Romelle Donovan
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.jpg) Donovan in 2026 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Romelle Troy Donovan[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 30 November 2006[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Birmingham,[2] England | ||
| Position | Attacking midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Brentford | ||
| Number | 45 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2013–2023 | Birmingham City | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2023–2025 | Birmingham City | 7 | (0) |
| 2024 | → Burton Albion (loan) | 6 | (0) |
| 2025 | → Brentford (loan) | 0 | (0) |
| 2025– | Brentford | 4 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2024 | England U18 | 2 | (1) |
| 2024 | England U19 | 2 | (0) |
| 2025– | England U20 | 1 | (0) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 23:38, 16 March 2026 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 13:38, 9 October 2025 (UTC) | |||
Romelle Troy Donovan (born 30 November 2006) is an English professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or winger for Premier League club Brentford.
He made his Football League debut for Birmingham City as a 16-year-old, and spent time loan at Burton Albion before joining Brentford on loan with the expectation of playing for their B team. Internationally, he has represented England at under-18 and under-19 level.
Birmingham City
Donovan was born in Birmingham,[2] and joined Birmingham City's youth system at the pre-academy stage.[3] In early 2023, first-team head coach John Eustace included Donovan in the matchday squads for all three of Birmingham's FA Cup ties, but did not use him.[2] Had he taken the field, he would have become the club's second youngest debutant, behind Jude Bellingham but ahead of Jude's brother Jobe.[4]
Donovan took up a two-year scholarship with Birmingham City ahead of the 2023–24 season.[5] Under-18s coach Martyn Olorenshaw described him as "a creative midfield player with a strong left foot [who] loves scoring from distance with a strong playing personality."[5] He was included in the party for the first-team's pre-season training camp in Spain in July 2023.[6] Still only 16, he began the season as a regular in Birmingham's under-21 team,[7] whose coach, Steve Spooner, said: "With Romelle, when you play him wide he is a danger but if he doesn't see too much of the ball you want him on the ball. We put him in the ten role and he starts creating things and makes things happen", but he needed "to get better disciplined when the ball changes hands."[7] Eustace named Donovan among the substitutes for both of Birmingham's 2023–24 EFL Cup matches, but again he remained unused.[2]
When Wayne Rooney took over as manager in mid-October 2023, he brought Donovan in to train with the first team[8] and named him on the bench for his first match in charge, away to Middlesbrough. Again, Donovan was unused, but he made his Championship debut four days later, replacing Oliver Burke for the last few minutes of a 2–0 defeat at home to Hull City.[2][9] On 30 November 2023, his 17th birthday, Donovan signed his first professional contract, to run until June 2026.[3] He finished the season with ten appearances, of which seven were in league matches.[10]
Loan spells
Donovan joined League One rivals Burton Albion on 24 August 2024 on loan for the remainder of the season.[11] In early December, however, he was recalled early by his parent club.[12]
On deadline day, he signed for Brentford on loan for the remainder of the 2024–25 season, with the expectation of playing for Brentford B. The deal included an option to purchase.[13]
Brentford
On 2 June 2025, it was announced that Donovan had signed permanently for Brentford. The 18 year-old joined on a five-year deal with an option to extend for an additional year.[14][15]