Oluwatimilehin Sobowale (born 22 January 2002) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a defender, for National League North club Curzon Ashton.

Timi Sobowale
Sobowale playing for the Republic of Ireland U19 team in 2019
Personal information
Full name Oluwatimilehin Sobowale
Date of birth (2002-01-22) 22 January 2002 (age 22)
Place of birth Dundalk, Ireland
Height 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Position(s) Defender
Team information
Current team
Curzon Ashton
Youth career
0000–2018 Villa FC
2018–2021 Manchester City
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2021 Real Monarchs 10 (0)
2022 Wigan Athletic 0 (0)
2022 Waterford 4 (0)
2023 Florø SK 26 (1)
2024 Nantwich Town 7 (0)
2024– Curzon Ashton 0 (0)
International career
2018–2019 Republic of Ireland U17 9 (1)
2019 Republic of Ireland U18 2 (0)
2019 Republic of Ireland U19 2 (0)
2022 Republic of Ireland U20 1 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 13:50, 27 June 2024 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 21:49, 29 March 2022 (UTC)

Early life

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Sobowale was born in Dundalk to Nigerian parents.

Club career

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Manchester City

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In August 2018, Sobowale joined Manchester City from Waterford based side Villa FC.[1][2]

Real Monarchs

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On 10 May 2021, Sobowale signed with USL Championship side Real Monarchs.[3] He made his professional debut on 9 June 2021, starting in a 2–0 win over Sacramento Republic.[4]

Wigan Athletic

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On 2 February 2022 Sobowale signed a short term contract with Wigan Athletic, joining the under-23 side until the end of the 2021-22 season following a successful trial.[5] He was released at the end of the season.[6]

Waterford

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On 1 September 2022, it was announced that Sobowale had signed for League of Ireland First Division side Waterford until the end of the season in November, where he would play alongside his brother Tunmise Sobowale for the first time.[7]

Florø SK

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In January 2023, Sobowale signed for Norwegian Third Division club Florø SK.[8]

Return to England

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In March 2024, Sobowale joined Northern Premier League West Division club Nantwich Town.[9] In June 2024, he made the step up to National League North side Curzon Ashton.[10]

International career

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Sobowale made seven starts in nine matches for Ireland U-17s, along with two appearances each for the U-18s and U-19s in 2019.[11]

Personal life

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Timi's older brother Tunmise Sobowale is also a professional footballer.[12] The pair played together on the same team for the first time at senior level when Timi signed for Waterford in 2022.[13]

References

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  1. ^ "Who Is Timi Sobowale? Man City's Newest Irish Youngster Profiled". 27 August 2018.
  2. ^ "Manchester City sign youngster from amateur Waterford side - Irish Boxing". 12 August 2018.
  3. ^ "Real Monarchs Sign Manchester City Academy Defender Timi Sobowale | Real Salt Lake". rsl.
  4. ^ "Real Monarchs SLC vs. Sacramento Republic FC - June 09, 2021 | USLChampionship.com". www.uslchampionship.com.
  5. ^ FC, Wigan Athletic (2 February 2022). "Signing | Wigan Athletic U23s add Timi Sobowale to their ranks". Wigan Athletic FC. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  6. ^ "2022/23 Wigan Athletic Retained List". Wigan Athletic. 26 May 2022. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
  7. ^ "Waterford FC announce signing of Timi Sobowale". Waterford FC. 1 September 2022.
  8. ^ Johansen, Arne Hjorth (30 January 2023). "(+) Tidlegare Manchester City-talent er klar for Florø Fotball". Firdaposten.
  9. ^ "Dabbers sign defender Timi Sobowale". www.nantwichtownfc.co.uk. 22 March 2024. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  10. ^ @CurzonAshton (27 June 2024). "✍️ 𝐒𝐎𝐁𝐎𝐖𝐀𝐋𝐄 𝐒𝐈𝐆𝐍𝐒 We are delighted to announce that @timi_sobowale has signed for the Nash! Welcome, Timi! 🤝 #UTN | #TheNash" (Tweet). Retrieved 27 June 2024 – via Twitter.
  11. ^ "Timi Sobowale | Real Salt Lake".
  12. ^ "Sobowale brothers linked with moves to new clubs". Waterford News & Star. 21 January 2021.
  13. ^ "Waterford FC announce signing of Timi Sobowale". Waterford FC. 1 September 2022.