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Harry Winks

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Harry Winks
Winks lining up for Tottenham Hotspur in 2020
Personal information
Full name Harry Billy Winks[1]
Date of birth (1996-02-02) 2 February 1996 (age 28)[2]
Place of birth Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, England
Height 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[3]
Position(s) Central midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Leicester City
Number 8
Youth career
2002–2014 Tottenham Hotspur
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2014–2023 Tottenham Hotspur 128 (2)
2022–2023 → Sampdoria (loan) 20 (0)
2023– Leicester City 51 (2)
International career
2012–2013 England U17 6 (0)
2014 England U18 2 (1)
2014–2015 England U19 6 (0)
2015–2016 England U20 8 (0)
2016–2017 England U21 2 (0)
2017–2020 England 10 (1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 23:02, 28 September 2024 (UTC)

Harry Billy Winks (born 2 February 1996) is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Premier League club Leicester City.

A product of the Tottenham Hotspur academy, Winks made his debut for the senior side in 2014. He went on to make 203 appearances and scoring five goals for the club, as well as starting in the 2019 UEFA Champions League final. After a loan to Italian side Sampdoria, he departed Tottenham in 2023 after 21 years at the club, and subsequently joined newly-relegated Leicester City in the Championship.

Having appeared for England across various youth levels, Winks made his senior debut in 2017 and went on to win a further nine caps.

Early and personal life

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Harry Winks was born to Anita and Gary Winks. He has Spanish ancestry through his maternal grandparents.[4] He was born and raised in Hemel Hempstead and was educated at Cavendish School.[5][6] Winks is a Tottenham Hotspur fan; he attended his first match at White Hart Lane when he was six. He was invited to train at Tottenham's development centre in St Albans after attending a summer football camp run by an academy coach when he was five, and joined the Tottenham Academy at the age of five.[7][8]

Club career

[edit]

Tottenham Hotspur

[edit]

Early career

[edit]

Winks is a product of the Tottenham Hotspur youth system. During the 2013–14 season, he regularly trained with the first-team squad and was named on the senior bench for the first time in a Premier League tie against Liverpool on 30 March 2014, remaining an unused substitute in a 4–0 loss at Anfield.[9] On 27 July 2014, Winks signed his first professional contract with Tottenham;[10] according to Winks, Mauricio Pochettino said that he wanted to sign Winks immediately after watching videos of his performances.[8] He made his first team debut on 27 November 2014 in the UEFA Europa League group against FK Partizan in a 1–0 home win at White Hart Lane, replacing Paulinho after 87 minutes.[11]

On 6 July 2015, Winks signed a new contract with Tottenham until 2018, with the option of an additional year.[12] He was given the number 29 shirt, which was included on the club's list of first-team numbers.[13] Winks made his first appearance of the season as a late substitute in a 3–1 win against Qarabağ FK.[14]

2016–2018

[edit]

On 27 August 2016, he made his Premier League debut, replacing Christian Eriksen in the last minute of the match in a 1–1 draw at home to Liverpool.[15] On 19 November, Winks made his full debut against West Ham United, performing well and scoring his first ever goal for Spurs to level the match at 1–1. Tottenham went on to win the match 3–2 in a dramatic finish at White Hart Lane after scoring two late goals.[16] Winks made his debut in the FA Cup on 8 January 2017, when he was selected for the team in the match against Aston Villa of the third round. Tottenham went on to win the match 2–0.[17] On 14 February 2017, Winks signed a new contract with Tottenham, keeping him at the club until 2022.[18] During an away match against Burnley on 1 April 2017 in the Premier League, Winks suffered an injury when he tumbled into the Burnley dugout,[19] and was later taken to hospital for a scan on his ankle.[20] Spurs announced on 4 April that Winks would be sidelined by the injury to his ankle ligament for the rest of the season.[21]

