Ben Davies (footballer, born 1995)

Benjamin Keith Davies (born 11 August 1995) is an English professional footballer who plays as a centre-back or left-back for Scottish Premiership club Rangers.

This article is about the English footballer. For the Welsh footballer, see Ben Davies (footballer, born 1993). For other people named Ben Davies, see Benjamin Davies (disambiguation).

Ben Davies
Davies with Preston North End in 2016
Personal information
Full name Benjamin Keith Davies[1]
Date of birth (1995-08-11) 11 August 1995[2]
Place of birth Barrow-in-Furness, England
Height 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)[3]
Position(s) Centre-back, left-back[4]
Team information
Current team
 Rangers
Number 26
Youth career
0000–2013 Preston North End
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2013–2021 Preston North End 136 (2)
2013–2014 → York City (loan) 44 (0)
2014 → Tranmere Rovers (loan) 3 (0)
2015 → Southport (loan) 9 (0)
2016 → Newport County (loan) 19 (0)
2017 → Fleetwood Town (loan) 22 (1)
2021–2022 Liverpool 0 (0)
2021–2022 → Sheffield United (loan) 23 (1)
2022– Rangers 27 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 22:07, 21 May 2023 (UTC)

Davies spent most of his early career with Preston North End, and had loan spells with York City, Tranmere Rovers, Southport, Newport County and Fleetwood Town. He moved to Liverpool in 2021, but never played for the club and was loaned to Sheffield United before he was sold to Scottish club Rangers in 2022.

Club career

Preston North End
Davies playing for York City in 2013

Born in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria,[5] Davies signed with the youth system at Preston North End after being spotted playing for Furness Rovers aged 11.[6] He made his debut for the first team in a home 2–2 draw against Coventry City on 26 January 2013 at the age of 17 years, completing 83 minutes before being replaced by David Buchanan.[7] During the match, he provided an assist for Nicky Wroe's 60th-minute equaliser and picked up a yellow card for a foul on Cyrus Christie.[7][8] He drew praise from Preston manager Graham Westley, who likened Davies' transition into the first team to that of George Boyd at Stevenage.[8] Davies kept his place for the next match at home against Shreswbury Town.[7] His second match did not go as well as his debut, conceding a 90th-minute penalty (for which he picked up a booking), fouling Marvin Morgan in the penalty box.[7][9] He was substituted shortly after for Paul Huntington, with Preston to ultimately lose the match.[9] He signed a one-year professional contract at Preston, with an option to extend for a second year, in May 2013, after being named the club's Scholar of the Year for the 2012–13 season.[10]

Davies joined League Two club York City on 19 July 2013 on a one-month loan.[11] He made his debut in a 1–0 home win over Northampton Town on 3 August 2013, in the first match of 2013–14.[12] On 15 August 2013, his loan was extended until January 2014,[13] having appeared in York's opening two matches.[12] He played 47 times for York City as they qualified for the 2014 League Two play-offs, but lost 1–0 to Fleetwood Town in the semi-final.[14] He signed a two-year contract extension with Preston in May 2014.[15]

Davies joined Tranmere Rovers of League Two on 19 September 2014 on a one-month loan[16] and made his debut a day later in a 2–1 home defeat to Exeter City.[17] He played in four matches for Tranmere, returning to Preston once the loan ended on 22 October 2014.[18] He joined National League club Southport on 11 September 2015 on a one-month loan,[19] and made his debut a day later in a 2–1 away defeat to Forest Green Rovers.[20] Davies was recalled by Preston on 20 October 2015, to provide cover for injured defensive players,[21] having made nine appearances for Southport.[20]

On 7 January 2016, Davies joined Newport County of League Two on a one-month youth loan,[22] subsequently extended until the end of 2015–16.[23] He made 19 league appearances for Newport County.[24]

On 2 January 2017, Davies joined League One club Fleetwood Town on loan for the remainder of 2016–17.[25] He made his debut for the club on the same day, starting a 1–0 away win over Shrewsbury Town.[26] He made 22 league appearances for Fleetwood Town and scored once as they qualified for the play-offs,[27] though Fleetwood were knocked out by Bradford City in the semi-final.[28] Davies signed a new three-year contract in July 2017.[29] He signed a new three-and-a-half-year deal in March 2018.[30] Davies won Preston's Young Player of the Year award for the 2017–18 season.[31] He won Preston's Player of the year award for the 2018–19 season, as well as the Sir Tom Finney Player of the Year award.[32]

