Dara O'Shea
Irish footballer (born 1999)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dara Joseph O'Shea (born 4 March 1999) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a defender for Premier League club Ipswich Town, whom he captains, and the Republic of Ireland national team.
|
O'Shea with Ipswich Town in 2025 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Dara Joseph O'Shea[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 4 March 1999[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Dublin, Ireland | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)[2] | ||
| Position | Defender | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Ipswich Town | ||
| Number | 26 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2015 | St. Kevin's Boys | ||
| 2015–2017 | West Bromwich Albion | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2017–2023 | West Bromwich Albion | 96 | (7) |
| 2017–2018 | → Hereford (loan) | ||
| 2018–2019 | → Exeter City (loan) | 27 | (0) |
| 2023–2024 | Burnley | 35 | (4) |
| 2024– | Ipswich Town | 81 | (1) |
| International career‡ | |||
| Republic of Ireland U19 | |||
| 2019 | Republic of Ireland U21 | 10 | (0) |
| 2020– | Republic of Ireland | 45 | (0) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 13:27, 2 May 2026 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 22:22, 28 May 2026 (UTC) | |||
Club career
West Bromwich Albion
Born in Dublin, O'Shea began his career at St. Kevin's Boys before moving to English club West Bromwich Albion.[3] He spent the 2017–18 season on loan at Hereford.[4][5] O'Shea was part of the Hereford side that won the Southern League Premier Division, winning promotion to the National League North.[6]
He moved on loan to Exeter City in August 2018.[7] He made his debut for the club on 28 August 2018, in a 2–0 defeat to Fulham in the EFL Cup.[8] In March 2019, he was praised by Exeter manager Matt Taylor.[9]
On 21 December 2019, O'Shea made his first team debut for West Brom in a 1–1 home draw against Brentford.[10] O'Shea signed a new three-year contract with West Brom on 24 January 2020.[11] He scored his first league goal on 9 February 2020, in Albion's 2–0 away victory over Millwall.[12]
On 20 August 2022, O'Shea captained the team for the first time in a 5–2 home victory over Hull City, scoring a goal in the game.[13] On 10 February 2023, O'Shea made his 100th appearance for the club in a 2–0 away defeat at Birmingham City.[14]
Burnley
In June 2023 he was linked with a transfer to newly promoted Premier League club Burnley.[15] He completed the transfer on 23 June 2023 for a transfer fee of £7 million, signing a four-year contract with the club.[16][17] He made his debut for the club on 11 August 2023, in a 3–0 defeat to Manchester City.[18] He scored his first goal for The Clarets on 10 February 2024, in a 3–1 loss at Anfield.[19]
Ipswich Town
On 25 August 2024, O'Shea signed for newly promoted Premier League club Ipswich Town on a five-year contract.[20][21] He made his debut in a League Cup loss at AFC Wimbledon on 28 August and played his first Premier League for Ipswich on 14 September in a 0–0 draw at Brighton and Hove Albion.[22][23]
On 24 June 2025, the club announced he had signed a new five-year contract.[24] On 4 August 2025, he was announced as the new club captain ahead of the 2025–26 EFL Championship season, following the departure of Sam Morsy.[25] He scored his first goal for the club on 17 October 2025, in a 2–1 defeat to Middlesbrough.[26]
International career
Youth
O'Shea has represented the Republic of Ireland at under-19 and under-21 youth levels.[4] He was first called up to the under-19's in September 2016 for the friendly double-header against Austria which was Tom Mohan's first game charge, following promotion from the under-17's.[27] He was an unused substitute for the first game but made his debut in the second match, playing the full 90 in a 3–1 win. He then made one appearance for the side in the 2017 UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualifying round, as Ireland qualified for the Elite stage, however, he didn't make any appearances in this round.[4] He played in every game in the 2018 UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualifiers as Ireland just missed out on the final tournament in the Elite round, finishing second to Portugal.[4] He was called up to manager, Stephen Kenny's, first under-21 squad for the friendly against Luxembourg in March 2019 and made his debut in the 3–0 win.[28]
Senior
On 14 October 2020, he made his debut for the senior Republic of Ireland national team in a 1–0 away defeat against Finland in the 2020–21 UEFA Nations League B.[29] On 1 September 2021, he was named FAI Young Player of the Year for 2020.[30] On 1 September 2021, O'Shea suffered an ankle fracture in a 2–1 away defeat at Portugal in the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification, resulting in a long-term absence until February 2022.[31]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 2 May 2026
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| West Bromwich Albion U21 | 2016–17[32] | — | — | — | 1[a] | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||
| West Bromwich Albion | 2017–18[33] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |
| 2018–19[34] | Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2019–20[35] | Championship | 17 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 21 | 3 | ||
| 2020–21[36] | Premier League | 28 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 31 | 0 | ||
| 2021–22[37] | Championship | 14 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 14 | 2 | ||
| 2022–23[38] | Championship | 37 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 41 | 2 | ||
| Total | 96 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 107 | 7 | ||
| Hereford (loan) | 2017–18[39][40] | SL Premier Division | 5 | 0 | — | 5[b] | 1 | 10 | 1 | |||
| Exeter City (loan) | 2018–19[34] | League Two | 27 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4[a] | 0 | 33 | 0 |
| Burnley | 2023–24[41] | Premier League | 33 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | — | 37 | 4 | |
| 2024–25[42] | Championship | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | 1 | ||
| Total | 35 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 39 | 5 | ||
| Ipswich Town | 2024–25[42] | Premier League | 35 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 37 | 0 | |
| 2025–26[43] | Championship | 46 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 47 | 1 | ||
| 2026–27[44] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 81 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 84 | 1 | ||
| Career total | 239 | 12 | 15 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 274 | 14 | ||
- Appearances in the Football League Trophy
International
- As of match played 28 May 2026[45]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Republic of Ireland | 2020 | 4 | 0 |
| 2021 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2022 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2023 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2024 | 10 | 0 | |
| 2025 | 9 | 0 | |
| 2026 | 4 | 0 | |
| Total | 45 | 0 | |