Winks began the 2017–18 season as a substitute in three early games after recovering from his injury.[22] He made his first start of the season in the EFL Cup tie against Barnsley that finished 1–0.[23] He next started in the match in UEFA Champions League away game against APOEL FC, and his performance earned him praise from Mauricio Pochettino as the "perfect midfielder".[24] After only one previous start in the Premier League for the club this season (in a 4–0 win against Huddersfield Town) and four Premier League starts including last season, he gained his first call-up for the national squad.[25][26] He received plaudits for his performance in the UEFA Champions League game away against Real Madrid where he was judged to have held his own against Luka Modrić and Toni Kroos.[27][28] However, he picked up a niggling ankle injury in the match against Crystal Palace on 5 November 2017, which led to him missing final three months of this season after trying initially to play some games through the discomfort.[29] He signed a new contract on 17 May 2018, keeping him at Tottenham until 2023.[30]

2018–2021

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After a long period out through an injury that required surgery,[31] Winks returned to the squad in the 2018–19 season in the home game against Fulham, appearing as a late substitute.[32] He made his first start of the season in the game against Liverpool that Spurs lost 2–1.[33] In the away match against Fulham in January 2019, he scored a last minute winning goal to win 2–1, his first goal for the club since November 2016.[34] On 1 June 2019, Winks started in the 2019 UEFA Champions League Final against Liverpool.[35]

Winks signed a new five-year contract with Tottenham in July 2019.[36][37]

Winks scored his first goal of the 2020–21 season, his first for Tottenham in nearly two years, in the UEFA Europa League match against the Bulgarian side Ludogorets Razgrad to help Tottenham win 4–0. He hit the back of the net from 54 yards away, one of the longest goals ever scored in the Europa League,[38] which he said was not intentional.[39]

Loan to Sampdoria

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On 30 August 2022, Winks joined Serie A club Sampdoria on loan for the 2022–23 season, with an option for the transfer to become permanent.[40] Sampdoria was relegated and his move was not made permanent.

Leicester City

[edit]

On 1 July 2023, Winks joined EFL Championship club Leicester City on a three-year contract,[41] for an undisclosed fee reported to be around £10 million.[42] On 6 August, he made his debut for the club in the opening game of the season, a 2–1 win against Coventry City in the EFL Championship.[43] On 20 September, he made a record of 100 per cent pass completion, while he made the most passes on the pitch, in a 2–0 away win against Norwich City.[44] On 28 October, he scored his first goal for Leicester in the league in a 2–1 away win against Queens Park Rangers, scoring from outside the box in the 80th minute.[45] Winks was a key player in midfield for Leicester and played a great role in helping Leicester secure promotion at the first time of asking. He won his first trophy in his career as Leicester finished as champions in the 2023-24 EFL Championship.[46]

International career

[edit]
Winks playing for England U19s in 2015

Winks has represented England up to senior level. Before this, he was eligible to represent Spain as well as England.[47] He was part of the under-20 squad for the Mercedes-Benz Elite Cup in Germany in 2015.[48] Winks made his under-21 debut on 14 November 2016 where he started in England's friendly 3–2 defeat to France.[49]

On 2 October 2017, Winks received his first call up to the senior England squad, for their 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Slovenia and Lithuania.[50] He made his debut when starting in England's 1–0 away win over Lithuania, which was the team's final match in their successful 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign. Phil McNulty of BBC Sport stated that, on the night, Winks was "England's best performer. Neat and tidy and almost scored. Eye-catching among so much mediocrity".[51] Winks missed the World Cup due to injury, but returned to the England squad in the 2018–19 UEFA Nations League away match against Spain. He helped England to a 3–2 win, the first competitive home defeat for Spain since 2003 and England's first win in Spain in 31 years, in what was judged a "self-assured" performance.[52]

Winks scored his first goal for England on 17 November 2019 in a 4–0 win against Kosovo in UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying.[53]

Style of play

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Winks plays as a central or defensive midfielder.[54] Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino has said "When we talk about midfielders – because you like to use Spanish midfielders like Xavi and Iniesta – he's like this type of player",[55] describing Winks as "completely different to our other midfielders like Victor Wanyama, Eric Dier, Mousa Dembélé and Moussa Sissoko. He has qualities to add to the team that are completely different".[24] Talksport remarked that following his breakthrough for club and country, Winks was "seen as a potential difference-maker for the Three Lions due to his very individual skill set", with Winks earning comparisons with foreign midfielders rather than his English contemporaries.[55]

