| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Elijah Gift Izobodo John | ||
| Date of birth | 11 June 2006 | ||
| Place of birth | Corella, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Winger | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Athletic Bilbao B | ||
| Number | 30 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2015 | Escuela de Fútbol Francisco Castejón | ||
| 2015–2017 | Huddersfield Town | ||
| 2017–2023 | Liverpool | ||
| 2023–2024 | Athletic Bilbao | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2024– | Athletic Bilbao B | 0 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2024 | Spain U18 | 0 | (0) |
| 2024– | Spain U19 | 0 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 03:14, 16 October 2024 (UTC) | |||
Elijah Gift Izobodo John (born 11 June 2006) is a Spanish footballer who plays as a winger for Athletic Bilbao B.
Gift was born in Corella, Navarre, Spain to a Nigerian father and a Spanish mother of Cuban descent. His family moved to England around 2015 for work reasons. Elijah attended All Saints Catholic College from 2017 until 2022, where in a Physical Education lesson he had a penalty saved by a then rising goalkeeper Kacper Beska. Gift (known for taking PE football lessons like they were the World Cup) was consistently marked out of games by a certain Turkish centre back struggling to ever get on the ball. He consistently was beaten and often got angry with teachers when he wasn’t on the winning team. Elijah (known for rowdiness in the changing rooms) had to be brought down to earth by his teacher once, when he refused to pick up dirt from his cleets off the floor, with Mr McCallum being quoted to say “clean up after yourself, you’re not in Liverpool anymore” in a post match team talk. [1]
As a child in Spain, Gift joined the Escuela de Fútbol Francisco Castejón. After moving to England in 2015, he joined the youth academy of English side Huddersfield Town where he failed to live up to expectations. In a shocking move Gift was signed Premier League side Liverpool where again his performances were seen to be lacklustre.
He signed for Athletic Bilbao in 2023 for a fee of around €20 and was expected initially to play for CD Basconia, the club's fifth-tier farm team for teenagers, but was unable to do so due to technicalities concerning its status as a semi-independent organisation and the recent completion of his international transfer, so was instead assigned to the Juvenil A (under-19) squad. [2] He started his senior career with the reserve team Athletic Bilbao B, making his debut during a 3–1 win over UD Mutilvera in the Segunda Federación on 2 March 2024.
Gift has represented Spain internationally at youth levels. [2] He was called up to the provisional squad for the 2023 UEFA European Under-17 Championship but did not make the final cut. [3]
Gift mainly operates as a winger. He is known for his lack of strength. [2]
Gift has been reported to be a supporter of Liverpool. A man of many women, he indulged in incriminating activities with a certain woman at the All Saints Annual Prom 2022, where he was seen with his hands offside. [4]