Leon Bailey... could play for england?

sun_tzu

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C'mon Southgate... call him up before somebody else does...

Bailey....kane....stirling
.................ali...............

If they can settle on a midfielder alongside dier and get a back 4 who look like they understand the plan then pick somebody other than Hart that would actually look like a decent side... good enough to get to a quarterfinal implosion at least
 

Blackwidow

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Has never lived in England - cannot get a transfer to the EPL because of the EPL rules (until next summer probably) but is eligible for the English national team?????
 

Nick7

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Has never lived in England - cannot get a transfer to the EPL because of the EPL rules (until next summer probably) but is eligible for the English national team?????
Living in a country isn't a pre-requisite for playing for said country. He also doesn't have to play there.
 

James Peril

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Has never lived in England - cannot get a transfer to the EPL because of the EPL rules (until next summer probably) but is eligible for the English national team?????
A bit like being a Formula 1-driver and not having a driver's licence
 

dbs235

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Question for Irish/Welsh/Scottish fans on here... if Bailey were to play for England due to his grandparents, is it any different to the countless number of English-born players currently in your teams who qualified through their grandparents?
 

limerickcitykid

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Question for Irish/Welsh/Scottish fans on here... if Bailey were to play for England due to his grandparents, is it any different to the countless number of English-born players currently in your teams who qualified through their grandparents?
Why would it be different?

By all accounts he doesn't have a British grandparent though so its moot point. His agent and agent's sister released some article and the only claim they mentioned was something about a great grandfather fighting in some war on the British side. If he was actually eligible then they would have said so instead of the totally irrelevant story of his great grandfather. Adopted great grandfather as well.
 

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I have a strong feeling that Bailey is not eligible for England and that this is just more nonsense from Bailey's agent/adoptive father Craig Butler who has had a long running feud with the Jamaica Football Federation.
 

JJ12

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Question for Irish/Welsh/Scottish fans on here... if Bailey were to play for England due to his grandparents, is it any different to the countless number of English-born players currently in your teams who qualified through their grandparents?
Who said it was different? Don't see why it would be.
 

dbs235

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Why would it be different?

By all accounts he doesn't have a British grandparent though so its moot point. His agent and agent's sister released some article and the only claim they mentioned was something about a great grandfather fighting in some war on the British side. If he was actually eligible then they would have said so instead of the totally irrelevant story of his great grandfather. Adopted great grandfather as well.
Just have a feeling that a lot of people wouldn't be happy if he chose to play for England. But yeah, its not even clear if he is even eligible.
 

Nick7

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Just have a feeling that a lot of people wouldn't be happy if he chose to play for England. But yeah, its not even clear if he is even eligible.
Why would Irish, Welsh or Scottish fans care?
 

limerickcitykid

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Why would Irish, Welsh or Scottish fans care?
They wouldn't. The only people I've ever seen whine about this stuff are English people.

Hell the only people I've seen complain about Hargreaves and call him not English are English people. I'm Canadian and I don't even complain about it, I've often stood up for his choice to play for England even.
 

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They wouldn't. The only people I've ever seen whine about this stuff are English people.

Hell the only people I've seen complain about Hargreaves and call him not English are English people. I'm Canadian and I don't even complain about it, I've often stood up for his choice to play for England even.
Some Canadians were upset. Some Vancouver Whitecaps fans complained when they were linked to sign Owen Hargreaves.
 

limerickcitykid

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Some Canadians were upset. Some Vancouver Whitecaps fans complained when they were linked to sign Owen Hargreaves.
Yea that was wrong not to say some Canadians were also upset. But I can say very few if any Welsh/Irish/Scottish people were upset about it.

He's English and he had every right to play for England. If someone is eligible then they are eligible. I've never like those who think they are the overlord of what nationality people are.

And we cut Hargreaves when he tried out anyway. Wasn't good enough for Canada like.
 

El-Manos

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I always thought he was Belgian for some reason. Probably cause he played for Genk thinking about it now.
 