Ex-England and Spurs midfielder Danny Murphy said in September 2018 that the England team should be built around Winks, citing his performance for Tottenham against Real Madrid in the 2017–18 UEFA Champions League group stage as evidence: "The one who I think has got the capability, more than anyone else I have seen, is [Harry] Winks. What he showed in that game in Madrid, in both games when he was fit and at it, was a confidence and an ability to play. To see the passes, to get his foot in and be disciplined and mix that mix of midfield talent that you need [...] for me, Winks is one of the best I've seen when he's at it – in terms of his all-round ability."[56] ESPN FC's Ben Pearce opined in 2018: "England are still missing a deep-lying playmaker [...] Those wondering who could possibly fill the void have obviously forgotten Winks, who excels at keeping possession with quick, short passes".[57]

Career statistics

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Club

[edit]
As of match played 28 September 2024
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] League cup[b] Europe Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Tottenham Hotspur 2013–14[58] Premier League 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2014–15[59] Premier League 0 0 0 0 0 0 1[c] 0 1 0
2015–16[60] Premier League 0 0 0 0 0 0 2[c] 0 2 0
2016–17[61] Premier League 21 1 4 0 2 0 6[d] 0 33 1
2017–18[62] Premier League 16 0 3 0 1 0 5[e] 0 25 0
2018–19[63] Premier League 26 1 0 0 5 0 10[e] 0 41 1
2019–20[64] Premier League 31 0 5 0 0 0 5[e] 0 41 0
2020–21[65] Premier League 15 0 2 1 3 0 10[c] 1 30 2
2021–22[66] Premier League 19 0 3 1 3 0 5[f] 0 30 1
Total 128 2 17 2 14 0 44 1 203 5
Sampdoria (loan) 2022–23[67] Serie A 20 0 0 0 — — 20 0
Leicester City 2023–24[68] Championship 45 2 1 0 2 0 — 48 2
2024–25[69] Premier League 6 0 0 0 1 1 — 7 1
Total 51 2 1 0 3 1 — 55 3
Career total 199 4 18 2 17 1 44 1 278 8
  1. ^ Includes FA Cup, Coppa Italia
  2. ^ Includes EFL Cup
  3. ^ a b c Appearance(s) in UEFA Europa League
  4. ^ Four appearances in UEFA Champions League, two appearances in UEFA Europa League
  5. ^ a b c Appearances in UEFA Champions League
  6. ^ Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League

International

[edit]
As of match played 18 November 2020[70]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
England 2017 1 0
2018 2 0
2019 3 1
2020 4 0
Total 10 1
As of match played 18 November 2020
England score listed first, score column indicates score after each Winks goal[70]
List of international goals scored by Harry Winks
No. Date Venue Cap Opponent Score Result Competition Ref.
1 17 November 2019 Fadil Vokrri Stadium, Pristina, Kosovo 6  Kosovo 1–0 4–0 UEFA Euro 2020 qualification [71]

