 Forshaw withLeeds United in 2022 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Adam John Forshaw[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1991-10-08)8 October 1991 (age 34)[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Liverpool, England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.74 m)[3] | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Blackburn Rovers | ||
| Number | 28 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2000–2010 | Everton | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2009–2012 | Everton | 1 | (0) |
| 2012–2014 | Brentford | 89 | (11) |
| 2014–2015 | Wigan Athletic | 16 | (1) |
| 2015–2018 | Middlesbrough | 92 | (2) |
| 2018–2023 | Leeds United | 83 | (0) |
| 2023–2024 | Norwich City | 6 | (0) |
| 2024–2025 | Plymouth Argyle | 29 | (0) |
| 2025– | Blackburn Rovers | 19 | (1) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 11 November 2025, 19:04 (UTC) | |||
Adam John Forshaw (born 8 October 1991) is an English professionalfootballer who plays as amidfielder forEFL Championship clubBlackburn Rovers.
Forshaw began his career in theacademy atPremier League sideEverton and came to prominence atBrentford, with whom he won the2013–14League One Player of the Year award.
Forshaw joined theEvertonacademy at the age of seven.[4] Prior to the beginning of the2008–09 season, he was offered a place as a first-year scholar and soon claimed a regular place in the U18 squad.[5] Towards the end of an injury-hit 2008–09 season,[5] Forshaw made his reserve team debut on 29 March 2009, playing the full 90 minutes of a 2–0 win overWigan Athletic.[6] Everton's first team managerDavid Moyes gave Forshaw his competitive debut in aEuropa League group stage match againstBATE Borisov on 17 December 2009, in which he played the full 90 minutes.[7] Forshaw was an unused substitute on two other occasions during the2009–10 season and was the leading appearance-maker for the reserve team.[8][9]
Forshaw made hisPremier League debut as an 82nd-minute substitute in a 3–0 win overWolverhampton Wanderers on 9 April 2011 and was an unused substitute for a further three league games towards the end of the2010–11 season.[10] Forshaw signed a one-year contract extension in June 2011 and was an unused substitute for the first team on two occasions during the2011–12 season.[5][11] He spent one month away onloan towards the end of the season and won the reserve team's Player of the Year award.[5][12] Forshaw was not offered a new contract and was released in May 2012.[13]
On 24 February 2012, Forshaw joinedLeague One clubBrentford on a one-month youth loan.[14][15] He made his debut the following day as a 69th-minute substitute forSam Saunders in a 0–0 draw withScunthorpe United.[16] Forshaw made seven appearances and returned to Everton after sustaining a broken jaw in a 2–0 victory overRochdale on 24 March.[16][17]
Forshaw joined Brentford permanently on a two-year contract for an undisclosed fee in May 2012.[18] He scored the first professional goal of his career in a 1–0 victory overOldham Athletic on 22 September 2012.[19] Forshaw received the firstred card of his career after picking up a secondyellow card in a 2–1 league victory overCrawley Town on 26 February 2013.[20] After Brentford missed out on automatic promotion to theChampionship following a 1–0 defeat toDoncaster Rovers,[21] it was Forshaw who scored the winningpenalty in theplayoff semi-finalshoot-out againstSwindon Town to sendthe Bees to thefinal.[22] Forshaw played in the final againstYeovil Town atWembley Stadium, but a 2–1 defeat consigned Brentford to another season in League One.[23] He made 53 appearances during the2012–13 season and scored three goals.[24]
Forshaw signed a new three-year contract on 27 June 2013 and scored his first goal of the2013–14 season in a 3–1 victory overSheffield United on 10 August.[25][26] With the absence of regular penalty takerKevin O'Connor through injury, Forshaw assumed the role and scored his third penalty of the season (his fifth goal overall) in a 3–0 away league victory overPreston North End on 21 December.[27] A run of 24 consecutive league starts ended when he was left out of the squad for a 2–0 win overPort Vale at Griffin Park on 11 January 2014 due to a calf problem.[28][29] On 16 March, Forshaw was named as the2014 League One Player of the Year.[30] Forshaw was sent off for the second time of his career in a 1–0 defeat to Swindon Town on 12 April and owing to being suspended, he was absent for Brentford's automatic promotion-clinching 1–0 victory over Preston North End on 18 April.[26][31] His final appearance of the season came in a 2–2 draw withMilton Keynes Dons on 21 April and the following day,[26] he underwent surgery to correct a long-standing ankle problem.[32] Forshaw made 40 appearances during the 2013–14 season and scored eight goals.[26] He was also named in the League OnePFA Team of the Year[33] and in the League OneTeam of the Year.[34]
