in the senior England squad for the first time, ahead of a friendly against Norway and the opening Euro 2016 qualifier against Switzerland. He made his international debut in the friendly against Norway on 3 September 2014, coming on as a 69th-minute substitute for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in a 1-0 win. Five days later, in England's first Euro 2016 qualification match, Delph made his first start and played the entire 90 minutes of a 2-0 away victory against Switzerland at St. Jakob-Park, Basel.

On 16 May 2016, Delph was selected for the provisional UEFA Euro 2016 England squad, but was later ruled out of the tournament on 26 May due to a groin injury.

Delph was named in the 23-man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. He made his World Cup debut against Panama on 24 June 2018, coming on as a 63rd-minute substitute in a dominant 6-1 win. He played the full 90 minutes of England's final group stage match against Belgium on 28 June.

Before making his competitive debut for England, Delph was also eligible to represent the Guyana due to his ancestry.

5.1. Club

¹ One appearance in Football League Trophy, two in League One play-offs
² Appearance(s) in UEFA Europa League or UEFA Champions League

5.2. International