Charlie Lakin
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Charlie Lakin (born 8 May 1999) is an English professional
footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...
who plays as a
midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...
for club
Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located ...
. He joined
Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. The team compete in the ...
as a nine-year-old, went on to make his senior debut for the club in the
2017–18 FA Cup The 2017–18 FA Cup (also known as the FA Challenge Cup) was the 137th edition of the oldest recognised football tournament in the world. It was sponsored by Emirates, and known as The Emirates FA Cup for sponsorship purposes. 737 clubs were acc ...
, and played ten times in the 2018–19 Championship. Despite missing two months with injury, Lakin managed 25 appearances
on loan In sports, a loan involves a particular player being able to temporarily play for a club other than the one to which they are currently contracted. Loan deals may last from a few weeks to a full season, sometimes persisting for multiple seasons ...
at League Two club
Stevenage Stevenage ( ) is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, about north of London. Stevenage is east of junctions 7 and 8 of the A1(M), between Letchworth Garden City to the north and Welwyn Garden City to the south. In 1946, Stevenage w ...
before the 2019–20 season ended prematurely because of the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
. He spent the 2020–21 season on loan to
Scottish Premiership The Scottish Premiership, also known as the William Hill (bookmaker), William Hill Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Scotland and the highest level of the Scottish football league system. Th ...
club Ross County, before leaving Birmingham on a permanent basis for
Burton Albion Burton Albion Football Club is a professional association football club in the town of Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third level of the English football league system. The club moved its home g ...
in August 2021. He had loan spells at
Doncaster Rovers Doncaster Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. The team currently competes in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system after winning the 202 ...
and
AFC Wimbledon AFC Wimbledon is an English professional association football club based in Wimbledon, London, Wimbledon, London Borough of Merton, London. The team competes in , the third tier of the English football league system. The club was founded in ...
in 2023 and
Sutton United Sutton United Football Club is a professional association football club from Sutton, South London, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system. Sutton started out playing in junior, ...
in 2024.


