Caleb Watts
Australian football player (born 2002)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Caleb Cassius Watts (born 16 January 2002) is a professional soccer player who plays as an attacking midfielder for EFL League One club Plymouth Argyle. Born in England, he represents Australia at youth level.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Caleb Cassius Watts[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 16 January 2002[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Hammersmith, England | ||
| Height | 1.71 m (5 ft 7 in)[3] | ||
| Position | Attacking midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Plymouth Argyle | ||
| Number | 17 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2018 | Queens Park Rangers | ||
| 2018–2021 | Southampton | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2021–2023 | Southampton | 3 | (0) |
| 2022 | → Crawley Town (loan) | 1 | (0) |
| 2022–2023 | → Morecambe (loan) | 23 | (2) |
| 2023–2025 | Exeter City | 40 | (5) |
| 2025– | Plymouth Argyle | 29 | (6) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2019 | Australia U17 | 7 | (1) |
| 2021– | Australia U23 | 8 | (0) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 17:04, 2 May 2026 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 28 July 2021 | |||
Club career
Southampton
Watts signed his first professional contract in July 2019.[4] On 19 January 2021, Watts made his first professional appearance in Southampton's 2–0 victory against Shrewsbury Town in the FA Cup.[5] Watts made his Premier League debut on 26 January 2021, replacing Danny Ings in Southampton's 3–1 defeat to Arsenal.[6] Watts became the 52nd Australian to play in the league.[7]
On 12 January 2022, Watts joined Crawley Town for the remainder of the 2021–22 season.[8] He made his debut for the club as a 63rd-minute substitute against Carlisle United on 15 January 2022, but came back off 18 minutes later after he suffered a hamstring injury.[9]
On 23 June 2022, Watts joined Morecambe on a season-long loan.[10] He made his debut for the club on 6 August 2022 in a 3–0 defeat against Peterborough United.[11] On 30 August 2022, Watts scored his first goal for the club in a 3–3 draw with Everton U21 in the EFL Trophy, and he converted a penalty to help Morecambe win 7–6 on penalties.[12]
Watts was released by Southampton at the end of the 2022–23 season.[13]
Exeter City
On 15 September 2023, Watts signed a short-term contract with League One side Exeter City until January 2024.[14] A day later, he scored on his debut in a 1–0 victory against Cheltenham Town.[15] In January 2024, he extended his contract until the end of the season with the option for a further year.[16]
Watts extended his contract on 18 June 2024 until January 2025.[17] On 1 October 2024, he received a red card during a 1–0 away victory against Leyton Orient for a late tackle in stoppage time.[18][19] Watts extended his contract on 27 January 2025 until the end of the season.[20]
Watts turned down the offer of a new contract at the end of the 2024–25 season.[21]
Plymouth Argyle
On 23 May 2025, Watts agreed to join Plymouth Argyle on a three-year deal following their relegation to League One, officially joining on 1 July following the expiry of his Exeter City contract.[22]
International career
Watts was born in Australia to an English father, and is eligible to represent both England and Australia internationally.[23][24] He was named in the Australia U17 squad for the 2019 FIFA U-17 World Cup.[25]
Watts qualified for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. He was part of the Olyroos Olympic squad. The team beat Argentina in their first group match but were unable to win another match and were therefore not in medal contention.[26]
Career statistics
- As of match played 2 May 2026
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | EFL Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Southampton | 2020–21[27] | Premier League | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 2021–22[28] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Total | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||
| Crawley Town (loan) | 2021–22[28] | League Two | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Morecambe (loan) | 2022–23[29] | League One | 23 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3[a] | 1 | 30 | 3 |
| Exeter City | 2023–24[30] | League One | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 11 | 1 |
| 2024–25[31] | League One | 31 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 37 | 4 | |
| Total | 40 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 48 | 5 | ||
| Plymouth Argyle | 2025–26[32] | League One | 29 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2[a] | 1 | 33 | 6 |
| 2026–27 | League One | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Total | 29 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 33 | 6 | ||
| Career total | 96 | 11 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 116 | 13 | ||
- Appearances in EFL Trophy