Liverpool

Davies signed for Premier League club Liverpool on 1 February 2021 on a long-term contract for an undisclosed fee,[33] reported to be an initial fee of £500,000, plus £1.1 million in performance-related add-ons.[34][35] Sepp van den Berg also moved in the opposite direction on loan for the rest of the season as part of the deal.[35] Davies did not make an appearance for Liverpool during the remainder of the 2020–21 season.[36] He joined newly relegated Championship club Sheffield United on 16 August on loan for the 2021–22 season.[37] He scored his first goal for Sheffield United on 23 February 2022 when he came on as a substitute and scored a late winner in a 1-0 win against Blackburn Rovers.[38]

Rangers

Davies signed for Scottish Premiership club Rangers on 19 July 2022 on a four-year contract for an undisclosed fee, reported to be an initial £3 million, potentially rising to £4 million in add-ons.[39] He made his debut for the club as a substitute against Belgian side Union Saint-Gilloise during a UEFA Champions League qualifier loss on 2 August.[40]

Style of play

Davies is a left-sided centre-back who can also play at left-back.[14] Left-back Ben Davies is renowned for his strong defensive skills and adaptability on the field. The following descriptions best describe his playing style: Davies is a solid defender who does well while playing against the opponent. He is renowned for his proeficient tackling technique, superior positional awareness, and skillful game reading. He is rarely out of position and has quick trading speed to recover the ball. Davies has shown his versatility by occasionally playing as a center-back in a back-three system despite being predominantly a left-back. Due to his versatility, he can play various defensive positions as needed, demonstrating his capacity to change tactics. On the field, Davies exudes a cool and collected manner that enables him to make wise choices despite the pressure. He is dependable in the backline because of his capacity to maintain composure under pressure. Despite not being primarily an aggressive full-back, Davies may be useful in the forward position. He can make overlapping runs down the left side to provide the assault widht and support because he has reasonable crossing ability. On and off the field, Davies is renowned for his professionalism and leadership abilities. His teammates look up to him for his commitment to the club and his ability to set a good example.

Career statistics
As of 21 May 2023
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[lower-alpha 1] League cup[lower-alpha 2] Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Preston North End 2012–13[7] League One 3000000030
2014–15[17] League One 4000200060
2015–16[24] Championship 000010—10
2016–17[27] Championship 00—20—20
2017–18[41] Championship 3410010—351
2018–19[42] Championship 4010010—411
2019–20[43] Championship 3601010—380
2020–21[36] Championship 1900000—190
Total 13621080001452
York City (loan) 2013–14[12] League Two 440——3[lower-alpha 3]0470
Tranmere Rovers (loan) 2014–15[17] League Two 30——1[lower-alpha 4]040
Southport (loan) 2015–16[20] National League 90———90
Newport County (loan) 2015–16[24] League Two 19010——200
Fleetwood Town (loan) 2016–17[27] League One 22120—2[lower-alpha 5]0261
Liverpool 2020–21[36] Premier League 00——0000
2021–22[44] Premier League 00——0000
Total 0000000000
Sheffield United (loan) 2021–22[44] Championship 231000000231
Rangers 2022–23[45] Scottish Premiership 270402050380
Career total 2834801001103124
  1. Includes FA Cup, Scottish Cup
  2. Includes Football League Cup/EFL Cup, Scottish League Cup
  3. One appearance in Football League Trophy, two in League Two play-offs
  4. Appearance in Football League Trophy
  5. Appearances in League One play-offs

