Ross Sykes
English footballer
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ross James Sykes (born 26 March 1999) is an English professional footballer who plays as a defender for Belgian Pro League club Union SG.[4]
|
Ross Sykes in 2023 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ross James Sykes[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 26 March 1999[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Burnley, England | ||
| Height | 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in)[3] | ||
| Position | Defender | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Union SG | ||
| Number | 26 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2010–2012 | Burnley | ||
| 2012–2016 | Accrington Stanley | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2016–2022 | Accrington Stanley | 101 | (8) |
| 2017–2018 | → Southport (loan) | 6 | (0) |
| 2022– | Union Saint-Gilloise | 87 | (10) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 1 March 2026 | |||
Career
Sykes was born in Burnley, Lancashire and attended Unity College in the town.[5] He started his career with local side Burnley, playing for their youth team between the ages of eleven and thirteen before being released.[6] After nearly giving up the game he was persuaded to go on trial at Accrington Stanley by his mother and was later signed up by the club.[6] In May 2016, he signed his first professional contract on a two-year deal, despite being a first-year scholar.[6] He made his senior debut for the club in August 2016, starting in the 3–0 defeat to Crewe Alexandra in EFL Trophy group-stage.[7] Accrington exercised a contractual option at the end of the 2017–18 season to retain him.[8]
On 23 June 2022, Sykes joined Belgian First Division A side Union SG for an undisclosed fee.[9][10] On 28 February 2024, he scored a goal in stoppage time of 2–0 victory over Club Brugge in the Belgian Cup semi-final second leg, which granted Union SG a 3–2 win on aggregate and qualification to their first final since 1914.[11]
Career statistics
- As of match played 1 March 2026
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Accrington Stanley | 2016–17[12] | League Two | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 3[c] | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2017–18[13] | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 3[c] | 0 | 5 | 0 | |||
| 2018–19[14] | League One | 20 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 4[c] | 1 | 26 | 4 | ||
| 2019–20[15] | 31 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 6[c] | 2 | 39 | 3 | |||
| 2020–21[16] | 9 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 3[c] | 0 | 14 | 1 | |||
| 2021–22[17] | 39 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 2[c] | 0 | 44 | 3 | |||
| Total | 101 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 3 | 131 | 11 | ||
| Southport (loan) | 2017–18[3] | National League North | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | ||
| Union Saint-Gilloise | 2022–23[18] | Belgian Pro League | 20 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | 5[d] | 0 | — | 26 | 2 | ||
| 2023–24[19] | 24 | 4 | 6 | 1 | — | 4[e] | 0 | — | 34 | 5 | ||||
| 2024–25[20] | 23 | 2 | 3 | 0 | — | 8[f] | 1 | — | 34 | 3 | ||||
| 2025–26[21] | 20 | 2 | 5 | 1 | — | 6[g] | 1 | — | 31 | 4 | ||||
| Total | 87 | 10 | 15 | 2 | — | 23 | 2 | — | 125 | 14 | ||||
| Career total | 194 | 18 | 20 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 23 | 2 | 21 | 3 | 262 | 25 | ||
- Includes FA Cup, Belgian Cup
- Appearances in EFL Trophy
- Two appearances in UEFA Champions League, three appearances in UEFA Europa League
- One appearance in UEFA Europa League, three appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League
- Appearances in UEFA Europa League
- Appearances in UEFA Champions League
Honours
Union SG