*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 22:50, 7 December 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 19 February 2023 (UTC)
Ellie Roebuck was born on 23 September 1999[2] in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. She grew up a fan of Sheffield United,[3] getting her first season ticket at the age of five, as well as admiring FC Barcelona – for her eighth birthday, her family went to the Joan Gamper Trophy match at the Camp Nou.[4]
Roebuck started playing grassroots football with Beighton Magpies in Sheffield; as part of the "Where Greatness Is Made" campaign, a plaque honouring Roebuck was installed at the club.[5] She then joined Sheffield United's Centre of Excellence, staying until she was 15.[6][7]
Roebuck joined the Manchester City development squad when she was 15.[6][7] She began to be involved with the first team in 2017, but did not play in any of the competitions they won.[9]
2018–20
In January 2018, Roebuck signed her first professional contract with Manchester City.[10] A month later, she made her senior breakthrough from the development squad, due to an early injury to Karen Bardsley, keeping a clean sheet in a 0–0 league draw against Chelsea.[11] She then played in the 2018 FA WSL Cup final that they lost 0–1 in March, a disappointment that had manager Nick Cushing encourage Roebuck to "write her own story" rather than be affected by the team's achievements.[9]
On 23 May 2019, Roebuck, having been part of the side that won both the FA Cup and League Cup, extended her contract with Manchester City for another two years.[12] At the end of the 2019–20 season, Roebuck was awarded the inaugural Barclays FA WSL Golden Glove having kept ten clean sheets in 16 league appearances.[13] She had a 90.9% save percentage for the season.[9]
2021–23
Roebuck missed much of the 2021–22 season with a calf injury, limiting her to 10 league appearances out of 22, her lowest since 2017. In addition she missed several international fixtures.[14]
She came back strong in the 2022–23 season as City's main goalkeeper: having suffered an exodus of major players, the team got off to a rocky start before mounting an unbeaten 14-match run in the league. They then went out of the 2022–23 FA Women's League Cup in the semi-finals in February, after which they began to lose more games.[15] In March 2023, Roebuck was outwitted by Sam Kerr in the early stages of the final of the 2023 Women's FA Cup that they lost 2–3.[16]
Roebuck made important saves in a league loss to Liverpool on 7 May 2023,[17] before having a poor performance against Manchester derby rivals Manchester United on 21 May 2023, in what was her last game for the club.[18] Eventually losing 1–2, City conceded a goal due to defensive errors in the second minute, and Roebuck received a red card 40 minutes later for a bad tackle outside of the box.[19][20]
2023–24
In the 2023–24 season, Roebuck was included in the matchday squad six times, but did not play.[18] On 30 March 2024, Roebuck disclosed that she had suffered an infarct in her occipital lobe earlier in the season.[21] When she received the test results, Roebuck was worried she would not be able to play football again, before being reassured that she would recover.[22] In announcing the reason for her absence, she said she had noticed symptoms for a while but would have "no lasting damage to her brain function or vision" and was recovering well. At the time, she had not featured in the season, nor for the England national team in the same period.[21][23][24] Roebuck had already been connected to a move to European champions Barcelona in January 2024,[25] and spent time there during her recovery with former City teammate Keira Walsh;[4] Roebuck's departure was announced by Manchester City on 18 May 2024.[26]
Barcelona, 2024–
Having not played for City since May 2023,[18] Roebuck signed a pre-contract for Barcelona in April 2024, to join at the end of the season.[27] On 19 June 2024, Barcelona announced the signing of Roebuck on a two-year deal.[28] Roebuck said of the move that she was looking forward to play for the club, calling it "the perfect team" for how she likes to play with the ball at her feet.[29] Barcelona had been kept in the know of Roebuck's stroke and recovery for the whole process, and she undertook further rehabilitation when she joined the team in preparation to play again.[4] Her rehabilitation included travelling with the squad to the United States during pre-season, without being available to play. She was included in a Barcelona matchday squad for the first time on 9 October 2024, for their 2024–25 Champions League match against Manchester City.[30] Nineteen months after her previous match, Roebuck made her debut for Barcelona on 7 December 2024 in a 4–1 win against Real Betis; a strong debut, she was denied a clean sheet in the last minute through an error in the outfield.[31][32][33]
In October 2018, England manager Phil Neville named Roebuck and Manchester City team-mate Georgia Stanway in his squad for the first time.[39] Roebuck made her senior team debut as a 79th minute substitute for Mary Earps on 8 November 2018 against Austria.[40] She made her first start, before being replaced by Earps at half time, in a 2–1 win against Spain on 9 April 2019.[41]
In June 2022, Roebuck was included in the England squad which won the Euro 2022.[42][43]
On 31 May 2023, Roebuck was named to the squad for the 2023 World Cup in July 2023.[44]
Great Britain
On 27 May 2021 it was announced that Roebuck had been selected as one of the two goalkeepers in the Great Britain team for the 2020 Olympics.[45] She made her debut on 21 July 2021 in a 2–0 win against Chile.[46] She played in all four games until they were eliminated in the quarterfinals by Australia.
Style of play
As a goalkeeper, Roebuck "enjoys dribbling, enjoys playing on the ball". She can recover balls and stop attackers with her feet when coming off her line, and also use her footwork to attack, playing out from the back by being involved in passing sequences, or being able to pass out long herself.[47] Having the skill to break lines through passing out from her area, she can also use her ability on the ball to create space.[29]
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