Mitchell Roberts

Mitchell Roberts
Personal information
Full name Mitchell Anthony Roberts[1]
Date of birth (2000-09-16) 16 September 2000 (age 24)[2]
Place of birth Hagley, England
Position(s) Defender
Team information
Current team
 Boston United
Number 4
Youth career
2011–2020 Birmingham City
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2020–2023 Birmingham City 1 (0)
2021 → Harrogate Town (loan) 4 (0)
2022 → Carlisle United (loan) 6 (0)
2022–2023 → Oldham Athletic (loan) 9 (0)
2023 → Solihull Moors (loan) 9 (1)
2023–2024 Oxford City 17 (0)
2024– Boston United 6 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 21:11, 14 September 2024 (UTC)

Mitchell Anthony Roberts (born 16 September 2000) is an English professional footballer who plays as a defender for National League club Boston United.

Roberts began his career as a youngster with Birmingham City. He made his Football League debut while on loan to Harrogate Town of League Two in 2021, and spent the second half of the 2021–22 season with another League Two club, Carlisle United. He moved on loan to National League team Oldham Athletic for the first half of the 2022–23 season, and spent the second half with divisional rivals Solihull Moors. He was released by Birmingham in 2023, joined Oxford City a couple of months into the new season, and signed for his fourth National League club, Boston United, in 2024.

Early and personal life

Roberts was born in Hagley, Worcestershire, where he attended Haybridge High School. He was a childhood fan of West Bromwich Albion.[2]

Career

Early career

Roberts joined Birmingham City's Academy as a 10-year-old in 2011, having previously played Sunday League football,[2][3] and took up a two-year scholarship in July 2017.[4] His first year was interrupted by a knee injury,[5] but he was able to move into the development squad in his second.[3] He was offered a two-year professional contract in March 2019,[6] and signed it in June.[3]

Rumours in the 2019 summer transfer window linked Roberts with a move to then Premier League champions Manchester City and Scottish Premiership champions Celtic, and it was reported that Birmingham were willing to sell "at the right price".[5] He did not leave, played 18 times for Birmingham's under-23 team during the abbreviated 2019–20 season, and signed a two-year professional contract in July 2020.[7]

He was used in pre-season friendlies ahead of the 2020–21 season,[8] but was not listed among those allocated a squad number.[9]

Harrogate Town loan

Roberts joined League Two newcomers Harrogate Town on 8 January 2021 on loan until the end of the 2020–21 season.[10] He made his club and Football League debut the next day, starting at left back in a 2–1 defeat away to Cambridge United.[11] He played for 54 minutes, during which he received a yellow card for a bad tackle, before being replaced by Jay Williams because of a hamstring injury.[12] He received treatment at Birmingham before returning to Harrogate towards the end of March,[13] and next appeared in the first team on 20 April, playing the whole of a 3–0 home defeat. He played twice more, finishing his loan spell with four appearances.[14]

Return to Birmingham

Roberts made his first-team debut for Birmingham in the EFL Cup second-round match at home to Fulham. Starting in a three-man defence alongside the experienced George Friend and fellow debutant Dion Sanderson, he played the whole of the 2–0 defeat.[15] Roberts made his first Championship appearance on 7 November 2021 when, with five senior defenders unavailable through injury, he started on the left of a back three in a 2–1 defeat at home to Reading.[16]

Carlisle United loan

Having made no further appearances for Birmingham, Roberts signed on loan for League Two club Carlisle United on 31 January 2022.[17] He made his debut on 12 February, starting in a back three in a 2–2 draw away to Colchester United described by the News and Star as a "grim struggle".[18] He finished the season with six appearances.[19]

Oldham Athletic loan

Roberts signed for National League club Oldham Athletic on 25 August 2022, on loan until 1 January 2023.[20] He made his debut the next day in the starting eleven for the match at home to Aldershot, which Oldham won with a stoppage-time goal. Manager John Sheridan described him as "excellent, very elegant, technically very good, comfortable on the ball."[21] He was a regular in the starting eleven[22] until a knee injury sustained in an FA Cup tie against Chester in mid-October kept him out for the rest of the loan spell.[23][24]

Solihull Moors loan

Roberts joined another National League club, Solihull Moors, on 30 January 2023 on loan until the end of the season.[25][26] He scored away to Altrincham in February, catching the goalkeeper off his line from 40 yards (37 m), but the hosts won the match 4–1.[27] Roberts started all five of Moors' unbeaten matches in March, but made only four other appearances for the club.[22][28]

Roberts was one of 13 professionals released by Birmingham at the end of the 2022–23 season.[29]

Non-league

Roberts joined National League club Oxford City in October 2023.[30] He had made 20 appearances in all competitions by the end of the season.[22]

In July 2024, Roberts joined Boston United, newly promoted to the National League.[31]

