Michael John Cooper (born 8 October 1999) is an English professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The club competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football. They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history ...

Career

Plymouth Argyle

Michael Cooper made his professional debut for Plymouth Argyle in a League One game away to

Blackburn Rovers Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second level of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. Th ...

aged 18 years and 6 days old. With starting goalkeeper Kyle Letheren going off injured, Cooper came on for the second half, as the game finished 1–1. He was also a key member of the Plymouth Argyle Youth Team who reached the last 16 of the FA Youth Cup, making crucial saves in victories over Manchester City and Burnley in 3rd and 4th rounds of the competition. On 17 December 2019, Cooper signed a new long-term deal at Plymouth Argyle, until the end of the 2021–22 season. On 5 September 2020, Cooper started in the first match of the Argyle season, playing Queens Park Rangers in the first round of the

EFL Cup The English Football League Cup, often referred to as the League Cup and currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout competition in men's domestic football in England. Orga ...

. Argyle won 3–2 after a spectacular performance from Cooper. Cooper held onto the starting position for the 2020–21 season. In April 2021, Cooper signed a new long-term deal with Argyle, signing on until 2024. He was also voted Young Player of the Season 2020–21 by Plymouth Argyle supporters, coming second in the senior vote to squad Vice-Captain, Joe Edwards. The following season he received the EFL League One Golden Glove (jointly with Wycombe's David Stockdale) for keeping the most

clean sheets In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which the losing team fails to score. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball. Shutouts are usually seen as a result of ...

, having kept 18 clean sheets across 46 league games. He was also named as Plymouth's Player of the Season and in the EFL League One Team of the Year.

Sheffield United

On 15 August 2024, Cooper joined

for an undisclosed fee. Upon arrival, he became their first-choice goalkeeper following the departure of Wes Foderingham on 30 June. On 24 August, Cooper made his debut in a 1–1 draw away at

Norwich City Norwich City Football Club is a professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk, England. The club competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was founded in 1902. Since 1935, Norwich have played their h ...

Career statistics

Honours

Plymouth Argyle *

EFL League One The English Football League One, known as Sky Bet League One for sponsorship reasons, or simply League One, is a professional association football league in England. EFL League One is the second-highest division of the English Football League an ...

: 2022–23 *

EFL Trophy The English Football League Trophy, officially known as the Vertu Motors, Vertu Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English association football, football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL League Two and ...

runner-up: 2022–23 Individual *Plymouth Argyle Young Player of the Season: 2020–21 *Plymouth Argyle Player of the Season: 2021–22, 2022–23 * EFL Golden Glove: League One 2021–22 * EFL League One Team of the Season: 2021–22, *Sheffield United Player of the Season: 2024–25 *Sheffield United Player of the Season: 2024–25 2022–23

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cooper, Michael 1999 births Living people People educated at Plymouth College English men's footballers Footballers from Exeter Men's association football goalkeepers English Football League players Plymouth Argyle F.C. players Sheffield United F.C. players 21st-century English sportsmen