Jay Aston Emmanuel-Thomas (born 27 December 1990) 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 last played for club

Greenock Morton Greenock Morton Football Club is a Scottish professional football club, which plays in the . The club was founded as Morton Football Club in 1874, making it one of the oldest Scottish clubs. Morton was renamed Greenock Morton in 1994 to celebr ...

. A product of the

Arsenal Academy The Arsenal Academy was a military academy in Columbia, South Carolina, originally established in 1842 as an independent school by the state of South Carolina. In 1845, the academy became a component of the South Carolina Military Academy (now ...

, he is a versatile forward and can play as a winger or striker. Emmanuel-Thomas began his career with

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

of the

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 ...

and, although he won trophies with the youth team and played regularly for the reserves, he was unable to secure a regular place in the

first team First team may refer to: Sports * First team (association football), the colloquial name given to the most senior team fielded by a football club * The First Team, the first players known to have played the sport of basketball * First Team All-A ...

and was sent out on

loan In finance, a loan is the tender of money by one party to another with an agreement to pay it back. The recipient, or borrower, incurs a debt and is usually required to pay interest for the use of the money. The document evidencing the deb ...

to several lower-division clubs. In 2011 he left Arsenal to join

Ipswich Town Ipswich Town Football Club is a professional football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. The club currently competes in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. Ipswich Town were founded in 1878 but did not turn ...

of the

Football League Championship The English Football League Championship, known simply as the Championship and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Betting & Gaming, Sky Bet Championship, is a professional association football league in England and Wales. Contested by 24 clubs, i ...

. He subsequently played for

Bristol City Bristol City Football Club is a professional football club based in Bristol, England. The team compete in the , the second level of the English football league system. Founded in 1894, the club competed in the Southern League and Western L ...

and had a two-year spell at

Queens Park Rangers Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional association football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England. The team currently compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English f ...

, during which he was again loaned out. In 2019 he joined PTT Rayong in Thailand but the following year moved to Scottish club

Livingston Livingston or Livingstonemay refer to: Businesses * Livingston Energy Flight, an Italian airline (2003–2010) * Livingston Compagnia Aerea, an Italian airline (2011–2014), also known as Livingston Airline * Livingston International, a North Am ...

. He joined another Scottish club,

Aberdeen Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...

in 2021 before moving to India to play for

Jamshedpur FC Jamshedpur Football Club (, ) is an Indian professional association football, football club based in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand, that competes in the Indian Super League (ISL), the top flight of Indian football league system, Indian football. Founde ...

. In 2025 Emmanuel-Thomas pleaded guilty to orchestrating the attempted importation of drugs into Britain, and was dismissed by his football club while awaiting sentencing. In June of that year he was sentenced to four years in prison.

Club career

Arsenal

Born in London to a St. Lucian mother and a Dominican father, Emmanuel-Thomas is a midfielder who has also played as

left-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categ ...

left winger In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

and

centre-forward In the sport of association football, a forward (attacker or striker) is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position which primarily plays further up the pitch than Midfielder, midfielders and Defender (association football), d ...

. He was at

from the age of eight, when he was spotted playing for his father's team by a "Gunners" scout, who invited him for dinner. He became captain of the under-18 youth team when he was just 16 years old. In the summer of 2008 he signed his first professional contract with the club.

2008–09 season

On 6 August 2008, Emmanuel-Thomas played in Arsenal's pre-season friendly 2–1 win over

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 ...

at the

Galpharm Stadium Kirklees Stadium, currently known as the John Smith's Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is a multi-purpose stadium in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England. Since 1994, it has been the home ground of Huddersfield Town Association Football Club ...

. Three days later he played for the first team in their 1–1 draw with Spanish

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known as the Primera División or La Liga, and officially known as LaLiga EA Sports for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Spain and the highest ...

side

Sevilla Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula. Seville ...

in the pre-season

Amsterdam Tournament The Amsterdam Tournament () was a pre-season association football competition, held in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The competition was hosted by Eredivisie club AFC Ajax, Ajax at the Amsterdam Arena. It was inaugurated in 1975 as the Amsterdam 700 T ...

at the

Amsterdam Arena The Johan Cruyff Arena ( ; officially stylised as Johan Cruijff ArenA) is the main stadium of the Dutch capital city of Amsterdam and the home stadium of association football, football club AFC Ajax, Ajax since its opening. Built from 1993 to ...