Career statistics

As of match played 14 September 2024
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League FA Cup EFL Cup Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Birmingham City 2020–21[14] Championship 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0 0
2021–22[19] Championship 1 0 0 0 1 0 — 2 0
2022–23[32] Championship 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0 0
Total 1 0 0 0 1 0 — 2 0
Harrogate Town (loan) 2020–21[14] League Two 4 0 — — — 4 0
Carlisle United (loan) 2021–22[19] League Two 6 0 — — — 6 0
Oldham Athletic (loan) 2022–23[22] National League 9 0 1 0 — 0 0 10 0
Solihull Moors (loan) 2022–23[22] National League 9 1 — — — 9 1
Oxford City 2023–24[22] National League 17 0 2 0 — 1[a] 0 20 0
Boston United 2024–25[22] National League 6 0 0 0 — 0 0 6 0
Career total 52 1 3 0 1 0 1 0 57 1
  1. ^ Appearance in FA Trophy

References

  1. ^ "Club list of registered players" (PDF). English Football League. 23 June 2020. p. 3. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  2. ^ a b c "Mitchell Roberts". Birmingham City F.C. Archived from the original on 15 July 2021. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  3. ^ a b c "Mitch Roberts signs professional deal with Blues". Birmingham City F.C. 7 June 2019. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  4. ^ "List of Players Registered as Scholars in Accordance with Rule C.3 Between 01/07/2017 and 31/07/2017". The Football Association. p. 58. Archived from the original on 29 June 2019.
  5. ^ "Deals for Blues scholars". Birmingham City F.C. 20 March 2019. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  6. ^ "Young Blues pair sign new contracts". Birmingham City F.C. 28 July 2020. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  7. ^ Chapman, Joseph (26 August 2020). "Birmingham City 0 Leicester City 2: Foxes see off Aitor Karanka's side". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  8. ^ "Men's squad numbers revealed". Birmingham City F.C. 4 September 2020. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  9. ^ Howell, Rhys (8 January 2021). "Mitchell Roberts 'buzzing' to join Harrogate Town on loan from Birmingham City". Harrogate Advertiser. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  10. ^ "Cambridge United 2–1 Harrogate". BBC Sport. 9 January 2021. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  11. ^ Howell, Rhys (10 January 2021). "Cambridge United 2 Harrogate Town 1: Advertiser player ratings". Harrogate Advertiser. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  12. ^ Rayner, Stuart (26 March 2021). "Josh Andrews and Mitch Roberts back but Harrogate Town will not rush them onto the pitch". Yorkshire Post. Retrieved 21 April 2021.
  13. ^ a b c "Games played by Mitchell Roberts in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  14. ^ "EFL Cup: Birmingham City 0–2 Fulham". BBC Sport. 24 August 2021. Retrieved 24 August 2021.
  15. ^ Dick, Brian (7 November 2021). "'Different animal' – Lee Bowyer promises Birmingham City investigation". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
  16. ^ "Birmingham City: Carlisle sign Mitchell Roberts as Ivan Sanchez joins Real Valladolid". BBC Sport. 31 January 2022. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
  17. ^ Colman, Jon (12 February 2022). "Colchester United 2–2 Carlisle United: Sho-Silva rescues late point for Blues". News and Star. Carlisle. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
  18. ^ a b c "Games played by Mitchell Roberts in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 8 May 2022.
  19. ^ "Sheridan signs defender Roberts". Oldham Athletic A.F.C. 25 August 2022. Retrieved 25 August 2022.
  20. ^ Geldard, Suzanne (26 August 2022). "Oldham Athletic celebrate late win over Aldershot Town". The Oldham Times. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
  21. ^ a b c d e f g "M. Roberts". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  22. ^ Geldard, Suzanne (15 October 2022). "Clarke and Roberts are added to Oldham's injury list". The Oldham Times. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
  23. ^ "Blues' Mitchell Roberts back from loan". Birmingham City F.C. 8 January 2023. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
  24. ^ Dick, Brian (30 January 2023). "Confirmed: Birmingham City sanction loan deal for defender". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 8 February 2023.
  25. ^ "Mitchell Roberts signs on loan". Solihull Moors F.C. 30 January 2023. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
  26. ^ Sutcliffe, Aaron (27 February 2023). "Football – Ardley apologises to supporters after Moors thrashed at Altrincham". Solihull Observer. Retrieved 30 April 2023.
  27. ^ "Loan report: March 2023". Birmingham City F.C. 11 April 2023. Retrieved 30 April 2023.
  28. ^ "Blues Men's: Retained and released list". Birmingham City F.C. 22 May 2023. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
  29. ^ "Mitchell Roberts joins Oxford City". Oxford City F.C. 7 October 2023. Retrieved 7 October 2023.
  30. ^ "Boston United notes: Defender signs, National League fixtures released and a friendly defeat". Lincolnshire World. 15 July 2024. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
  31. ^ "Games played by Mitchell Roberts in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 30 April 2023.