Zak Thomas Gilsenan (born 8 May 2003) is a professional footballer currently playing as a midfielder for English club Blackburn Rovers. Born in Australia, he has represented Australia and the Republic of Ireland at youth international level.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Zak Thomas Gilsenan[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (2003-05-08) 8 May 2003 (age 19) | ||
| Place of birth | Joondalup, Perth, Australia[2] | ||
| Height | 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
Current team | Blackburn Rovers | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Team | |||
| Carramar Cougars | |||
| Sorrento | |||
| 2011–2012 | Perth Glory | ||
| 2012–2014 | Barcelona | ||
| 2014–2019 | Liverpool | ||
| 2019– | Blackburn Rovers | ||
| National team | |||
| Australia U17 | |||
| 2019 | Australia U18 | ||
| 2021 | Republic of Ireland U19 | 1 | (1) |
Born in Joondalup, Perth, Gilsenan started his career with local side Carramar Cougars, before joining Sorrento.[2][3] In 2011, he was scouted and signed by A-League side Perth Glory.[2][4] He attended a two-week training camp organised by English club Tottenham Hotspur, where he was named player of the tournament, and was invited to trial with the north-London side.[2] During the trial, he was scouted by Spanish giants Barcelona, and would go on to move to the Catalonian side in 2012.[2][5]
Despite captaining the Barcelona youth teams, his parents relocated to England after two years in Spain, and Gilsenan would again go on trial, this time with Liverpool.[6] He signed for Liverpool in 2014.[7] He suffered a run of injuries, which eventually ended his spell in Merseyside, and despite interest from Premier League sides, he signed for Blackburn Rovers at the age of sixteen.[6]
He signed his first professional contract with Blackburn Rovers in May 2021.[8] Later the same year, he suffered an ACL injury, which kept him out until June 2022.[9][10]
Eligible to represent both Australia and the Republic of Ireland, Gilsenan has represented both at international level.[11][12] He scored on his debut for the Republic of Ireland under-19s in a 2–2 draw with Sweden.[13]