Keiren Westwood

Keiren Westwood

Westwood on international duty with the Republic of Ireland in 2012
Personal information
Full name	Keiren Westwood [1]
Date of birth	(1984-10-23) 23 October 1984 (age 39) [1]
Place of birth	Manchester, England
Height	6 ft 2 in (1.87 m) [2]
Position(s)	Goalkeeper
Team information
Current team	Crewe Alexandra
Number	27
Youth career
	Fletcher Moss Rangers
0000–2003	Manchester City
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2003–2004	Manchester City	0	(0)
2003–2004	→ Oldham Athletic (loan)	0	(0)
2004–2008	Carlisle United	131	(0)
2008–2011	Coventry City	131	(0)
2011–2014	Sunderland	19	(0)
2014–2021	Sheffield Wednesday	178	(0)
2022	Queens Park Rangers	6	(0)
2024–	Crewe Alexandra	0	(0)
International career
2009–2017	Republic of Ireland	21	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 16:35, 8 February 2024 (UTC)

Keiren Westwood (born 23 October 1984) is a professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Crewe Alexandra. Born in England, he played international football for the Republic of Ireland. ^[3]

Club career

Manchester City

Westwood was born in Manchester. ^[1] He started his career at Fletcher Moss Rangers, ^[4] he then moved onto Manchester City. He never played a first team game and was released as he was understudy to David James and Nicky Weaver. Weeks before his release he had broken his hand while on loan at Oldham Athletic.^{[ citation needed ]} He then had unsuccessful trials at Bradford City and Accrington Stanley.^{[ citation needed ]}

Carlisle United

Westwood then joined Carlisle United, becoming the understudy to Matt Glennon. Although he played in most cup games, in March 2005, when Glennon was injured, Westwood played some Conference games for Carlisle before being replaced by the fit-again Glennon.

In the 2005–06 season, Glennon left Carlisle and they signed Anthony Williams as his replacement. It looked like Westwood would be the club's number two goalkeeper again, though he finally got his chance to compete for the number one shirt and he succeeded in taking his chance. He started 35 League Two games in their title season and continued to be the club's number one goalkeeper. At the end of the 2007–08 season in League One, Westwood was named in the PFA Team of the Year ^[5] and also won all of the club's Player of the Season awards.

Coventry City

On 18 June 2008, Westwood signed a three-year contract with Championship club Coventry City for an undisclosed fee. ^[6] He was named in the Championship PFA Team of the Year for 2009 in his debut season at the club. ^[7] He won the club's player of the year award for the 2009–10 season. ^[8]

Sunderland

It was confirmed on 22 June 2011 that Westwood would join Sunderland on 1 July on a free transfer. He made his first start for Sunderland on 23 August in the League Cup defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion. His first Premier League appearance came against Aston Villa on 29 October, when he was brought on to replace the injured Simon Mignolet. Westwood later denied former Sunderland striker Darren Bent a goal after the striker was through one on one, with the game level at 1–1. ^[9] In the following game, away to Manchester United, Westwood made a 'magnificent double save' to deny Wayne Rooney and Patrice Evra, but United won 1–0. Despite Sunderland struggling for results, which saw Steve Bruce sacked on 30 November, Westwood remained in good form. However, after missing Sunderland's 1–0 victory over Manchester City on New Year's Day 2012, Westwood found himself second choice to Mignolet for the remainder of the season. ^{[ citation needed ]}

Westwood remained behind Mignolet in the pecking order at the start of the 2012–13 season, with the Belgian playing in Sunderland's first two league games, although Westwood did play in Sunderland's League Cup victories over Morecambe and Milton Keynes Dons before a 1 – 0 defeat to Middlesbrough in the fourth round, a game in which Westwood also played. Following Mignolet's departure to Liverpool at the end of the season, Westwood regained his place as Sunderland's first choice keeper, with competition now coming from Vito Mannone.

