Ayotomiwa Sherif Dele-Bashiru (born 17 September 1999) is a professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for EFL Championship club Watford.[3] Born in England, Dele-Bashiru represents Nigeria internationally.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ayotomiwa Sherif Dele-Bashiru[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1999-09-17) 17 September 1999 (age 23) | ||
| Place of birth | Manchester, England | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)[2] | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
Current team | Watford | ||
| Number | 24 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2005–2017 | Manchester City | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2017–2019 | Manchester City | 0 | (0) |
| 2019– | Watford | 3 | (0) |
| 2021–2022 | → Reading (loan) | 38 | (4) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2014 | England U16 | 2 | (0) |
| 2019 | Nigeria U20 | 3 | (1) |
| 2019– | Nigeria U23 | 1 | (1) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 8 October 2022 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 6 September 2020 | |||
Dele-Bashiru made his professional debut on 19 December 2017 in the EFL Cup against Leicester City, replacing Phil Foden in the 91st minute and playing in extra time.[4]
On 24 July 2019, Dele-Bashiru joined Watford on a six-year deal after his contract with Manchester City expired.[5] He made his Watford debut and scored the opening goal in a 3–3 draw against Tranmere Rovers in the FA Cup third round.[6]
On his first league start, Dele-Bashiru came off injured in the first-half against Reading on 3 October 2020. It was confirmed that he would undergo surgery for an anterior cruciate ligament injury and would be out for around six months.[7]
After returning to training and representing the Hornets during the pre-season in Summer 2021, Dele-Bashiru joined Reading on a season-long loan, in order to get more playing time and fully restore his fitness.[3] He scored his first goals for Reading when he scored twice against Peterborough United on 14 September 2021 in a 3-1 win.[8]
Dele-Bashiru has represented the England under-16 team,[9] but he is also eligible for Nigeria. He was part of the Nigeria national under-20 football team in the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Poland. Dele-Bashiru scored Nigeria's third goal in their opening match win against Qatar, with the game finishing 4–0.
Dele-Bashiru's younger brother Fisayo also came through the ranks at Manchester City before joining Sheffield Wednesday.[10]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | EFL Cup | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Manchester City U21 | 2017–18[11] | — | — | — | — | 3[lower-alpha 1] | 0 | 3 | 0 | |||||
| 2018–19[12] | — | — | — | — | 5[lower-alpha 1] | 1 | 5 | 1 | ||||||
| Total | — | — | — | — | 8 | 1 | 8 | 1 | ||||||
| Manchester City | 2017–18[11] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |
| 2018–19[12] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |||
| Watford | 2019–20[13] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 3 | 1 | ||
| 2020–21[14] | Championship | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 | |||
| 2022–23 | Championship | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 | |||
| Total | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 6 | 1 | |||
| Reading (loan) | 2021–22 | Championship | 38 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 39 | 4 | ||
| Total | 38 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 39 | 4 | |||
| Career total | 41 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 46 | 5 | ||
Watford F.C. – current squad | |
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