Club career


Birmingham City

Lakin was born in
Solihull Solihull ( ) is a market town and the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Solihull is situated on the River Blythe in the Arden, Warwickshire, Forest of Arden ar ...
where he attended Langley School. He joined Birmingham City's Academy from
Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located ...
's under-nine team, and took up a scholarship with the club in July 2015. In his first season, he featured regularly for Birmingham's under-18 team. Speaking in January 2017, Academy manager Kristjaan Speakman described Lakin as "a left-sided midfielder hohas played in a more central position for the Under-18s over the course of this season. He has real box-to-box energy. He can be creative with the ball but also really robust defensively." He finished the season with two goals from 13 appearances in the under-23 team, and signed his first professional contract, of one year, at the end of the 2016–17 season. Lakin was a regular in the under-23s in the 2017–18 season, and was one of two players selected to train with
UE Cornellà Unió Esportiva Cornellà, Sociedad Anónima Deportiva, S. A. D. is a List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish football team based in Cornellà de Llobregat, in the autonomous community of Catalonia. Founded in 1951 it plays in , holding home gam ...
's first team in October 2017 as part of a proposed relationship between Birmingham City and the Spanish
Segunda División B Segunda División B (English: second division B) was the third tier of the Spanish football league system containing 102 teams divided into five groups, until it was replaced by the new structure in 2021. It was administered by the Royal Spanish ...
(third-tier) club. His involvement with Birmingham's first team increased, and on 27 January 2018, he was given a
squad number In team sports, the number, often referred to as the uniform number, squad number, jersey number, shirt number, sweater number, or similar (with such naming differences varying by sport and region) is the number worn on a player's uniform, to id ...
and included among the substitutes for the
FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...
fourth-round visit to
Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...
club
Huddersfield Town Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional association football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England. They compete in , the third tier of English football league system, English football. Huddersfield Town we ...
. He remained unused as Birmingham drew the match, but made his senior debut in the replay ten days later. Use of a fourth substitute during
extra time Overtime (OT) or extra time (ET) is an additional period of play to bring a game to a decision and avoid declaring the match a tie or draw where the scores are the same. In some sports, this extra period is played only if the game is required t ...
of an FA Cup tie, trialled in the later rounds of the 2016–17 edition, was permitted from the first round in 2017–18. Lakin became the first Birmingham player to be used under that arrangement when he replaced Jason Lowe after 101 minutes with his team already 3–1 down; the match finished as a 4–1 defeat. According to the ''
Birmingham Mail The ''Birmingham Mail'' (branded the ''Black Country Mail'' in the Black Country and ''Birmingham Live'' online) is a tabloid newspaper based in Birmingham, England, but distributed around Birmingham, the Black Country, and Solihull and parts ...
'', on his first involvement in the match, "he gathered possession on the edge of his own area, surged through his half and threaded a superb pass to
Jota Jota may refer to: __NOTOC__ * Iota (Ι, ι), the name of the 9th letter in the Greek alphabet; * (figuratively) ''Something very small'', based on the fact that the letter Iota (lat. i) is the smallest character in the alphabet; * The name of the ...
which set Blues away on the counter", showing the "sort of technical ability which has made him such a big hit in his first full season at Under 23 level." Two weeks later, Lakin signed a new contract to run until 2020, with a further one-year option in the club's favour. Lakin made his next appearance in the defeat to
Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of symbols, often specifically those of a written language, by means of Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifacete ...
in the 2018–19 EFL Cup, and his
Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in Association football around the world, the w ...
debut in the next match, replacing Gary Gardner towards the end of a goalless draw at home to
Swansea City Swansea City Association Football Club ( ; ) is a Welsh professional football club based in Swansea, Wales. It competes in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Swansea have played their home matches at ...
. His first league start came in a goalless draw away to
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 ...
on 19 September, partnering Gardner in central midfield; the ''Birmingham Mail'' marked him 7.5 out of 10, and said he "gave his first pass awaybut that was virtually his last mistake. He was as good without the ball as with it and looks to have given he manageranother option in the middle." He was a regular in the matchday squad until the turn of the year, when a thigh injury kept him out of consideration until March 2019, during which time the appearance-based one-year extension to his contract was ratified.


Stevenage

Having made one EFL Cup appearance for Birmingham in 2019–20, Lakin joined
EFL League Two The English Football League Two, simply known as League Two and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Betting & Gaming, Sky Bet League Two, is a professional association football league in England. EFL League Two is the fourth division of the English ...
club
Stevenage Stevenage ( ) is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, about north of London. Stevenage is east of junctions 7 and 8 of the A1(M), between Letchworth Garden City to the north and Welwyn Garden City to the south. In 1946, Stevenage w ...
on 22 August 2019
on loan In sports, a loan involves a particular player being able to temporarily play for a club other than the one to which they are currently contracted. Loan deals may last from a few weeks to a full season, sometimes persisting for multiple seasons ...
for the rest of the season. He went straight into the starting eleven for the league visit to
Mansfield Town Mansfield Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the third level of the English football league system. The club was formed in 1897 as Mans ...
two days later, and played the whole 90 minutes as the match ended goalless. A thigh injury suffered during his debut kept him out for two months: he returned to action on 26 October in a 1–0 win at home to fellow strugglers
Morecambe Morecambe ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the City of Lancaster district of Lancashire, England, on Morecambe Bay, part of the Irish Sea. In 2011 the parish had a population of 34,768. Name The first use of the name was by John Whit ...
. He scored his first senior goal on 18 January 2020 to round off a 4–0 win away to
Cambridge United Cambridge United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Cambridge, England. They currently compete in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed the U’s, the club h ...
. He had made 25 appearances in all competitions by the time the League Two season was first suspended and then ended early because of the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
.