At the end of 2013–14 season, he was released by the club. ^[10]

Sheffield Wednesday

On 7 July 2014, Westwood signed for Championship club Sheffield Wednesday on a two-year deal. ^[11]

At the end of the 2014–15 season, Westwood was named in the 2014–15 Championship PFA Team of the Year. ^[12]

In July 2019 he signed a new two-year contract with the club. ^[13]

Westwood is one of only three players to have won the Sheffield Wednesday F.C. Player of the Year award on multiple occasions, the others being Eric Potts and Barry Bannan. He has received the award twice, at the end of the 2014–15 and 2016–17 seasons. ^[14]

On 20 May 2021 it was announced that he would leave Sheffield Wednesday at the end of the season, following the expiry of his contract. ^[15]

Queens Park Rangers

On 18 March 2022, Westwood joined Queens Park Rangers until the end of the season. ^{[16] [17]}

Crewe Alexandra

On 8 February 2024, Westwood joined EFL League Two side Crewe Alexandra on a short-term contract as cover for injured first choice keeper Tom Booth. ^[18]

International career

Westwood was eligible to represent his native England and the Republic of Ireland because his grandparents had emigrated to Manchester from Wexford. ^[19] On 17 May 2009, Westwood was called up by the Republic of Ireland to attend their training camp in Portugal ^[20] after impressing against Leeds United in a League One match. Three days later he played as a second-half substitute in a practice match against Portuguese club Lagos, replacing Joe Murphy after 66 minutes. On 29 May 2009, Westwood made his first appearance for Ireland in a friendly against Nigeria. ^[20] He played in the friendly match with South Africa in Thomond Park on 8 September 2009. ^[21] On 26 March 2011, Westwood made his competitive debut in a European Championship qualifier with Macedonia. He made a crucial save in the closing minutes of the match. ^[21]

Westwood was part of the Ireland squad for UEFA Euro 2012, although he did not feature in any games. Following the retirement of Shay Given after Euro 2012, Westwood assumed the No.1 position for his country although he later lost this place to David Forde. He made his 15th appearance for Ireland on 2 June 2013, in a 4–0 win over Georgia.

In 2015; following a number of injuries which ruled him out of previous squads, Westwood was recalled to the Starting XI for Ireland's friendly fixture against England in Dublin, Westwood was replaced in the second half by Shay Given with the scores at 0–0.

He played at the 2016 UEFA European Championship, where he helped the national team to reach the knockout phase of the tournament for the first time. ^[22]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 23 April 2022

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			FA Cup		League Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Manchester City	2003–04 [23]	Premier League	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Oldham Athletic (loan)	2003–04 [23]	Second Division	0	0	—		—		—		0	0
Carlisle United	2004–05 [24]	Conference National	4	0	0	0	—		3 [lower-alpha 1]	0	7	0
	2005–06 [25]	League Two	35	0	1	0	1	0	7 [lower-alpha 2]	0	44	0
	2006–07 [26]	League One	46	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	47	0
	2007–08 [27]	League One	46	0	2	0	2	0	4 [lower-alpha 3]	0	54	0
	Total		131	0	4	0	3	0	14	0	152	0
Coventry City	2008–09 [28]	Championship	46	0	3	0	0	0	—		49	0
	2009–10 [29]	Championship	44	0	2	0	0	0	—		46	0
	2010–11 [30]	Championship	41	0	2	0	0	0	—		43	0
	Total		131	0	7	0	0	0	—		138	0
Sunderland	2011–12 [31]	Premier League	9	0	0	0	1	0	—		10	0
	2012–13 [32]	Premier League	0	0	0	0	3	0	—		3	0
	2013–14 [33]	Premier League	10	0	0	0	1	0	—		11	0
	Total		19	0	0	0	5	0	—		24	0
Sheffield Wednesday	2014–15 [34]	Championship	43	0	0	0	0	0	—		43	0
	2015–16 [35]	Championship	34	0	0	0	0	0	3 [lower-alpha 4]	0	37	0
	2016–17 [36]	Championship	43	0	0	0	0	0	2 [lower-alpha 4]	0	45	0
	2017–18 [37]	Championship	18	0	0	0	0	0	—		18	0
	2018–19 [38]	Championship	20	0	1	0	0	0	—		20	0
	2019–20 [39]	Championship	14	0	0	0	0	0	—		14	0
	2020–21 [40]	Championship	20	0	0	0	0	0	—		20	0
	Total		178	0	1	0	0	0	5	0	184	0
Queens Park Rangers	2021–22 [41]	Championship	6	0	—		—		—		6	0
Career total			465	0	12	0	8	0	19	0	504	0

1. Two appearances in Football League Trophy, one in FA Trophy
2. Appearances in Football League Trophy
3. Two appearances in Football League Trophy, two in League One play-offs
4. Appearances in Championship play-offs

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year ^[42]

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Republic of Ireland	2009	3	0
	2010	2	0
	2011	3	0
	2012	6	0
	2013	3	0
	2015	1	0
	2016	1	0
	2017	2	0
Total		21	0

Honours

Carlisle United

• Football League Two: 2005–06
• Football League Trophy runner-up: 2005–06 ^[43]

