Phil Bardsley

Manchester United

After coming through the club's youth system, Bardsley was a regular in Manchester United's under-17 team from the 2000–01 season, before progressing to the under-19s from the 2002–03 season. He continued in the under-19s in 2003–04, but appeared more frequently in the reserves before making his first-team debut in a 2–0 defeat to West Bromwich Albion on 3 December 2003 in the fourth round of the League Cup. He made a second appearance for the first team in the 3–0 FA Cup fourth round win over Northampton Town on 25 January 2004, before going on a four-month loan to Manchester United's Belgian feeder club, Royal Antwerp, on 30 January. He made six appearances for Royal Antwerp, including a 4–0 defeat to Club Brugge on 8 February 2004, in which he was sent off for two bookable offences. After returning to Manchester United at the end of 2003–04, Bardsley made three appearances on the club's 2004–05 pre-season tour of the United States, playing against Bayern Munich, Celtic and Milan. He made another promising start to the 2005–06 season, and an injury to Gary Neville gave him plenty of opportunities to play between August and November 2005. He was regularly named as a substitute for much of the rest of the season, before going on loan to Championship club Burnley on 16 March 2006. He played six matches and scored an own goal in the first minute of a 1–1 draw at home to Southampton.

Loan to Rangers

Bardsley again made a significant…

On 6 October 2010, Bardsley received a call-up for the Scotland national team for the Euro 2012 qualifier against the Czech Republic on 8 October 2010. He qualifies because his father was born in Glasgow. He made his debut on 11 October 2010 in a 3–2 defeat by World and European champions Spain, filling in for the injured Alan Hutton.

Bardsley plays at right-back and describes himself as a modern full-back.

Born at Hope Hospital in Salford, Bardsley attended Hope High School along with former United teammates Mark Redshaw and Mark Howard. Bardsley started his career with Charlestown Lads Club also with Redshaw before signing for Manchester United. He grew up near Manchester United's old training ground, The Cliff, and would often go there on his school holidays to watch the players train. Prior to his departure for Sunderland, he was the only current player who progressed through all the levels of the academy, starting out at the club at the age of 8.