. In the 2008–09 season he made 39 appearances for both the youth and

reserve Reserve or reserves may refer to: Places * Reserve, Kansas, a US city * Reserve, Louisiana, a census-designated place in St. John the Baptist Parish * Reserve, Montana, a census-designated place in Sheridan County * Reserve, New Mexico, a US v ...

teams, scoring seven goals. He captained the youth team as they were crowned

Premier Academy League The Premier Academy League (sometimes abbreviated as FAPAL) was the top level of youth football in England before it was to be replaced by a new league proposed by the Elite Player Performance Plan in 2012, which was accepted by the 72 member c ...

champions. They were first in Group A and after beating Group C winners

Manchester City Manchester City Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Manchester, England, that competes in the Premier League, the English football league system, top flight of Football in England, English footbal ...

2–1 in the semi-finals, they beat club rivals

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Tottenham (, , , ) or Spurs, is a professional Association football, football club based in Tottenham, North London, England. The club itself has stated that it should always ...

1–0 in the play-off final on 17 May 2009 at

White Hart Lane White Hart Lane was a Association football, football stadium in Tottenham, North London and the home of Tottenham Hotspur F.C., Tottenham Hotspur Football Club from 1899 to 2017. Its capacity varied over the years; when changed to all-seater i ...

. He also played a big part in the youth team winning the

2008–09 FA Youth Cup The 2008–09 FA Youth Cup was the 57th FA Youth Cup. A record 474 clubs participated in the competition. The competition started in September 2008 with the preliminary round and concluded with the final on 22 and 26 May 2009. Arsenal knocked out ...

, in which he scored in every round. Arsenal beat

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

6–2 on aggregate in the two-legged final, with Emmanuel-Thomas captaining the side and also scoring in the 4–1 first leg win at the

Emirates Stadium The Emirates Stadium (known as Arsenal Stadium for UEFA competitions) is a association football, football stadium in Holloway, London, England. It has been the home stadium of Arsenal F.C., Arsenal Football Club since its completion in 2006. ...

. He thus attained the Youth Premiership and FA Cup double together with the rest of the club's youth team that year. He also formed part of the squad in first team matches during the 2008–09 season on two occasions. Firstly, on 23 September 2008 in ''the Gunners 6–0 League Cup victory over

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 ...

. Then again in Arsenal's 3–0

victory over

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

on 2 May 2009.

2009–10 season

Emmanuel-Thomas was an unused substitute for the Premier League games against

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2021 population of 78,266. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River B ...

on 16 December and

Hull City Hull City Association Football Club is a professional association football club based in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. They compete in the , the second level of the English football league system. They play their home ...

three days later as well as Everton on 9 January 2010. On 18 December he signed a new long-term contract. He scored a

hat-trick A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three Wick ...

for the reserves in their 4–2 Premier Reserve League South win over

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Stratford, London, Stratford, East London, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English f ...

at Upton Park on 12 January 2010. He made his Arsenal debut when he started the 4th round FA Cup tie against Stoke on 24 January 2010. Playing as a striker in a 3-man attack, he was substituted after 66 minutes.

Blackpool (loan)

After attending

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside town in Lancashire, England. It is located on the Irish Sea coast of the Fylde peninsula, approximately north of Liverpool and west of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. It is the main settlement in the Borough of Blackpool ...

's first home game of the 2009–10 season, he signed a one-month loan deal with the club. Blackpool manager

Ian Holloway Ian Scott Holloway (born 12 March 1963) is an English professional football manager, former player, media personality and television pundit who is the manager of club Swindon Town. A midfielder, he notably played in the Premier League with ...

said, "I am delighted to have Jay. He is a fantastic young lad, he has a great physique and he wants the chance to come out and play. Initially it is just a month but I hope to convince him we can build on that and extend it for a longer period." The following day he made his professional debut as a 57th-minute substitute, replacing David Vaughan in a 0–0 home draw with

Derby County Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club in Derby, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system. One of the 12 founder members of the English Football ...