Republic of Ireland

• Nations Cup: 2011

Individual

• PFA Team of the Year: 2007–08 League One, ^[5] 2008–09 Championship, ^[7] 2014–15 Championship ^[12]
• Carlisle United Player of the Year: 2007–08
• Coventry City Player of the Year: 2009–10
• Sheffield Wednesday Player of the Year: 2014–15

See also

• List of Republic of Ireland international footballers born outside the Republic of Ireland

References

1. Hugman, Barry J., ed. (2010). The PFA Footballers' Who's Who 2010–11. Mainstream Publishing. p. 434. ISBN   978-1-84596-601-0.
2. "Keiren Westwood - Goalkeeper". Sheffield Wednesday F.C. Archived from the original on 25 July 2019. Retrieved 6 January 2018.
3. Mellor, Jason (15 May 2008). "Ireland hopeful Westwood focused on Wembley". The Times. London. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
4. Sweeney, Eamonn (6 March 2016). "Big boys take and give nothing back". Irish Independent . Dublin. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
5. "Ronaldo named player of the year". BBC Sport. 27 April 2008. Retrieved 7 May 2018.
6. "Westwood signs for City". Coventry City F.C. 18 June 2008. Archived from the original on 4 November 2008. Retrieved 18 June 2008.
7. "Giggs earns prestigious PFA award". BBC Sport. 26 April 2009. Retrieved 7 May 2018.
8. "Westwood wins Player of the Season Award". Coventry Telegraph. 4 May 2010.
9. Hunter, James (30 October 2011). "Keiren deserves credit for denying Bent". Sunday Sun. Newcastle upon Tyne. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
10. "Premier League clubs submit retained and released lists". Premier League. Archived from the original on 4 May 2015. Retrieved 23 May 2014.
11. "Sheffield Wednesday sign Keiren Westwood". Sheffield Wednesday (swfc.co.uk). Retrieved 8 July 2014.
12. "PFA Championship Team of the Year: Deeney only Watford player". BBC Sport. 26 April 2015. Retrieved 7 May 2018.
13. "Keiren Westwood: Sheffield Wednesday goalkeeper signs new two-year deal". BBC Sport. 9 July 2019.
14. "Sheffield Wednesday Player of the Year Award Winners from 1969 to 2020". My Football Facts. Retrieved 6 September 2020.
15. "Owls confirm 2020/21 retained list". www.swfc.co.uk.
16. "Keiren Westwood joins QPR". Queens Park Rangers. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
17. "Six players to depart QPR". Queens Park Rangers Football Club. 6 May 2022. Retrieved 19 May 2022.
18. "Keiren Westwood: Crewe Alexandra sign ex-Republic of Ireland keeper on short-term deal". BBC Sport. 8 February 2024. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
19. Hall, Carl (7 February 2019). "How the Irish soccer teams tap in to the diaspora". Epic Atories. London. Retrieved 7 February 2019.
20. "Keiren Westwood to make debut against Nigeria". Football Association of Ireland. 26 May 2009. Retrieved 26 May 2009.
21. Hannigan, Mary (26 March 2011). "Goalkeeping coach Kelly confident Ireland in safe hands with Westwood". The Irish Times. Dublin. Retrieved 26 March 2011.
22. "France 2-1 Republic of Ireland". BBC Sport.
23. "Games played by Keiren Westwood in 2003/2004". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
24. "Games played by Keiren Westwood in 2004/2005". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
25. "Games played by Keiren Westwood in 2005/2006". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
26. "Games played by Keiren Westwood in 2006/2007". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
27. "Games played by Keiren Westwood in 2007/2008". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
28. "Games played by Keiren Westwood in 2008/2009". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
29. "Games played by Keiren Westwood in 2009/2010". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
30. "Games played by Keiren Westwood in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
31. "Games played by Keiren Westwood in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
32. "Games played by Keiren Westwood in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
33. "Games played by Keiren Westwood in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
34. "Games played by Keiren Westwood in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
35. "Games played by Keiren Westwood in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
36. "Games played by Keiren Westwood in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
37. "Games played by Keiren Westwood in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
38. "Games played by Keiren Westwood in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 25 January 2019.
39. "Games played by Keiren Westwood in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
40. "Games played by Keiren Westwood in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
41. "Games played by Keiren Westwood in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
42. "Westwood, Kieren". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 20 October 2011.
43. "Carlisle 1–2 Swansea". BBC Sport. 2 April 2006. Retrieved 17 March 2024.

External links

• Keiren Westwood at Soccerbase