Ross County

Lakin started in the opening fixture of Birmingham's 2020–21 season, a 1–0 defeat at home to fourth-tier
Cambridge United Cambridge United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Cambridge, England. They currently compete in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed the U’s, the club h ...
in the EFL Cup. With several midfielders ahead of him in new head coach
Aitor Karanka Aitor Karanka de la Hoz (Basque and ; born 18 September 1973) is a Spanish football manager and former player. Save for a brief spell in the United States at age 32, Karanka played solely in Spain for Athletic Bilbao and Real Madrid, appearing ...
's pecking order, he was not included in the squad for any Championship matches, and on 5 October 2020, he joined
Scottish Premiership The Scottish Premiership, also known as the William Hill (bookmaker), William Hill Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Scotland and the highest level of the Scottish football league system. Th ...
club Ross County on 5 October 2020 on loan for the season. He made his debut as a second-half substitute in the
Scottish League Cup The Scottish League Cup, also known as the Premier Sports Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a football competition open to all Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) clubs. First held in 1946–47, it is the oldest national League cup in ...
away to Montrose, who had been 3–0 down but had just pegged the score back to 3–2. Montrose scored again to take the tie to penalties; Lakin converted Ross County's fifth penalty but Montrose's fifth player missed his, so Ross County took the bonus point.


Burton Albion

On 31 August 2021, Lakin signed a three-year deal with League One club
Burton Albion Burton Albion Football Club is a professional association football club in the town of Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third level of the English football league system. The club moved its home g ...
. He went straight into the starting eleven, and marked his third appearance, away to
Crewe Alexandra Crewe Alexandra Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Crewe, Cheshire, England. Its first team competes in League Two, the fourth level of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Railwaymen' ...
, by being
sent off In sports, an ejection (also known as dismissal, sending-off, disqualification, or early shower) is the removal of a participant from a contest due to a violation of the sport's rules. The exact violations that lead to an ejection vary depending ...
for a second
yellow card Yellow card may refer to: * Yellow card (sport), shown in many sports after a rules infraction or, by analogy, a serious warning in other areas * Yellowcard, an American alternative rock band * Yellow Card Scheme, a United Kingdom initiative co ...
. He finished the season with 28 appearances, of which about half were as a starter, but in the first half of the 2022–23 campaign, he played in the cups but only rarely in the league. In January 2023, he joined
Doncaster Rovers Doncaster Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. The team currently competes in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system after winning the 202 ...
of League Two on loan for the rest of the season. Lakin joined another League Two club,
AFC Wimbledon AFC Wimbledon is an English professional association football club based in Wimbledon, London, Wimbledon, London Borough of Merton, London. The team competes in , the third tier of the English football league system. The club was founded in ...
, on 1 September 2023 on loan until January 2024. He made ten appearancessix in the league and four in the EFL Trophybefore returning to his parent club on 4 January 2024. A week later, he returned to League Two on loan to
Sutton United Sutton United Football Club is a professional association football club from Sutton, South London, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system. Sutton started out playing in junior, ...
until the end of the season. He was a regular in the starting eleven throughout his loan spell, scored eight goals from 21 league appearances, and, according to the club website, " layeda huge part in keeping our fight against relegation going to the final week of the season." Despite being with Sutton for only half the season, his performances earned both Club and Players' Player of the Season awards.


Return to Walsall

On 25 June 2024, Lakin agreed to re-join
Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located ...
on a two-year contract, to begin on 1 July after his Burton Albion contract expired. He scored his first goal on 3 September in the
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 ...
against Birmingham City, his former club; the match ended 1–1, and Walsall won the
penalty shoot-out The penalty shootout is a method of determining a winner in sports matches that would have otherwise been drawn or tied. The rules for penalty shootouts vary between sports and even different competitions; however, the usual form is similar to pe ...
to secure the extra point.


Career statistics


Honours

Individual *
Sutton United Sutton United Football Club is a professional association football club from Sutton, South London, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system. Sutton started out playing in junior, ...
Club Player of the Season: 2023–24 *Sutton United Players' Player of the Season: 2023–24


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lakin, Charlie 1999 births Living people Footballers from Solihull English men's footballers Men's association football midfielders Walsall F.C. players Birmingham City F.C. players Stevenage F.C. players Ross County F.C. players Burton Albion F.C. players AFC Wimbledon players Sutton United F.C. players English Football League players Scottish Professional Football League players 21st-century English sportsmen