. Talking about his debut, Emmanuel-Thomas said, "It was great and I enjoyed it. I've come to Blackpool to prove that I can play against men who are older and perhaps stronger than me, and that I can handle myself without any problems. Hopefully it will be good for me and will help me." He then scored on his full debut on 21 August in a 2–2 draw with

Watford Watford () is a town and non-metropolitan district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Hertfordshire, England, northwest of Central London, on the banks of the River Colne, Hertfordshire, River Colne. Initially a smal ...

Vicarage Road Vicarage Road is a stadium in Watford, England, and is the home stadium of EFL Championship, Championship club Watford F.C., Watford. An all-seater stadium, its current capacity is 22,200. History It has been the home of Watford since 1922, w ...

, when his powerful header in the 56th minute went past Hornets goalkeeper

Scott Loach Scott James Loach (born 27 May 1988) is an English former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Loach played for Ipswich Town, Watford and Hartlepool United. He had also spent loan spells with non-League Stafford Rangers and Y ...

. On 18 September, after five appearances, his loan spell with the Tangerines was extended by a further two months. He scored his second goal for the Seasiders on 31 October in a 3–3 draw with

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 ...

at the

Keepmoat Stadium The Eco-Power Stadium (formerly known as Keepmoat Stadium) is a multi-purpose stadium in Doncaster, England, with a capacity of 15,231. It cost approximately £20 million to construct, as part of the wider Lakeside Sports Complex that it ...

. On 3 November, with his three-month loan spell ending after the home clash with

Scunthorpe United Scunthorpe United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The club was formed in ...

the following Saturday, it was revealed that Ian Holloway hoped to re-sign Emmanuel-Thomas on a half-season loan in January 2010.

Doncaster Rovers (loan)

On 27 February 2010, he signed a one-month loan deal with

. He made his debut with the team the same day as substitute of James Hayter at the 76-minute. Emmanual-Thomas started the next game away against

and scored twice as Doncaster won the game 5–2. His loan was later extended till the end of the 2009–10 season.

2010–11 season

Emmanuel-Thomas started the season in great form for the reserves, scoring 10 in 9 appearances. He made his first league appearance for the senior team against Chelsea on 3 October coming on for

Jack Wilshere Jack Andrew Garry Wilshere (born 1 January 1992) is an English Association football, football coach and former professional Association football, player who played as a midfielder. He was most recently the interim head coach of EFL Championshi ...

in the 81st minute. Manager

Arsène Wenger Arsène Charles Ernest Wenger (born 22 October 1949) is a French former association football, football Manager (association football), manager and football player, player who is currently serving as FIFA's Chief of Global Football Development. ...

was effusive in his praise for Emmanuel-Thomas stating, "When his fitness is right, Jay will be not only a good player but a great player". He scored a goal using the "hocus pocus" skill to get past two defenders and shoot past the goalkeeper in a reserve match against Everton and fuelled speculation that he should be playing at a far higher level.

Cardiff City (loan)

On 18 January 2011, Emmanuel-Thomas announced on his Twitter page that he had signed for

Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It currently competes in , the third tier of the English football league system in the 2025–26 season following relegation. Founded in 1899 a ...

on loan until the end of the season. Toward the end of his loan spell he was drafted out of the match day 18 in order to facilitate

Jason Koumas Jason Koumas (born 25 September 1979) is a Welsh former professional footballer who played as a midfielder for Tranmere Rovers, Cardiff City, West Bromwich Albion and Wigan Athletic, as well as the Wales national team. He was selected in both ...

among the substitutes.