After missing Brentford's first2014–15pre-season friendly in July 2014, managerMark Warburton stated that Forshaw would be available for the final pre-season games.[35] In early August, Forshaw was told to stay away from the club'straining ground after two "totally unacceptable" bids for the player were received from Championship rivals Wigan Athletic, managed by former Brentford managerUwe Rösler.[36] After missing the early regular-season matches with a hamstring strain,[37] it was announced on 25 August that Wigan Athletic had met Brentford's valuation of Forshaw and he was free to talk with the Latics.[38] Forshaw departed the club on 1 September and made 100 appearances and scored 11 goals during his two spells with the club.[13]
On 1 September 2014, Forshaw joined Championship side Wigan Athletic on a four-year contract for an undisclosed fee,[39] believed to be approximately £2.5 million.[40] The move reunited him with his former Brentford manager Uwe Rösler, but the move proved to be an abortive one, with Rösler being dismissed in November 2014 and after 17 appearances and one goal, Forshaw left theDW Stadium on 28 January 2015.[41][42][43]
On 28 January 2015, Forshaw joined Championship clubMiddlesbrough on a3+1⁄2-year contract for an undisclosed fee,[44] believed to be £2 million.[45] In what remained of the2014–15 season, he made 20 appearances and experienced anotherplayoff final defeat,[43] when he looked on as an unused substitute as Boro were beaten 2–0 byNorwich City.[46]
Forshaw made 34 appearances and scored two goals during a successful2015–16 season,[47] in which Middlesbrough clinched automatic promotion to the Premier League with a second-place finish.[48] He signed a new four-year contract in August 2016 and in November was reported to have been scouted for theEngland national side by managerGareth Southgate.[49][50][51] He made 35 appearances during a disappointing2016–17 season, at the end of which Boro were relegated straight back to the Championship.[52]
Forshaw managed 14 appearances during the first half of the2017–18 season before departing the club in January 2018.[53][54] During three years at theRiverside, Forshaw made 79 appearances and scored two goals.[13]
On 18 January 2018, Forshaw transferred to Championship clubLeeds United for a reported £4.5 million fee and signed a four-and-a-half-year contract.[55][56] Forshaw made his Leeds debut starting in Leeds' 0–0 draw againstHull City on 30 January 2018.[57] After starting for the side since his debut, on 24 February Forshaw missed Leeds' 1–0 win against his former side Brentford with his wife going into labour.[58] He aggravated a previous calf injury againstSheffield Wednesday on 17 March, which limited his number of performances before the end of the season.[59] During the 2018 preseason, Forshaw sustained a toe injury which on 3 August was reported to require surgery and keep him out for up to eight weeks.[60] He returned from injury on 15 September, as a substitute in the 1–1 draw againstMillwall.[61] Forshaw was praised for his performance in a newer role asdefensive midfielder in a 2–0 win againstDerby County on 11 January 2019, withYorkshire Evening Post journalist Phil Hay describing it as "arguably his best for Leeds".[62][63]
During the2018–19 season, Forshaw played 32 games in all competitions, after Leeds finished the regular season in third place.[64] Leeds qualified for the playoffs and Forshaw started the first leg for Leeds in their semi-final playoff match against sixth-placed Derby County, but was replaced byJamie Shackleton after an injury in the first half during a 1–0 win at Pride Park. However, Leeds were beaten 4–3 on aggregate over the two legs. With Forshaw out injured, Leeds lost 4–2 in an encounter at Elland Road that saw Derby progress to the final againstAston Villa.[65] He featured prominently in the documentaryTake Us Home, documenting the Leeds's2018–19 season, onAmazon Prime, released in August 2019.[66][67][68]
On 8 August 2019, it was reported that Leeds had rejected bids for Forshaw during the 2019 transfer window in order to keep him at the club.[69] Forshaw started the2019–20 season strongly alongsideMateusz Klich andKalvin Phillips in central midfield, but after seven games suffered a hip injury. The injury was at first judged to be minor, but on 4 January 2020 after 16 weeks out injured, head coachMarcelo Bielsa said that Forshaw was still trying to recover from his hip injury.[70] In February, Forshaw was sent to the Steadman Clinic in Colorado, United States, for surgery and was ruled out of the rest of the season.[71]
After the English professional football season was paused in March 2020 due to theimpact of the COVID-19 pandemic on association football, the season was resumed during June, where Forshaw earned promotion with Leeds to thePremier League, who also becameEFL Championship Champions for the 2019–20 season in July after the successful resumption of the season.[72]