Honours

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Tottenham Hotspur

Leicester City

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Winks: Player". BDFutbol. Retrieved 16 May 2020.
  2. ^ "Harry Winks: Overview". ESPN. Retrieved 16 May 2020.
  3. ^ "Harry Winks: Overview". Premier League. Retrieved 16 May 2020.
  4. ^ Kilpatrick, Dan (28 July 2017). "Spurs' Harry Winks: 'I consider myself English and I want to play for England'". ESPN. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  5. ^ "H. Winks: Summary". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  6. ^ "Hemel hot shot ready to earn his Spurs". Tring Today. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
  7. ^ Hytner, David (27 January 2017). "Harry Winks: 'The buzz I get from playing for Tottenham … I don't think it will ever go'". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  8. ^ a b Pitt-Brooke, Jack (27 January 2017). "Harry Winks: How trusting Mauricio Pochettino saw me break into the Tottenham first-team". The Independent. Archived from the original on 9 May 2022.
  9. ^ Emons, Michael (30 March 2014). "Liverpool 4–0 Tottenham". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 September 2015.
  10. ^ O'Rourke, Pete (26 July 2014). "Premier League: Tottenham midfielder Harry Winks agrees professional deal". Sky Sports.
  11. ^ Chowdhury, Saj (27 November 2014). "Tottenham 1–0 Partizan". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 September 2015.
  12. ^ "New deal for Winks". Tottenham Hotspur F.C. Retrieved 7 July 2015.
  13. ^ "2015–16 Premier League squad numbers announced 7 August 2015". Tottenham Hotspur F.C. 7 August 2015.
  14. ^ "Tottenham Hotspur 3–1 FK Qarabag". BBC Sport. 17 September 2015.
  15. ^ Wallace, Sam (27 August 2016). "Tottenham 1 Liverpool 1: Danny Rose scores late equaliser to cancel out James Milner penalty". The Daily Telegraph.
  16. ^ Smith, Alan (19 November 2016). "Harry Kane's two late goals earn Tottenham victory over West Ham". The Guardian.
  17. ^ Rostance, Tom (8 January 2017). "Tottenham Hotspur 2–0 Aston Villa". BBC Sport. Retrieved 3 April 2017.
  18. ^ "Harry Winks signs new Tottenham contract". Sky Sports. Retrieved 13 July 2017.
  19. ^ Stelton, Jack (1 April 2017). "Burnley 0–2 Tottenham". BBC Sport. Retrieved 3 April 2017.
  20. ^ "Harry Winks: Tottenham midfielder taken to hospital with ankle injury". BBC Sport. 1 April 2017. Retrieved 3 April 2017.
  21. ^ "Harry Winks: Tottenham midfielder ruled out for the rest of the season". BBC Sport. 4 April 2017. Retrieved 4 April 2017.
  22. ^ Pitt-Brooke, Jack (19 September 2017). "Harry Winks set to make first Tottenham start in six months after recovering from ankle injury". The Independent. Archived from the original on 9 May 2022.
  23. ^ Kilpatrick, Dan (20 September 2017). "Tottenham's Harry Winks: 'I feel like I'm 100 percent now' following injury". ESPN.
  24. ^ a b Valente, Allan (29 September 2017). "Mauricio Pochettino: Tottenham's Harry Winks can unlock defences". Sky Sports.
  25. ^ Fifield, Dominic (2 October 2017). "Harry Winks earns England call-up after Fabian Delph and Phil Jones withdraw". The Guardian.
  26. ^ Tweedale, Alistair (5 October 2017). "Why Harry Winks's four Premier League starts is more than enough experience to shine for England". The Daily Telegraph.
  27. ^ Malyon, Ed (17 October 2017). "Harry Winks shines at Real Madrid as Tottenham midfielder proves he has the most important thing – Mauricio Pochettino's trust". The Independent. Archived from the original on 9 May 2022.
  28. ^ McAuley, John (19 October 2017). "A nudge to Winks: Tottenham's promising star must keep feet to ground". The National.
  29. ^ "Harry Winks' injury could spoil his Tottenham, World Cup dreams". ESPN. 16 March 2018.
  30. ^ "Harry Winks signs new Tottenham contract until 2023". Sky Sports.
  31. ^ "Tottenham midfielder Harry Winks undergoes successful ankle surgery". Sky Sports. 29 May 2018.
  32. ^ Wilmot, Lee (25 August 2018). "Tottenham ace Harry Winks outlines what he has done differently in his recovery from injury". Football.london.
  33. ^ Cunningham, Sam (16 September 2018). "Tottenham's Harry Winks played through the pain against Liverpool but at what cost?". i.
  34. ^ Burt, Jason; Bull, JJ (20 January 2019). "Harry Winks breaks Fulham hearts with last minute winner but Dele Alli adds to Spurs' injury concerns". The Daily Telegraph.
  35. ^ McNulty, Phil (1 June 2019). "Tottenham Hotspur 0–2 Liverpool". BBC Sport. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
  36. ^ Young, Alex (8 July 2019). "Harry Winks and Ben Davies sign new five-year contracts with Tottenham". Evening Standard. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  37. ^ "Tottenham: Ben Davies and Harry Winks sign new five-year contracts with Spurs". BBC Sport. 8 July 2019. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  38. ^ Poole, Harry (26 November 2020). "Tottenham Hotspur 4 - 0 Ludogorets Razgrad". BBC Sport.
