Patrick Bamford

Nottingham Forest

Bamford was an unused substitute during Forest's League Cup third round tie against Newcastle United at the City Ground on 21 September 2011, a 4–3 defeat after extra time. He made his Forest debut against Cardiff City in a 1–0 home defeat on 31 December, coming on as a substitute for Matt Derbyshire with 12 minutes remaining. He appeared in Forest's next game on 2 January 2012, coming on again as an added-time substitute for Andy Reid as Forest beat Ipswich Town 3–1 at Portman Road.

Chelsea

On 31 January 2012, Bamford joined Chelsea on a five-year contract for a fee of £1.5 million. On 8 February 2012, he started to train with Chelsea's first-team squad. He made his debut for the reserves in a friendly against Gillingham at Cobham, with Chelsea emerging victorious 5–4. Bamford netted his first goal in Chelsea colours, rounding off a tidy team move and also scored his second, the winner from the penalty spot. On 21 July 2015, Bamford signed a new three-year contract with Chelsea before being loaned out to Crystal Palace for the upcoming season.

Loan to Milton Keynes Dons

On 22 November 2012, he signed on loan at Milton Keynes Dons (MK Dons) until 7 January. He made his debut three days later against Colchester United, and ended the match with three assists. Manager Karl Robinson said that he hoped Bamford would stay until the end of season. On 31 January 2013, Bamford's loan was extended until 20 May, having impressed enough…

Bamford played for the Republic of Ireland once at under-18 level, as he qualifies to play for Ireland under the grandparent rule. On 28 February 2012, Bamford made his first appearance for the England under-19s in a friendly against the Czech Republic. He was brought on at half time and 20 minutes into the second half Chelsea teammate Todd Kane put a cross into the box which Bamford firmly headed into the goal, scoring his first England under-19 goal. On 17 November 2013, he was called up to the England under-21 team for the first time for a game against San Marino under-21s after a fantastic start to the season, having scored 12 goals in 20 appearances. Two days later, Bamford made his under-21s debut, coming on as a 65th-minute substitute in a 9–0 win over San Marino. Bamford was included in Gareth Southgate's 27-man preliminary squad for the 2015 UEFA European Under-21 Championship, but was excluded from the final squad due to injury. In March and July 2018, Republic of Ireland manager Martin O'Neill revealed he and assistant manager Roy Keane had been scouting Bamford, as they were looking into the possibility of calling him up to the Republic of Ireland squad, should the striker change allegiance back to the Ireland national team. On 23 December 2018, new Republic of Ireland manager Mick McCarthy confirmed he would be speaking to Bamford about calling him up to the national team, and on 7 March 2019 McCarthy claimed that Bamford would be switching his allegiance back…

Bamford is a versatile forward, who can play as a lone striker or in a pair, and can also play on either wing. He is known for his technique and ability on the ball and his delivery of assists, as well as his proficiency in the air. Although deployed as a solitary striker, Bamford also provided one of the highest rates of assists for a player in his position in the Premier League. Preferring to let the ball run and delivering a strike as his first touch, the vast majority of Bamford's goals, and all of his penalties, are scored with his left foot, although he scores extensively with his head and, to a lesser extent, his right foot.

Bamford was born in Grantham, Lincolnshire, and raised in the small, nearby village of Norwell, Nottinghamshire. He joined Nottingham Forest's academy as an eight-year-old after playing junior football for Muskham Cougars. He attended the independent fee-paying Nottingham High School, where due to the lack of a school football team, he played rugby union as a full-back, until the end of Year 10. Bamford ended up with five A*s, three As and two Bs in his GCSEs. He studied French, History, Biology, and General Studies at A-Level and attained three Bs and a C. Bamford was offered a place at Harvard University and on the Harvard Men's Soccer team, but he rejected the offer to continue his career in England. Described by the Yorkshire Evening Post in 2018 as "not your typical footballer", he plays the piano, violin, guitar and saxophone, and is conversational in French, Spanish, and German. He has said that his more privileged upbringing has led him to be treated differently in a sport where most players are from the working class.