By January 2021, Forshaw had missed more games for Leeds out injured than he had actually played a part in, with Bielsa stating at a 25 January press conference: "Forshaw is a professional who looks after his health very much, that's why I think that as soon as his injury problems are resolved he will be able to compete very quickly."[73] On 16 April 2021, Forshaw returned to action playing 82 minutes in a Leeds U23 match versus Aston Villa U23, although he sustained a minor hamstring injury which kept him out for another period of time.[74]
Following a successful preseason, Forshaw made his first start for nearly two years for Leeds' senior team in a competitive game, playing the first hour of aLeague Cup match againstCrewe Alexandra on 24 August 2021.[75] Forshaw played his first league game of the 2021–22 season againstSouthampton in October, coming on as a 64th-minute substitute forRodrigo. On 7 November, Forshaw was in the starting lineup for Leeds againstLeicester City, his first Premier League start in over four years.[76] In January 2022, Forshaw extended his Leeds contract until the end of the 2022–23 season with the option to extend for a further year.[77] On 13 June 2023, Leeds announced that Forshaw's contract would not be renewed, and he would leave the club at the end of the 2022–23 season.[78]
On 26 August 2023,Norwich City signed Forshaw on a free transfer.[79] He made his first appearance forThe Canaries three days later as a substitute in a League Cup tie and, after a handful of other substitute Championship and League Cup games, was named in the starting XI on 4 October 2023 in a league defeat atSwansea City.[80]
On 19 January 2024, Forshaw joined Championship clubPlymouth Argyle on a free transfer having had his contract with Norwich City terminated.[81] He made his first appearance forThe Pilgrims in a 3–1 win atHome Park overCardiff City on 20 January 2024.[82]
On 11 January 2025, Forshaw joined Championship sideBlackburn Rovers on a short-term deal until the end of the season, having terminated his contract with Plymouth.[83][84]
On 15 February 2025, Forshaw scored his first goal for Blackburn, and his first goal in nine years, against former club Plymouth Argyle in a 2–0 win.[85] Forshaw went viral after celebrating in front of his former managerMiron Muslic, however he later claimed he was aiming the celebration at his family in the stand.[86][87]
On 19 May 2025, the club announced the player would be leaving in June when his contract expired.[88]
On 19 June 2025, Forshaw re-joinedBlackburn Rovers on a one-year contract.[89]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Everton | 2009–10[7] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2010–11[90] | Premier League | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2011–12[16] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||
| Brentford | 2011–12[16] | League One | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 7 | 0 | |
| 2012–13[24] | League One | 43 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3[b] | 0 | 53 | 3 | |
| 2013–14[26] | League One | 39 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 40 | 8 | ||
| Total | 89 | 11 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 100 | 11 | ||
| Wigan Athletic | 2014–15[43] | Championship | 16 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 17 | 1 | |
| Middlesbrough | 2014–15[43] | Championship | 18 | 0 | — | — | 2[c] | 0 | 20 | 0 | ||
| 2015–16[47] | Championship | 29 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 34 | 2 | ||
| 2016–17[52] | Premier League | 34 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 0 | |
| 2017–18[53] | Championship | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 0 | |
| Total | 92 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 103 | 3 | ||
| Leeds United | 2017–18[53] | Championship | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 12 | 0 | |
| 2018–19[91] | Championship | 30 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[c] | 0 | 32 | 0 | |
| 2019–20[92] | Championship | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 8 | 0 | ||
| 2020–21[93] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2021–22[94] | Premier League | 22 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 26 | 0 | ||
| 2022–23[95] | Premier League | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 13 | 0 | ||
| Total | 83 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 91 | 0 | ||
| Norwich City | 2023–24[96] | Championship | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 9 | 0 | |
| Plymouth Argyle | 2023–24[96] | Championship | 13 | 0 | — | — | — | 13 | 0 | |||
| 2024–25[97] | Championship | 16 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 0 | ||
| Total | 29 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 0 | ||
| Blackburn Rovers | 2024–25[97] | Championship | 16 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 17 | 1 | ||
| 2025–26[97] | Championship | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 | |||
| Total | 17 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 18 | 1 | ||||
| Career total | 333 | 15 | 14 | 0 | 17 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 370 | 15 | ||
Brentford
Middlesbrough
Leeds United
Individual