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Yea that was wrong not to say some Canadians were also upset. But I can say very few if any Welsh/Irish/Scottish people were upset about it.

He's English and he had every right to play for England. If someone is eligible then they are eligible. I've never like those who think they are the overlord of what nationality people are.

And we cut Hargreaves when he tried out anyway. Wasn't good enough for Canada like.
I do not think that is entirely true he was cut from Canada's u17 but it was when he was 14 and the youngest player trying out.
 

Damien

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I have a strong feeling that Bailey is not eligible for England and that this is just more nonsense from Bailey's agent/adoptive father Craig Butler who has had a long running feud with the Jamaica Football Federation.
Reminds me a bit of Neymar Sr - troublemaker for clubs.

Butler says his parents are English and that is how Bailey qualifies, but Butler isn't Bailey's biological father so I don't see how that can be the case unless adoptive grandparents count as well.
 

Chipper

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First time I've heard of this player. :wenger: Just had a quick read here and there. I'd say the same as I did in the McTominay choosing Scotland thread. If Bailey were to play for England assuming he even can I'd hope it was because he felt the most affinity with England of the countries he was eligible for. On the face of it I'd have way more doubts that this would be true of Bailey than McTominay choosing Scotland but I'll never know.

Why would it be different?

By all accounts he doesn't have a British grandparent though so its moot point. His agent and agent's sister released some article and the only claim they mentioned was something about a great grandfather fighting in some war on the British side. If he was actually eligible then they would have said so instead of the totally irrelevant story of his great grandfather. Adopted great grandfather as well.

The article I just read had his adoptive dad saying his parents were English (the player's grandparents). You can only go back as far as grandparents as far as I know, so if it was gread grandparents as you say then I don't think he'd be eligible anyway.

Loads of interesting angles to this story for me. First the adoption thing. I'd assume that it would count the same as birth parents when it comes to eligibility if ihis grandparents were English but am not 100% sure. Thinking about it, there'll be people who were adopted who simply don't know who their birth parents or grandparents are so in those cases at least you'd have to go with the adopting family. I'm sure there was an Ireland player who had circumstances like those. I want to say it was either Tony Cascarino or Andy Townsend but I'm not sure, think I they read they only knew they'd been adopted after being capped.

Relating this into John Barnes and Raheem Sterling, I don't know how they were eligible for England. Anyone know their backgrounds? Always wondered if might have something to do with Jamaica not being fully independent at the time their parents or grandparents were born and that it might have made their family be seen as British and therefore English retrospectively. Anyone know the details on that, or did they simply have at least one English parent or grandparent?

I have a strong feeling that Bailey is not eligible for England and that this is just more nonsense from Bailey's agent/adoptive father Craig Butler who has had a long running feud with the Jamaica Football Federation.
Well on the little bit of reading I've done his dad does seem like a bit of a character. Dumped a 15 year-old Leon in Belgium on his own for 4 months at one point according to wikipedia.
 

saivet

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No idea about John Barnes but Sterling moved to England when he was a kid, so grew up here. Much like some French or German internationals.
 
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limerickcitykid

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The article I just read had his adoptive dad saying his parents were English (the player's grandparents). You can only go back as far as grandparents as far as I know, so if it was gread grandparents as you say then I don't think he'd be eligible anyway.

Loads of interesting angles to this story for me. First the adoption thing. I'd assume that it would count the same as birth parents when it comes to eligibility if ihis grandparents were English but am not 100% sure. Thinking about it, there'll be people who were adopted who simply don't know who their birth parents or grandparents are so in those cases at least you'd have to go with the adopting family. I'm sure there was an Ireland player who had circumstances like those. I want to say it was either Tony Cascarino or Andy Townsend but I'm not sure, think I they read they only knew they'd been adopted after being capped.

