Ronan Curtis

Derry City

Curtis joined Derry City's academy in 2014, after playing for Kildrum Tigers and Swilly Rovers. He made his senior debut at Brandywell on 8 May 2015, coming on as a second-half substitute in a 2–0 loss against Galway United. He scored his first goal for Derry on 30 October, netting his team's first in a 4–2 defeat at Longford Town. On 25 November, he signed a two-year contract extension, and ended the 2015 season with 13 appearances under the stewardship of Peter Hutton. Curtis scored a brace in a 2–2 home draw with Shamrock Rovers on 27 September 2016. He ended the 2016 season with six goals in 29 appearances as Derry secured a European qualification place with a third-place finish. On 19 February 2017, Curtis signed a new contract extension with the Candystripes. He finished the 2017 campaign with eight goals in 32 appearances, and had a move to Swedish side Östersunds FK cancelled in August after failing to agree personal terms following an agreed transfer fee of around €150,000. Derry finished in fourth place, which was again enough to secure European football. Curtis scored on his European debut at FC Midtjylland in the 2017–18 UEFA Europa League. On 7 May 2018, amid high interest from Portsmouth, Curtis scored a hat-trick in a 7–3 home routing of Shelbourne, taking his side to the semi-finals of the League of Ireland Cup. He insisted on playing for Derry after his move to Portsmouth was confirmed and before the international transfer window opened.…

Although born in England, Curtis grew up in St Johnston, County Donegal and has represented the Republic of Ireland at Under-21 and senior level. On 7 September 2018, Curtis scored his first international goal in a 1–1 draw against Kosovo in the UEFA Under-21 Championship qualifying stage. He was highly rated by head coach Noel King. He was named the Republic of Ireland Under-21 International Player of the Year in 2018 and was also nominated in the International Goal of the Year category for his strike against Kosovo. On 9 September 2018, Curtis was called up by Martin O'Neill to the senior Republic of Ireland squad for the friendly match against Poland two days later, in which he was an unused substitute. He was again added to the Ireland squad on 14 October for a UEFA Nations League encounter against Wales. He made his full Republic debut on 15 November 2018, coming on as a half-time substitute for Callum O'Dowda in a goalless friendly against Northern Ireland at the Aviva Stadium. He played in further friendlies under Mick McCarthy against Denmark, England, Gibraltar and Finland, before he said that it was a "proud moment" when he made his competitive debut in a 0–0 draw with Bulgaria in a UEFA Nations League match. He had been recalled to the squad by manager Stephen Kenny after the squad had a large number of dropouts due to COVID. He was criticised for his performance against Andorra in June 2021.

Curtis is a hard-working right-footed left-winger who can cut inside on his right foot and score goals. Portsmouth assistant manager Joe Gallen said that "He's got a lot of pace and power, and is good in the air as well".

Ronan Curtis was born in Croydon, London, the youngest of eleven siblings, but moved to County Donegal when he was ten. He is the godson of Chris Coleman, who played for and managed Wales. Curtis supported Arsenal while growing up, but also watched Crystal Palace games. His mother was from Derry. His grandfather was from Cork, meaning Curtis was eligible to play for England, the Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland until making his debut for the Republic of Ireland debut in November 2018. He has two children with Madi: Farrah and Malachi.