Charlie Savage (footballer)
Wales international footballer (born 2003)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Charlie William Henry Savage (born 2 May 2003) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for EFL League One club Reading. Born in England, he plays for the Wales national team.
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Savage with Reading in 2026 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Charlie William Henry Savage[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 2 May 2003[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Leicester, England | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.82 m)[2] | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Reading | ||
| Number | 8 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2021 | Manchester United | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2021–2023 | Manchester United | 1 | (0) |
| 2023 | → Forest Green Rovers (loan) | 15 | (1) |
| 2023– | Reading | 128 | (10) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2019 | Wales U17 | 3 | (0) |
| 2021 | Wales U18 | 1 | (0) |
| 2021 | Wales U19 | 5 | (1) |
| 2022–2024 | Wales U21 | 8 | (0) |
| 2023– | Wales | 2 | (0) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 19 April 2026 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 22:51, 21 November 2024 (UTC) | |||
Early life
Savage was born in Leicester, Leicestershire,[2] and was educated at Manchester Grammar School.[3] He followed in the footsteps of his father, former Wales international footballer Robbie Savage, by joining the youth ranks of Manchester United.[4][5]
Club career
Savage signed his first professional contract with Manchester United in April 2021.[6][7] He made his first-team debut for United on 8 December 2021, replacing Juan Mata in the 89th minute of the 2021–22 UEFA Champions League match against Young Boys,[8] while his father, Robbie Savage, was co-commentating on the match for BT Sport.[9] On 22 May 2022, Savage was named in a Premier League matchday squad for the first time, against Crystal Palace.[10]
In January 2023, Savage joined Forest Green Rovers for the remainder of the 2022–23 season,[11] making his debut for the club on 14 February 2023 in a home defeat to Charlton Athletic[12] and scoring his first league goal in a 3–1 defeat by Bristol Rovers on 11 March 2023.[13]
On 22 July 2023, Savage signed for Reading on a four-year contract.[14][15] He scored his first goal for Reading in a 4–0 win over Millwall in the EFL Cup on 8 August 2023.[16] He then went on to score 12 goals all at the Madejski Stadium in the 2024-25 season against Wigan Athletic, Charlton Athletic, Burton Albion, Northampton Town & Peterborough United. He then scored his first goal of the 2025-26 season at the Madejski Stadium against Stevenage on 6 November 2025, watched on by his dad National League club Forest Green Rovers manager Robbie Savage in the stands in new manager Leam Richardson's first match in charge after replacing former Royals player & manager Noel Hunt.[17]
International career
Savage has represented Wales at under-17, under-18, under-19 and under-21 levels.[18] He was called up to the under-19 team for a friendly tournament in Croatia in September 2021,[19] and scored in a 3–2 defeat to Austria.[20] In September 2022, Savage was called up to the Wales under-21 squad for the first time.[21]
In October 2023, Savage received his first call-up to the Wales senior national team for a friendly match against Gibraltar and an UEFA Euro 2024 qualifier against Croatia.[22][23] He won his first cap for Wales in the former match, on 11 October, starting in a 4–0 win over Gibraltar.[24]
Style of play
A central midfielder like his father, Robbie Savage, Savage is comfortable both defending and going forward.[25] Despite the similarities, Savage has said that he does not see the likeness, stating that he is more of a technical, ball playing midfielder, rather than a tenacious player like his father was.[26]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 18 April 2026[27]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | EFL Cup | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Manchester United U21 | 2021–22[28] | — | — | — | — | 3[a] | 0 | 3 | 0 | |||||
| 2022–23[29] | — | — | — | — | 4[a] | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||||||
| Total | — | — | — | — | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | ||||||
| Manchester United | 2021–22 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[b] | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |
| Forest Green Rovers (loan) | 2022–23[29] | League One | 15 | 1 | — | — | — | — | 15 | 1 | ||||
| Reading | 2023–24[30] | League One | 40 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | — | 2[a] | 1 | 45 | 5 | |
| 2024–25[31] | League One | 45 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | 2[a] | 0 | 51 | 7 | ||
| 2025–26[32] | League One | 43 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 0[a] | 0 | 46 | 2 | ||
| Total | 128 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 5 | 2 | — | 4 | 1 | 142 | 14 | |||
| Career total | 143 | 11 | 5 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 165 | 15 | ||
- Appearances in EFL Trophy
- Appearance in UEFA Champions League
International
- As of match played 6 June 2024[33]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wales | 2023 | 1 | 0 |
| 2024 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 2 | 0 | |
Honours
Individual
- Forest Green Rovers Goal of the Season: 2022–23[34]