  39. ^ Gallagher, Sean (26 November 2020). "INCREDIBLE Watch Harry Winks break two-year goal drought with incredible 56-yard strike – but later admitted it was a fluke – as Tottenham thrash Ludogorets". TalkSport.
  40. ^ "Winks joins Samp on initial loan". U.C. Sampdoria. 30 August 2022. Retrieved 31 August 2022.
  41. ^ "Leicester City Sign Harry Winks From Tottenham Hotspur". Leicester City F.C. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
  42. ^ "Harry Winks: Tottenham Hotspur midfielder close to £10m Leicester City move". BBC Sport. 28 June 2023. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
  43. ^ "Leicester City 2-1 Coventry - Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall scores two late goals to snatch victory". BBC Sport. 6 August 2023.
  44. ^ "Enzo Maresca tells Harry Winks where he can improve despite faultless Leicester City game". Leicester Mercury. 23 September 2023.
  45. ^ "Queens Park Rangers 1-2 Leicester City: Harry Winks makes it 13 wins from 14 for Foxes". BBC Sport. 28 October 2023.
  46. ^ "Harry Winks reveals what he has done with Leicester City that escaped him at Tottenham Hotspur". Leicester Mercury. 3 May 2024.
  47. ^ Kilpatrick, Dan (28 July 2017). "Spurs' Harry Winks: 'I consider myself English and I want to play for England'". ESPN.
  48. ^ Veevers, Nicholas. "England Under-20s squad named for Mercedes Elite Cup in Germany". The Football Association.
  49. ^ "France-U21 3–2 England-U21". BBC Sport. 14 November 2016.
  50. ^ Pitt-Brooke, Jack; Delaney, Miguel (2 October 2017). "England call up Harry Winks to replace injured Fabian Delph and Phil Jones". The Independent. Archived from the original on 9 May 2022. Retrieved 2 October 2017.
  51. ^ McNulty, Phil (8 October 2017). "Lithuania 0–1 England". BBC Sport. Retrieved 8 October 2017.
  52. ^ Burt, Jason (15 October 2018). "Harry Winks proves he has exactly the kind of quality this England side needs – sharp, self-assured and aggressive". The Daily Telegraph.
  53. ^ McNulty, Phil (17 November 2019). "Kosovo 0–4 England". BBC Sport. Retrieved 17 November 2019.
  54. ^ "Harry Winks: Profile". worldfootball.net. HEIM:SPIEL. Retrieved 16 May 2020.
  55. ^ a b "WINKS WONDER: Harry Winks 'like Barcelona legends Andres Iniesta and Xavi' but Mauricio Pochettino says Tottenham midfielder must focus on football". Talksport. 14 September 2018. Retrieved 14 September 2018.
  56. ^ Coleman, Joe (10 September 2018). "TALENT: Tottenham Hotspur starlet Harry Winks can solve England's midfield problem, says former Liverpool man Danny Murphy". Talksport. Retrieved 14 September 2018.
  57. ^ Pearce, Ben (13 September 2018). "Harry Winks ready to revitalise creaking Spurs midfield after long injury layoff". ESPN FC. Retrieved 14 September 2018.
  58. ^ "Games played by Harry Winks in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 October 2017.
  59. ^ "Games played by Harry Winks in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 October 2017.
  60. ^ "Games played by Harry Winks in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 October 2017.
  61. ^ "Games played by Harry Winks in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 October 2017.
  62. ^ "Games played by Harry Winks in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
  63. ^ "Games played by Harry Winks in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
  64. ^ "Games played by Harry Winks in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
  65. ^ "Games played by Harry Winks in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 31 August 2022.
  66. ^ "Games played by Harry Winks in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 31 August 2022.
  67. ^ "Games played by Harry Winks in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  68. ^ "Games played by Harry Winks in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  69. ^ "Games played by Harry Winks in 2024/2025". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
  70. ^ a b "Harry Winks". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 31 August 2022.
  71. ^ "Kosovo vs. England 0–4: Summary". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
  72. ^ McNulty, Phil (25 April 2021). "Manchester City 1–0 Tottenham Hotspur". BBC Sport. Archived from the original on 24 April 2021. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  73. ^ McNulty, Phil (1 June 2019). "Tottenham Hotspur 0–2 Liverpool". BBC Sport. Archived from the original on 8 August 2019. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
  74. ^ "Championship: 2023/24: Current table". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 5 May 2024.
    "Leicester: Squad details: 2023/24". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 5 May 2024.
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