 Younghusband with thePhilippines at the2019 AFC Asian Cup | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | James Joseph Younghusband[fn 1] | |||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1986-09-04)4 September 1986 (age 38) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Ashford, Surrey, England | |||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Right midfielder,striker | |||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 1997–2003 | Chelsea | |||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2005 | AFC Wimbledon | 2 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2006–2007 | Staines Town | 16 | (2) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2008–2009 | Woking | 20 | (5) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2010 | Farnborough | 18 | (3) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2011 | San Beda FC | 21 | (7) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2012–2017 | Meralco Sparks / Manila | 43 | (25) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2017–2018 | Davao Aguilas | 53 | (20) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2019–2020 | Ceres–Negros | 7 | (2) | |||||||||||||||||
| International career‡ | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2005 | Philippines U23 | 3 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2006–2019 | Philippines | 101 | (12) | |||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 4 March 2018 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 16 January 2019 | ||||||||||||||||||||
James Joseph Younghusband[fn 1] (born 4 September 1986) is a former professionalfootballer who played mostly as aright midfielder and sometimes as aforward.
Born inSurrey, England to an English father and Filipino mother, Younghusband played for theyouth team ofChelsea. He spent his early senior career in the lower levels ofEnglish football withAFC Wimbledon,Staines Town,Woking, andFarnborough. He moved to the Philippines in 2011 where he played forSan Beda,Loyola Meralco Sparks (laterMeralco Manila),Davao Aguilas, andCeres–Negros.
Younghusband played for thePhilippines national team from 2005 to 2020, representing them in theSoutheast Asian Games,AFF Championship, andAFC Asian Cup. He earned101 caps and scored 12 goals for the senior national team.
Younghusband's younger brother,Phil, was also a footballer. The brothers have been teammates for both club and country.
On 15 April 2011, it was reported that Younghusband and his younger brother Phil announced that they will join San Beda for the2011 National Club Championships under former national coachAris Caslib.[1]In the final, San Beda lost 3–0 toTeknika in the first leg. In the second leg, Younghusband scored from a free kick to make the score 2–0 to San Beda. San Beda, however, were not able to find a third a goal and Teknika won 3–2 on aggregate.[2]
After the conclusion of the 2011 National Club Championship, he and his younger brother would be joiningLoyola Agila on three-year deals.[3]
In a round of 16 match in the2011–12 United Football Cup match, Younghusband scored his first goal for Loyola in a 14–0 win overSunken Garden United. He scored his second goal in the semi-finals in a 5–4 victory over Kaya after being 3–0 down at half-time.[4] Loyola lost the final 2–0 toPhilippine Air Force.
Younghusband scored his first league goal for Loyola in a 2–1 victory overPhilippine Army. He then scored a brace in a 4–3 win againstGlobal before adding another against Kaya. He then scored a hat-trick in a 14–0 thrashing ofPhilippine Navy. Leading 3–1, Younghusband received his first red card in theUnited Football League after a row with Air Force player Herbert Bayona after which Younghusband shoved Bayona. The sending off inspired Air Force to score twice in one minute to draw the match 3–3.[5][6][7]
When Loyola Meralco joined thePhilippines Football League (PFL) in 2017, it renamed itself as Meral Manila and Younghusband remained with the club.
James Younghusband along with his brother was officially signed in byDavao Aguilas of the PFL in August 2017.[8] The Younghusbands played for the club for two seasons until its dissolution by the end of the 2018 season.[9]
After months of being without a club, James Younghusband was signed in by Ceres Negros of the PFL in August 2019.[9]
Younghusband announced his retirement on 25 June 2020.[10] He initially planned to play for Ceres for at least the whole 2020 season but decided to retire earlier due to the league being postponed due to theCOVID-19 pandemic.[11]
Early in 2005, thePhilippine Football Federation was alerted by an anonymous video gamer regarding the eligibility of James and Phil Younghusband's to play for the Philippine national team, allegedly by finding out about their lineage via theFootball Manager series.[12] He and Phil, his younger brother, were eventually called up to the Southeast Asian nation's football squad, amidst much fanfare. Younghusband participated in the2005 Southeast Asian Games, which was held in thePhilippines. He also ensured the advancement of the Philippine team to the group stage of the2012 AFC Challenge Cup qualification by scoring in the fourth minute of the away match against Mongolia in the qualifying play-off.[citation needed]
Younghusband was a mainstay of the Philippine national team in the 2010s, with his last stint being the2019 AFC Asian Cup.[10]
Younghusband was born inAshford, Surrey, England to a British father and aFilipina mother (both deceased). He is the brother of Philippine team forwardPhil Younghusband.
After his retirement from football, Younghusband plans to return to England with his sister Keri.[11]
 | ||
