Charlie Dean I'Anson (born 1 July 1993), known in Spain as simply Charlie, is an English professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who plays as a

centre back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

for Spanish club SS Reyes. He started his career at

Grimsby Town Grimsby Town Football Club is a professional football club based in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England, that in the 2022–23 season will compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system, following the victory in ...

, with whom he spent two years in the

Conference A conference is a meeting of two or more experts to discuss and exchange opinions or new information about a particular topic. Conferences can be used as a form of group decision-making, although discussion, not always decisions, are the main p ...

. In 2012, he moved to

Elche Elche ( ca-valencia, Elx) is a city and municipality of Spain, belonging to the province of Alicante, in the Valencian Community. According to 2014 data, Elche has a population of 228,647 inhabitants,La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men's ...

. I'Anson has since remained in Spanish football and has played for

Alcorcón Alcorcón () is a city and municipality of Spain located in the Community of Madrid. as of 2020, it had a population of 172,384. Geography The municipality, largely flat, lies at an average altitude of 711 metres above sea level, with the h ...

Real Oviedo Real Oviedo is a Spanish football club based in Oviedo, Asturias. Founded on 26 March 1926 as a result of the merger of two clubs who had maintained a large sporting rivalry for years in the city: ''Real Stadium Club Ovetense'' and ''Real Club De ...

, Valencia B,

Granada Granada (,, DIN 31635, DIN: ; grc, Ἐλιβύργη, Elibýrgē; la, Illiberis or . ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the fo ...

Real Murcia Real Murcia Club de Fútbol, S.A.D., commonly known as Real Murcia (, "Royal Murcia"), is a Spanish football club based in Murcia, in the Región de Murcia. Founded in 1919, it currently plays in Primera División RFEF – Group 2, playing ho ...

Rayo Majadahonda Club de Fútbol Rayo Majadahonda () is a Spanish football team based in Majadahonda, in the autonomous community of Madrid. Founded in 1976 it plays in Primera División RFEF – Group 1, holding home games at '' Estadio Cerro del Espino'', with ...

and

UCAM Murcia UCAM Universidad Católica de Murcia Club de Baloncesto, S.A.D., more commonly referred to as UCAM Murcia, is a professional basketball team based in Murcia, Spain. It plays their home games at Palacio de Deportes. History Founded in 1985 u ...

. In 2012 he was called up to the England C team but the game was postponed and he remained uncapped.

Early life

I'Anson was born in

Luton Luton () is a town and unitary authority with borough status, in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 census, the Luton built-up area subdivision had a population of 211,228 and its built-up area, including the adjacent towns of Dunstable an ...

, Bedfordshire, to parents Kay and Dean, and is a

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...

supporter. Along with his older brother Alfie, he moved to

Málaga Málaga (, ) is a municipality of Spain, capital of the Province of Málaga, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. With a population of 578,460 in 2020, it is the second-most populous city in Andalusia after Seville and the sixth most pop ...

, Spain, with his parents at the age of 7, and within a year, was fluent in Spanish. While living there, I'Anson was a teammate of

Isco Francisco Román Alarcón Suárez (; born 21 April 1992), commonly known as Isco (), is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder. He last played for La Liga club Sevilla. He began his career at Valencia, playing ...

at Atlético Benamiel. At the age of 15, he was scouted by

Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and have been playing their home games at the City Ground, on the banks of the River Tren ...

, and was offered a contract as a back-up, but did not want to be a reserve at a young age while living in a different country to his parents, so signed with

instead.

Club career

Grimsby Town

As a 17-year-old, he capped a first-team debut with a goal in a 2–0 win in the

against

Mansfield Town Mansfield Town Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in the town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Stags', they ...

on 19 April 2011. I'Anson was offered his first professional one-year contract in May 2011, after impressing in the club's youth team and final four first-team games of the 2010–11 season. He was released and left the club on 3 May 2012 after he turned down a fresh contract. He played 17 times in the league, scoring twice.

Elche

In July 2012, I'Anson joined Spanish side

Elche CF Elche Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. ( ca-valencia, Elx Club de Futbol, S.A.D.) is a professional football based in Elche, Province of Alicante, in the Valencian Community. Founded in 1923, the club competes in La Liga, holding home matches at ''Estadi ...

of the

Segunda División The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Segunda División, commercially known as LaLiga SmartBank for sponsorship reasons, is the men's second professional association football division of the Spanish football league system. Administrated by the Lig ...

on trial, later signing with the club. He spent his first senior season in Spain with the reserves in

Tercera División Tercera División ( en, Third Division) was the fourth tier of the Spanish football league system. Founded in 1929, it was below the ''Primera División'' (also known as La Liga), the ''Segunda División'', and the semi-professional ''Segunda Di ...

, appearing 25 times and scoring once, being promoted to

Segunda División B Segunda División B ( en, Second Division B) was the third tier of the Spanish football league system containing 102 teams divided into five groups, until it was replaced by the new structure in 2021. It was administered by the Royal Spanish Foot ...

. On 19 August 2013, I'Anson was included in a first-team squad for the first time, remaining an unused substitute as Elche began the

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men's ...

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...

with a 3–0 loss at

Rayo Vallecano Rayo Vallecano de Madrid, S.A.D. (), often abbreviated to Rayo (Spanish for "thunderbolt"), is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid, in the neighbourhood of Vallecas. Rayo was founded on 29 May 1924, and currently compete in La Lig ...