Relating this into John Barnes and Raheem Sterling, I don't know how they were eligible for England. Anyone know their backgrounds? Always wondered if might have something to do with Jamaica not being fully independent at the time their parents or grandparents were born and that it might have made their family be seen as British and therefore English retrospectively. Anyone know the details on that, or did they simply have at least one English parent or grandparent?
Got a link? I haven't read anything about it lately. Just last month Butler, his sister and I think their lawyer made some press release article type thing speaking about it and it didn't say anyone was English. The only thing it claimed was Butler's grandfather fought for the British in some war. Which wouldn't make Bailey eligible.

It was Tony Cascarino who was adopted.

Sterling was raised in England and Barnes was too although the rules were different back with Barnes.
 

Acrobat7

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No idea about John Barnes but Sterling moved to England when he was a kid, so grew up here. Much like many of French or German internationals.
What German international wasn‘t born in Germany? Okay, there was the Paolo Rink and Sean Dundee-era, but that shouldn’t count any more. :lol:
 

Chipper

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No idea about John Barnes but Sterling moved to England when he was a kid, so grew up here. Much like many of French or German internationals.
I always thought England had a thing where they don't take naturalised citizens for the national team. Perhaps it's more nuanced than that.

There's definitely a thing where they won't take an older player who moved to an English club at least. It came up with Carlo Cudicini for example when he was at Chelsea for years and had never been capped for Italy.

It's not just England, it's an agreement with Wales, Scotland and N. Ireland too. It's to try and get round the complications of them having separate national teams but only the possibility of a British passport and nationality if they became naturalised. If someone played for a Scottish club, got a British passport could he play for Wales? If someone moved to England and got British citizenship, why couldn't Scotland claim them etc. As such there's no naturalised players for any of these teams.
 

Chipper

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Got a link? I haven't read anything about it lately. Just last month Butler, his sister and I think their lawyer made some press release article type thing speaking about it and it didn't say anyone was English. The only thing it claimed was Butler's grandfather fought for the British in some war. Which wouldn't make Bailey eligible.

It was Tony Cascarino who was adopted.

Sterling was raised in England and Barnes was too although the rules were different back with Barnes.
Well it's in the Sun so you can perhpas take it with a pinch of salt! He is quoted, mind (last paragraph):
https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/foot...n-leon-bailey-fa-england-world-cup-next-week/
Butler went on to clear up the issue of how his son, who has scored 11 goals for Leverkusen this season qualifies to represent England.

He said: “He qualifies to play for England through his grandparents, my parents who are English."
Cheers for the info on Barnes, Sterling and Cascarino too.
 

saivet

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I always thought England had a thing where they don't take naturalised citizens for the national team. Perhaps it's more nuanced than that.
I think it's something like if they've lived 5 years in the country prior to turning 18 they will. So someome like Sterling is fine but Arteta or Almunia not so.
 

Chipper

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I think it's something like if they've lived 5 years in the country prior to turning 18 they will. So someome like Sterling is fine but Arteta or Almunia not so.
Cheers, that would make a lot of sense.

Both as an explanation and as a rule to differentiate between those who were moving for footballing and non-footballing reasons so that the other football associations of the UK wouldn't object.
 

Acrobat7

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I thought about the current team and therefore forgot about them. I was assuming, you were thinking of Boateng, Sane, Khedira, Mustafi (all of whom are born in Germany), et al.
Sorry mate!
 

Cascarino

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Question for Irish/Welsh/Scottish fans on here... if Bailey were to play for England due to his grandparents, is it any different to the countless number of English-born players currently in your teams who qualified through their grandparents?
It wouldn't be different, can't imagine many Welsh fans caring either way.
 

limerickcitykid

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Craig Butler is having Leon refusing call ups for the Jamaican national team because he wants his biological and much less talented son Kyle to also be called up(until Leverkusen Leon and Kyle were a package deal), he wants other players from his Phoenix Academy called up and he wants to be the technical director of Jamaican Football. I am pretty certain Craig is bluffing and if Leon Bailey wants an international career Jamaica is the only option.