References
  1. "EFL: Club retained and released lists published". English Football League. 23 June 2016. Retrieved 4 January 2018.
  2. "Ben Davies". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 5 April 2020.
  3. "York City FC player profiles: Ben Davies". York City F.C. Archived from the original on 11 March 2014.
  4. "Ben Davies: Profile". worldfootball.net. HEIM:SPIEL. Retrieved 5 April 2020.
  5. "Ben Davies". 11v11.com. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 4 January 2018.
  6. "Barrow boy Ben's dream PNE debut". North-West Evening Mail. Barrow-in-Furness. 28 January 2013. Archived from the original on 31 January 2013.
  7. "Games played by Ben Davies in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 July 2021.
  8. "PNE youngster set for the top". Lancashire Evening Post. Preston. 28 January 2013. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
  9. "Preston 1–2 Shrewsbury". BBC Sport. 2 February 2013. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
  10. "Davies targeting regular PNE spot". Lancashire Evening Post. Preston. 4 May 2013. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
  11. "York City bring in Preston defender Ben Davies on loan". BBC Sport. 19 July 2013. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
  12. "Games played by Ben Davies in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 July 2021.
  13. Davies, Ben [@BenDavies1108] (15 August 2013). "Really happy to say I've extended my loan until January @yorkcityfc. Really enjoying it so far!⚽" (Tweet). Retrieved 3 September 2017 – via Twitter.
  14. Markham, Carl (2 February 2021). "Who is Ben Davies? Everything you need to know about Liverpool's new centre-back". The Independent. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
  15. "Davies extends contract at Preston". BBC Sport. 30 May 2014. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  16. "Tranmere Rovers: Ben Davies joins from Preston on loan". BBC Sport. 19 September 2014. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
  17. "Games played by Ben Davies in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 July 2021.
  18. "Davies loan spell ends". Tranmere Rovers F.C. 22 October 2014. Archived from the original on 21 June 2017.
  19. "Ben Davies: Preston North End defender joins Southport on loan". BBC Sport. 11 September 2015. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
  20. "B. Davies: Soccerway". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 13 May 2018.
  21. "Ben Davies heads back to Preston". Sky Sports. 20 October 2015. Retrieved 14 November 2015.
  22. Seddon, Dave (7 January 2016). "PNE defender joins Newport". Lancashire Evening Post. Preston. Archived from the original on 15 February 2016. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
  23. "Newport County to keep Preston's Ben Davies for season". BBC Sport. 15 February 2016. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
  24. "Games played by Ben Davies in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 July 2021.
  25. "Ben Davies signs on loan from Preston North End". Fleetwood Town F.C. 2 January 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
  26. "Report: Fleetwood start 2017 with a great win at Shrewsbury". Fleetwood Town F.C. 2 January 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
  27. "Games played by Ben Davies in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 July 2021.
  28. Scrivener, Peter (7 May 2017). "Fleetwood Town 0-0 Bradford City (agg: 0-1)". BBC Sport. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  29. "Defender Davies signs new Preston deal". BBC Sport. 29 July 2017. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  30. "Davies signs new Preston North End deal". BBC Sport. 22 March 2018. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  31. "Player Of The Year Awards 2018". Preston North End F.C. 6 May 2018. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  32. "2018/19 Player Of The Year Awards: The Winners". Preston North End F.C. 27 April 2019. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  33. Carroll, James (1 February 2021). "Liverpool seal signing of Ben Davies on long-term deal". Liverpool F.C. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  34. "Ben Davies determined to make most of 'surprise' Liverpool transfer". ca.finance.yahoo.com. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  35. "Liverpool complete £1.6m Ben Davies signing from Preston". Goal.com. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
  36. "Games played by Ben Davies in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  37. "Ben Davies: Sheffield United agree season-long loan deal for Liverpool centre-back". BBC Sport. 16 August 2021. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  38. "Sheffield United 1-0 Blackburn Rovers". BBC Sport. 23 February 2022. Retrieved 24 February 2022.
  39. "Ben Davies: Rangers sign defender from Liverpool on four-year deal". BBC Sport. 19 July 2022. Retrieved 21 July 2022.
  40. "Union Saint-Gilloise 2-0 Rangers". BBC Sport. 2 August 2022.
  41. "Games played by Ben Davies in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 July 2021.
  42. "Games played by Ben Davies in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 July 2021.
  43. "Games played by Ben Davies in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 July 2021.
  44. "Games played by Ben Davies in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
  45. "Games played by Ben Davies in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 21 July 2022.
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