. He made his debut on 5 October, starting in a 2–1 home win over

Espanyol Reial Club Deportiu Espanyol de Barcelona (; "Royal Spanish Sports Club of Barcelona"), commonly known as Espanyol, is a professional sports club based in Barcelona, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top tier of the Spanish football league sy ...

. I'Anson was sent off on 2 February 2014, as the reserves lost 1–0 at

Lleida Esportiu Club Lleida Esportiu is a Spanish football team based in Lleida, in the autonomous community of Catalonia. Founded in July 2011 it plays in Segunda División RFEF – Group 3, holding home games at Camp d'Esports, with a capacity of 13,500 sea ...

. On 29 June 2014, I'Anson joined

on a season-long loan; however, after the club's relegation to the third level he moved to second-tier

AD Alcorcón Agrupación Deportiva Alcorcón S.A.D. is a Spanish football team based in Alcorcón, in the autonomous community of Madrid. Founded in 1971, it currently plays in Primera Federación – Group 1, holding home matches at the Municipal de Santo ...

also in a temporary deal. On 27 January 2015, after appearing sparingly for the

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

side, he joined

on loan until the end of the season, helping them win the third division.

Valencia B

On 20 August 2015, I'Anson rescinded his contract with Elche. The following day, he joined

Valencia CF Mestalla Valencia Club de Fútbol Mestalla, shortened to Valencia Mestalla, is the reserve team of Valencia CF, a List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish football club based in Valencia, in the Valencian Community, namesake community. Founded in 1944, an ...

, again in the third tier. He made his debut for them on 20 September, replacing Nacho Gil for the final 17 minutes of a 3–2 loss at

UE Cornellà Unión Esportiva Cornellà, S. A. D. ( ca, Unió Esportiva Cornellà) is a Spanish football team based in Cornellà de Llobregat, in the autonomous community of Catalonia. Founded in 1951 it plays in Primera División RFEF – Group 2, holding ...

. His first goal for them came on 30 April, opening a 2–0 home win over

CF Badalona Club de Fútbol Badalona () is a Spanish football team based in Badalona, in the autonomous community of Catalonia. Founded in 1903 it plays in Tercera Federación – Group 5, temporarily holding home games at Estadi Municipal de Badalona, with ...

. On 10 September 2016, he was sent off in a 2–2 draw at

Atlético Saguntino Atlético Saguntino (Spanish for 'Athletic Club of Sagunto') is a Spanish football team based in Sagunto, in the Valencian Community. Founded in 1951, in the 2019–20 season of Spanish football it plays in Tercera División RFEF – Group 6, h ...

Granada

On 7 July 2017, Charlie signed a one-year deal with

Granada CF Granada Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. (), known simply as Granada, is a Spanish football club based in the city of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, that plays in the Segunda División, after being relegated from La Liga in the 2021� ...

, newly relegated to the second tier. He made his debut on 27 August, replacing

Germán Germán () is a male given name in Spanish speaking countries. It is a cognate to French Germain, and is a variant of Latin Germanus. Surname * Domingo Germán (born 1992), baseball player * Esteban Germán (born 1978), Dominican professio ...

for the final five minutes of a 1–1 draw at

Real Zaragoza Real Zaragoza, S.A.D. (), commonly referred to as Zaragoza, is a football club based in Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain, that currently competes in the Segunda División, the second tier of the Spanish league system. Zaragoza holds its home games at La ...

Murcia and Rayo Majadahonda

On 30 January 2018, I'Anson returned to Murcia, after rescinding his contract with Granada. On 26 July of the following year, he moved to fellow third division side

CF Rayo Majadahonda Club de Fútbol Rayo Majadahonda () is a Spanish football team based in Majadahonda, in the autonomous community of Madrid. Founded in 1976 it plays in Primera División RFEF – Group 1, holding home games at ''Estadio Cerro del Espino'', with ...

. On 5 August 2020, I'Anson joined

side

International career

In August 2011 I'Anson and Grimsby teammate

Shaun Pearson Shaun Mark Pearson (born 28 April 1989) is an English professional Association football, footballer who plays as a centre-back for EFL League Two side Grimsby Town F.C., Grimsby Town. Pearson began his career at Spalding United F.C., Spalding U ...

were called up to the England C team to face the India Under-23 team, however the game never went ahead.Charlie I'Anson: tears and triumphs of an Englishman alone in La Liga
The Guardian, 4 January 2014

Honours

Grimsby Town *

Lincolnshire Senior Cup The Lincolnshire Senior County Cup is a football (soccer) competition for senior football clubs in Lincolnshire organised by the Lincolnshire FA. The competition can be traced back to the formation of the Lincolnshire FA at a meeting held at th ...

: 2011–12 Oviedo *

: 2014–15

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:I'anson, Charlie 1993 births Living people Footballers from Luton Association football central defenders English footballers National League (English football) players Grimsby Town F.C. players La Liga players Segunda División players Segunda División B players Tercera División players Elche CF Ilicitano footballers Elche CF players AD Alcorcón footballers Real Oviedo players Valencia CF Mestalla footballers Granada CF footballers Real Murcia players CF Rayo Majadahonda players UCAM Murcia CF players UD San Sebastián de los Reyes players England semi-pro international footballers English expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in Spain English expatriate sportspeople in Spain