Ipswich Town

2011–12 season

On 26 July 2011, Emmanuel-Thomas signed for

Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this sys ...

club

for an undisclosed fee. He scored his first goal for Ipswich in a 2–1 League Cup defeat to Northampton Town on 9 August 2011. His first league goal proved only to be a consolation as Ipswich were beaten 5–2 by

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

on 16 August. Despite notching his first goal for the club, it was clear that Emmanuel-Thomas was still someway from his best, and was only showing glimpses of the trickery he had displayed in the Arsenal reserves. However, as the season moved into 2012, he really began to show the sort of form Ipswich fans had expected of him, despite the fact that the team were experiencing a poor run of form. After a number of long range efforts that had stung various keepers' fingertips and rattled the woodwork, Emmanuel-Thomas picked up his second and third goals for Town, as they pulled out one of the most surprising results of the season by hammering league leaders

5–1.

2012–13 season

Emmanuel-Thomas scored his fourth goal for Ipswich on 4 February scoring his first away goal against

Coventry City Coventry City Football Club is an English professional football club based in Coventry, West Midlands. The club plays in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club is nicknamed The Sky Blues after the sky blue colou ...

Bristol City

2013–14 season

On 8 July 2013, Emmanuel-Thomas signed for

on a two-year contract in a straight player-swap deal with winger Paul Anderson moving to Ipswich. On 3 August 2013, Emmanuel-Thomas scored on his debut for Bristol City. He scored his first professional hat trick on 26 October against

Carlisle United Carlisle United Football Club ( , ) is a professional association football club based in Carlisle, Cumbria, England. The team currently compete in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system. They have played their ...

to take his tally to ten goals for the season. Emmanuel-Thomas finished the season with 21 goals. His strike partner

Sam Baldock Samuel Edward Thomas Baldock (born 15 March 1989) is an English former professional footballer who last played as a striker for Oxford United. He also played for Milton Keynes Dons, West Ham United, Bristol City, Brighton & Hove Albion, Read ...

had scored 26 goals, meaning the two were the third best strike partnership in England with 47 goals between them in the 2013–14 season.

2014–15 season

To start the 2014–15 season, Emmanuel-Thomas was used sparingly as new signings Kieran Agard and

Aaron Wilbraham Aaron Thomas Wilbraham (born 21 October 1979) is an English association football, football manager and former professional footballer who played as a Forward (association football), forward. Playing career Early career Born in Knutsford, Chesh ...

flourished in attack for City. Bristol City started the season with a 22-game unbeaten run, propelling them to the top of League One and setting a new club record. Emmanuel-Thomas's first goal of the season came in a 2–1 away victory against

Notts County Notts County Football Club is a professional association football, football club in Nottingham, England, which competes in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of Football in England, English football, following promotion and relegation, promotion ...

on 31 August 2014. He then went 11 league games without scoring a goal, but finally broke his duck against

Yeovil Town Yeovil Town may refer to: * Yeovil, a town in Somerset, England, with a council named Yeovil Town * Yeovil Town F.C., an English football team based in Yeovil, Somerset * Yeovil Town W.F.C., an English women's football team affiliated with Yeovil T ...

in a 2–1 home win on Boxing Day. After injuries to both Agard and Wilbraham, Emmanuel-Thomas shone in attack alongside loan signing

Matt Smith Matthew Robert Smith (born 28 October 1982) is an English actor. He is known for playing the Eleventh Doctor in the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' (2010–2013), Prince Philip in Netflix's historical series ''The Crown ( ...

, including setting up Smith for two of his four goals against Gillingham in the

Football League Trophy The English Football League Trophy, officially known as the Vertu Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL League Two and U-21 teams from the Premier Le ...

Southern Area Final. Emmanuel-Thomas scored both goals as Bristol City beat

in an

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 ...

3rd round replay at Ashton Gate, before scoring in back-to-back games against

and

Fleetwood Town Fleetwood Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Fleetwood, Lancashire, England. The team competes in EFL League Two, the fourth level of the English football league system. Established in 1997, the current Flee ...

. On 10 February 2015, he scored a 25-yard strike in City's 3–1 home win against

Port Vale Port Vale Football Club are a professional football club based in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England, which compete in , the third tier of the English football league system. Vale are named after the valley of ports on the Trent and Mersey Canal ...

, taking his tally of league goals to seven for the season and extending City's lead at the top of League One to four points, with a game in hand over second-placed

Swindon Town Swindon Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. The team, known as the "Robins", currently compete in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded as Swindon A ...

