 Kilman withWest Ham United in 2024 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Maximilian William Kilman[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1997-05-23)23 May 1997 (age 27)[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Chelsea, London, England | ||
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (1.94 m)[3] | ||
| Position(s) | Centre-back | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | West Ham United | ||
| Number | 26 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| CM Futsal Academy | |||
| Fulham | |||
| Gillingham | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2014–2015 | Welling United | 0 | (0) |
| 2015–2018 | Maidenhead United | 34 | (1) |
| 2016–2017 | →Marlow (loan) | 30 | (1) |
| 2018–2024 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 127 | (3) |
| 2024– | West Ham United | 30 | (0) |
| International career | |||
| 2015–2018 | England (futsal) | 25 | |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 21:45, 1 April 2025 (UTC) | |||
Maximilian William Kilman (born 23 May 1997) is an English professionalfootballer who plays as acentre-back forPremier League clubWest Ham United.
Kilman was born inChelsea,Greater London,[4] to Ukrainian parents.[5][6][7][8] His father was fromOdesa,[9] and his mother is fromKyiv. Kilman speaks Russian in addition to English.[10][11] Kilman grew up inWest Ham until the age of nine, before moving to north-west London.[12]
Kilman began his career in the academy atFulham. As a teenager, he joinedfutsal club Genesis Futsal Club while continuing to play the 11-a-side game. He later joined the academy atGillingham before signing forMaidenhead United in 2015, after making a singleLondon Senior Cup appearance forWelling United againstCockfosters in October 2014.[13] Kilman was loaned out toSouthern Football League sideMarlow for the2016–17 season.[14][15]
Kilman returned the following season and made his debut for the Magpies on the opening day of the2017–18 season againstMaidstone United, while continuing his futsal career, signing forHelvécia. He went on to make 39 appearances for Maidenhead before signing forWolverhampton Wanderers for an undisclosed fee on transfer deadline day in August 2018.[16]
Kilman spent the season with the club's under-23 side, helping them to win promotion from thesecond tier of the Premier League reserve competition.[17] In April 2019, head coachNuno Espírito Santo stated that "Max is 100 per cent integrated into the (first team) squad... I just see him as a very good football player, a centre-half with quality. He's big, aggressive. He has to improve like all young players, but we're really, really happy with Max."[18] Kilman was first included in a senior matchday squad in December 2018, and was an unused substitute on five occasions before he made his senior debut on 4 May 2019, coming on as a last-minute substitute in a 1–0 win againstFulham in the Premier League.[19] In doing so, he became the first player to go directly from non-League to the Premier League, with no loans in between, sinceChris Smalling moved fromMaidstone United toFulham in 2008.[20] Kilman made his full senior debut for Wolves in a 4–0 home win againstFC Pyunik ofArmenia in the2019–20 UEFA Europa League Qualifying Third Round, Second Leg, on 15 August.[21]
On 21 April 2020, Wolverhampton'sExpress & Star announced that Kilman's contract with Wolves had been extended until the summer of 2022.[22] On 21 October, Wolves announced that Kilman had extended his contract with the club until the summer of 2025.[23][24]
On 1 November 2021, Kilman scored the opening goal in Wolves's 2–1 win overEverton at Molineux.[25] The goal, a well-taken header, following a corner from the left fromRayan Aït-Nouri, was Kilman's first for Wolves (in his 44th appearance for the club at senior level) and his first in the Premier League. Four days later, Kilman signed a new long-term deal with Wolves until 2026.[26]
Kilman made his 100th competitive appearance for Wolves in their 1–0 home win againstChelsea on 8 April 2023.[27][28]
On 11 August 2023, Wolves announced that Kilman had been appointed club captain (in succession to the recently-departedRúben Neves)[29] and two days later it was announced that Kilman had signed a new five-year contract with Wolves, running until 2028.[30]
Kilman made his 100th Premier League appearance on 4 November 2023, away toSheffield United.[31] Wolves lost the match 2–1, conceding a penalty deep into time added on at the end of the second-half.
Kilman scored his second Wolves goal, and first since becoming club captain, in the final game of 2023, a 3–0 win against Everton at Molineux in the Premier League on 30 December.[32] In the2023–24 season, he was one of two outfield players to feature in all 3,420 minutes in the Premier League, along withWilliam Saliba.[33]
On 6 July 2024, Kilman joinedWest Ham United by signing a seven-year contract,[34] for a reported £40m transfer fee.[35] His former club, Maidenhead United, gained £4m from the deal having inserted a 10% share clause in the contract when Kilman was sold to Wolverhampton Wanderers.[36]
Kilman made his debut for theEngland national futsal team at the age of 18. He went on to accumulate 25 caps for the Three Lions. Kilman's futsal career was put on hiatus when he signed for Wolves in August 2018.[37] He was also eligible to play international football forRussia orUkraine through his parents.[10][9]
In March 2021, Ukraine coachAndriy Shevchenko announced that he had formally askedFIFA to switch Kilman's national allegiance to Ukraine, but also enquired of them as to whether his appearances for the England futsal team would make him ineligible for Ukraine.[38] On 7 April 2021, FIFA rejected the application, confirming that his appearances for England in competitive futsal matches ties him to playing for England in any form of football.[39]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | EFL Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Welling United | 2014–15[13] | Conference Premier | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1[a] | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Maidenhead United | 2015–16[40] | National League South | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2016–17[13] | National League South | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 2[b] | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 2017–18[13] | National League | 33 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 5[c] | 0 | 39 | 1 | ||
| 2018–19[40] | National League | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Total | 34 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 7 | 0 | 42 | 1 | |||
| Marlow (loan) | 2016–17[41][42] | Southern League Division One Central | 30 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 2[d] | 0 | 32 | 1 | |
| Wolverhampton Wanderers U21 | 2018–19[43] | — | — | — | 3[e] | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||||
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | 2018–19[43] | Premier League | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |
| 2019–20[44] | Premier League | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5[f] | 0 | 11 | 0 | |
| 2020–21[45] | Premier League | 18 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 20 | 0 | ||
| 2021–22[46] | Premier League | 30 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 34 | 1 | ||
| 2022–23[47] | Premier League | 37 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 41 | 0 | ||
| 2023–24[48] | Premier League | 38 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 44 | 2 | ||
| Total | 127 | 3 | 10 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 151 | 3 | ||
| West Ham United | 2024–25[49] | Premier League | 29 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 32 | 0 | |
| Career total | 220 | 5 | 12 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 261 | 5 | ||
West Ham was the 'perfect move' for me
