Marcel Oakley

Marcel Errol Emmanuel Oakley (born 30 October 2002) is an English professional footballer who plays as a defender for EFL Championship club Birmingham City. He spent the first half of the 2022–23 season on loan at Scottish Championship club Arbroath and the second half with divisional rivals Queen's Park.

Marcel Oakley
Personal information
Full name Marcel Errol Emmanuel Oakley[1]
Date of birth (2002-10-30) 30 October 2002[2]
Place of birth Birmingham, England
Height 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)[3]
Position(s) Defender
Team information
Current team
 Birmingham City
Number 24
Youth career
0000–2021 Birmingham City
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2021– Birmingham City 3 (0)
2022–2023 → Arbroath (loan) 16 (0)
2023 → Queen's Park (loan) 13 (1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 18:48, 8 August 2023 (UTC)

Life and career

Oakley was born in Birmingham,[4] where he attended Ninestiles School in the Acocks Green district.[5] He took up a two-year scholarship with Birmingham City's academy in July 2019.[6] According to the then academy manager Kristjaan Speakman, Oakley "has the flexibility to play centre-back or right-back and is a very robust defender who excels in one v one duels in either position. His athletic qualities are improving and in possession as a right back he has the physical and technical qualities to join play in high areas of the pitch."[6] He made his debut for Birmingham's under-23 team in February 2020, playing the whole of a 1–0 win against Derby County U23,[7] and was a member of the team that finished as runners-up in the 2020–21 Professional Development League Northern Section,[8] but did not play in the final against Sheffield United U23 which secured the overall title.[9]

Oakley was one of five second-year scholars offered their first professional contract in 2021,[10] and one of four who accepted.[8] He played in first-team pre-season friendlies – against Barrow, he "was an outlet down the right hand side behind Odin Bailey and mopped things up at the back, making a couple of important blocks in the process"[11] – and was given squad number 52 for the 2021–22 season.[12]

Oakley made his senior debut on 10 August, starting at right back in Birmingham's EFL Cup first-round match at home to Colchester United of League Two. After 75 minutes, he scored the only goal of the match: he "was fed down the right hand side and he proceeded to lash the ball home into the far corner, via a nick from a defender."[13] His first Football League appearance came on 6 November when, with five senior defenders unavailable through injury and himself only recently returned to fitness, he started at right wing-back in a 2–1 defeat at home to Reading in the Championship. According to manager Lee Bowyer, "He was excellent. First half up and down, up and down and putting tackles, he's only a little lad, but he doesn't care, he just fights."[14] He started again on 23 November in a goalless draw away to Coventry City, but suffered a foot injury that was to keep him out until the following February.[15]

Loan to Arbroath

On 1 September 2022, Oakley joined Scottish Championship club Arbroath on loan until January 2023.[16] He made his debut two days later at home to Partick Thistle, coming on after 78 minutes with the score goalless but with his side having had a player sent off; Arbroath conceded twice in the last few minutes.[17] He played 16 league matches (19 in all competitions)[18] and "turned in some energetic wing-back displays",[19] but although Arbroath manager Dick Campbell wanted to keep him at the club,[20] he returned to Birmingham when his loan expired.[21]

Loan to Queen's Park

Oakley returned to Scottish football at the end of the January 2023 transfer window, signing for another Championship club, Queen's Park, on loan until the end of the season.[22] He scored once from 13 starts at right back,[18] and helped the team go into the last match of the regular season needing to beat Dundee to win the division and gain automatic promotion to the Scottish Premiership at their opponents' expense. They lost 5–3,[23] and Oakley started in both legs of the play-off quarter-finals which Queen's Park lost heavily to Partick Thistle.[18]

Career statistics
As of match played 29 August 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
Birmingham City 2021–22[24] EFL Championship200021—41
2022–23[18] EFL Championship000000—00
2023–24[25] EFL Championship100020—30
Total 300041—71
Arbroath (loan) 2022–23[18] Scottish Championship16010—2[lower-alpha 3]0190
Queen's Park (loan) 2022–23[18] Scottish Championship 131——2[lower-alpha 4]0151
Career total 321104140412
  1. Includes FA Cup, Scottish Cup
  2. Includes EFL Cup, Scottish League Cup
  3. Appearances in Scottish Challenge Cup
  4. Appearances in Scottish Premiership play-offs

References
  1. "Club list of registered players" (PDF). English Football League. 23 June 2020. p. 3. Archived (PDF) from the original on 12 July 2020. Retrieved 7 August 2021.
  2. "Marcel Oakley". worldfootball.net. HeimSpiel Medien. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  3. "Marcel Oakley". Queen's Park F.C. Archived from the original on 13 May 2023. Retrieved 13 May 2023.
  4. "Squads – English Football League Championship 2021/2022: Birmingham City". FootballSquads. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
  5. "Year 11 Football Success" (PDF). Newsletter. Ninestiles, An Academy. October 2018. p. 7. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
  6. "Revealed: Blues' new scholars for 2019/20". Birmingham City F.C. 1 July 2019. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  7. "Report: Blues Under-23s 1 Derby County Under-23s 0". Birmingham City F.C. 21 February 2020. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  8. "Blues quartet sign pro deals". Birmingham City F.C. 15 July 2021. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  9. Dick, Brian (24 May 2021). "Blues U23s vs Sheff Utd U23s player ratings: Man City trainee sparkles as George blunts Blades". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
  10. "Birmingham City: Jon Toral and Dan Crowley among 13 players released". BBC Sport. 17 May 2021. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
  11. Chapman, Joseph (21 July 2021). "Birmingham City & Lee Bowyer have transfer priority as Matija Sarkic call looms". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
  12. "2021/22 squad numbers confirmed". Birmingham City F.C. 5 August 2021. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  13. Chapman, Joseph (10 August 2021). "Marcel Oakley fires Birmingham City & Lee Bowyer into EFL Cup second round". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  14. Dick, Brian (7 November 2021). "'Different animal' – Lee Bowyer promises Birmingham City investigation". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
  15. Dick, Brian (3 February 2022). "Birmingham City given much-needed defensive boost". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
  16. "Blues' Marcel Oakley joins Arbroath on loan". Birmingham City F.C. 1 September 2022. Retrieved 1 September 2022.
  17. Lorimer, Scott (3 September 2022). "Arbroath verdict: Player ratings, star man and key moments as 10-man Lichties lose 2–0 to Partick after Scott Allan moments of madness". The Courier. Dundee. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  18. "Games played by Marcel Oakley in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 May 2023.
  19. Smith, Ewan (6 December 2022). "Marcel Oakley is loving life in Arbroath as childhood team-mate Jude Bellingham takes World Cup by storm". The Courier. Dundee. Retrieved 7 January 2023.
  20. Smith, Ewan (28 November 2022). "Dick Campbell bidding to keep dynamic duo Scott Bitsindou and Marcel Oakley at Arbroath". The Courier. Dundee. Retrieved 7 January 2023.
  21. Smith, Ewan (6 January 2023). "Marcel Oakley heads for Arbroath exit door as Angus side suffer heavy home loss to Inverness". The Courier. Dundee. Retrieved 7 January 2023.
  22. Cairns, Ian (1 February 2023). "Queen's Park strengthen with Oakley". Queen's Park F.C. Retrieved 18 February 2023.
  23. Duncan, Thomas (5 May 2023). "Queen's Park 3–5 Dundee". BBC Scotland. Retrieved 13 May 2023.
  24. "Games played by Marcel Oakley in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 8 May 2022.
  25. "Games played by Marcel Oakley in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 29 August 2023.
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