Queens Park Rangers

On 12 June 2015, it was announced that Emmanuel-Thomas would join

on a free transfer when his contract at Bristol City expired in the summer. Thomas made his competitive QPR debut in the first game of the 2015–16 Championship season which resulted in a 2–0 defeat against

Charlton Athletic Charlton Athletic Football Club is a professional association football club based in Charlton, south-east London, England. The team compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system. Their home ground is ...

, he came on as a substitute replacing

Tjaronn Chery Tjaronn Inteff Chefren Chery (born 4 June 1988) is a professional association football, footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Belgian Pro League club Royal Antwerp F.C., Antwerp. Born in the Netherlands, he represents the Suriname n ...

in the 71st minute. He scored his first goal for QPR in a

Football League 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 ...

match against

as they secured a 3–0 victory. On 3 October 2015, Emmanuel-Thomas scored his first league goals for Queens Park Rangers, in a double which helped his side to a 4–3 win over

Bolton Wanderers Bolton Wanderers Football Club ( ) is a professional association football, football club based in Horwich, Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the Englis ...

. Emmanuel-Thomas left the club at the end of the 2017–18 season.

Milton Keynes Dons (loan)

On 1 February 2016, Emmanuel-Thomas joined Championship rivals

Milton Keynes Dons Milton Keynes Dons Football Club, usually abbreviated to MK Dons, is a professional association football club based in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. The team competes in EFL League Two, the fourth level of the English football leag ...

on loan for the remainder of the 2015–16 campaign.

Gillingham (loan)

On 5 August 2016, Emmanuel-Thomas joined League One side Gillingham on a season-long loan for the 2016–17 campaign. He scored on his debut in a 3–1 win over

Southend United Southend United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England, which competes in the National League, the fifth level of English football. The team are known as "The Shrimpers", a reference ...

on 6 August 2016. He then scored twice more when Gillingham played Southend again three days later in 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 ...

. He scored 10 goals from 35 appearances for Gillingham before returning to QPR, cutting his loan short in February 2017.

PTT Rayong

In January 2019 Emmanuel-Thomas joined PTT Rayong, in Thailand.

Livingston

On 30 September 2020, Emmanuel-Thomas 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

on a one-year deal with an option of a second year. He featured as a substitute in the February 2021 Scottish League Cup Final which saw Livingston lose 1–0 to

St Johnstone St Johnstone Football Club is a professional association football club in Perth, Scotland. The team competes in the , the second division of Scottish football. The club's name is derived from St John's Toun (or Saint Johnstoun)—an old name o ...

Aberdeen

On 18 May 2021, it was announced that Emmanuel-Thomas would join fellow Scottish Premiership side

on a two-year deal after his contract with Livingston expired. He scored his first and what turned out to be only goal for the club on 15 August 2021 in a

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 ...

tie against

Raith Rovers Raith Rovers Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the town of Kirkcaldy, Fife. The club was founded in 1883 and currently competes in the as a member of the Scottish Professional Football League. The club has won f ...

. On 12 April 2022, Emmanuel-Thomas had his contract terminated by the club.

Jamshedpur

On 12 August 2022, Emmanuel-Thomas joined the Indian club

as one of their designated overseas players for the

2022–23 Indian Super League The 2022–23 Indian Super League was the ninth season of the Indian Super League, the first season as the only top division, and the 27th season of top-tier Indian football league system, Indian football. It commenced on 7 October 2022 and conc ...

season. He was allocated the number 10 jersey. He left the club in June 2023.

Kidderminster Harriers

Following an unsuccessful trial with Scottish side

Inverness Caledonian Thistle Inverness Caledonian Thistle Football Club, commonly known as Caley Thistle, Inverness CT or just Inverness, is a professional football club based in Inverness, Scotland. The team competes in , the third tier of the Scottish Professional Footba ...

in October 2023, Emmanuel-Thomas returned to England with

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

club

Kidderminster Harriers Kidderminster Harriers Football Club are a professional association football club based in Kidderminster, Worcestershire, England. The team competes in the National League North, the sixth level of the English football league system. Formed in ...

on 23 February 2024, .

Greenock Morton

After being released by Kidderminster, Emmanuel-Thomas trained with Scottish side

in July 2024, and subsequently signed a six-month contract with the club. His contract was terminated on 19 September 2024, after he appeared in court charged with the attempted importation of class B drugs.

International career

Emmanuel-Thomas has played for the England under-17 team. In December 2009, he was part of the under-19 squad that

qualified Qualification may refer to: Processes * Qualifications-Based Selection (QBS), a competitive contract procurement process established by the United States Congress * Process qualification, ensures that manufacturing and production processes can ...

for the Elite qualifying round of the

2009 UEFA European Under-19 Championship The UEFA European Under-19 Championship 2009 Final Tournament was held in Ukraine in the cities of Donetsk and Mariupol. Players born after 1 January 1990 were eligible to participate in this competition. Qualification Qualification for the final ...

. Emmanuel-Thomas was eligible to play for West Indies nations

Saint Lucia Saint Lucia is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. Part of the Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, it is located north/northeast of the island of Saint Vincent (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines), Saint Vincent ...

and

Dominica Dominica, officially the Commonwealth of Dominica, is an island country in the Caribbean. It is part of the Windward Islands chain in the Lesser Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean Sea. The capital, Roseau, is located on the western side of t ...

Criminal conviction

On 18 September 2024, Emmanuel-Thomas was arrested at his home in

Gourock Gourock ( ; ) is a town in the Inverclyde council areas of Scotland, council area and formerly a burgh of the County of Renfrew in the west of Scotland. It was a resort town, seaside resort on the East shore of the upper Firth of Clyde. Its ma ...

, charged with orchestrating the attempted importation of drugs. He was taken to Carlisle for questioning and was set to appear before Carlisle Magistrates, accused of being responsible for importing 60 kg of cannabis, worth an estimated £600,000, which was found in suitcases arriving at Stansted Airport from Bangkok carried by his girlfriend and a friend of hers, who had been duped into transporting what they were told was gold. He was dismissed by his football club. On 24 October 2024, he appeared at Chelmsford Crown Court and denied any involvement in the smuggling of drugs from Thailand. He was remanded in custody until trial in May 2025, at which stage he pleaded guilty, to be sentenced later. On 5 June, he was sentenced to four years in prison.

Career statistics

Honours

Arsenal Youth *

FA Youth Cup The Football Association Youth Challenge Cup is an English football competition run by The Football Association for under-18 sides. Only those players between the age of 15 and 18 on 31 August of the current season are eligible to take part. It ...

: 2008–09 *

: 2008–09 Bristol City *

Football 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 ...

: 2014–15 *

: 2014–15 Livingston *

runner-up:

2020–21 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...

Individual * PFA League One Player of the Month: January 2015

References

External links

Jay Emmanuel-Thomas profile
at Arsenal FC (archived) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Emmanuel-Thomas, Jay 1990 births Living people Footballers from the London Borough of Newham People from Forest Gate English people of Saint Lucian descent English people of Dominica descent English men's footballers Black British sportsmen 21st-century Black British people England men's youth international footballers Men's association football defenders Men's association football midfielders Men's association football forwards Men's association football utility players Arsenal F.C. players Blackpool F.C. players Doncaster Rovers F.C. players Cardiff City F.C. players Ipswich Town F.C. players Bristol City F.C. players Queens Park Rangers F.C. players Milton Keynes Dons F.C. players Gillingham F.C. players

Jay Emmanuel-Thomas Jay Aston Emmanuel-Thomas (born 27 December 1990) is an English professional footballer who last played for club Greenock Morton. A product of the Arsenal Academy, he is a versatile forward and can play as a winger or striker. Emmanuel-Thom ...

Livingston F.C. players Aberdeen F.C. players Jamshedpur FC players Kidderminster Harriers F.C. players Greenock Morton F.C. players Premier League players English Football League players

Scottish Professional Football League players English expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Thailand Expatriate men's footballers in India English expatriate sportspeople in Thailand English expatriate sportspeople in India 21st-century English sportsmen British sportspeople convicted of crimes English people convicted of drug offences 21st-century English criminals