Gatlin Teye O'Donkor (born 14 October 2004) is an English

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

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

for club Bristol Rovers, on loan from club

Oxford United Oxford United Football Club is a professional football club in the city of Oxford, England. The team plays in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The chairman is Grant Ferguson, the manager is Karl Robinson and th ...

Career

O'Donkor set the record for the youngest ever

player at the age of 16 years and 55 days when he made his debut on 8 December 2020 in an

EFL Trophy The English Football League Trophy, known for sponsorship purposes as the Papa Johns Trophy after restaurant chain Papa John's Pizza, is an annual English association football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL Le ...

tie against Forest Green Rovers. After the match was drawn 1–1, he scored Oxford United's opening penalty in the penalty shoot-out as they won 4–1 on penalties. On 5 March 2022, O'Donkor joined

National League South The National League South, formerly Conference South, is one of the second divisions of the National League in England, immediately below the top division National League. Along with National League North, it is in the second level of the N ...

side Oxford City on an initial one-month loan deal. He made his debut that day, scoring the third in a 5–0 defeat of

Tonbridge Angels Tonbridge Angels Football Club is a professional football club based in Tonbridge, Kent, England. The club was founded as Tonbridge Football Club in 1947 and became known as "The Angels" in 1949 when they started playing at the Angel Ground. S ...

. He returned to his parent club and made his league debut for Oxford United as a second-half substitute in the last game of the 2021–22 season, a 1–1 draw with Doncaster Rovers, on 30 April 2022. He signed his first professional contract with the club in August 2022. His first senior start came in a 2nd-round

EFL Cup The EFL Cup (referred to historically, and colloquially, as the League Cup), currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout competition and major trophy in men's domestic football in England. Organised by the ...

defeat to Crystal Palace on 23 August 2022, and his first League start in a 2–1 home victory over Burton Albion on 3 September 2022. He scored his first senior goal for the club having come on as a half-time substitute in a League One fixture against

Fleetwood Town Fleetwood Town Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Fleetwood, Lancashire. Established in 1997, the current Fleetwood Town F.C. is the fourth incarnation of the club; it was originally formed in ...

on 1 November 2022; the game ended in a 1–1 draw. On 9 February 2024, O'Donkor joined

Barnet Barnet may refer to: People *Barnet (surname) * Barnet (given name) Places United Kingdom *Chipping Barnet or High Barnet, commonly known as Barnet, one of three focal towns of the borough below. *East Barnet, a district of the borough below; an ...

on loan until the end of the season. On 30 August 2024, O'Donkor joined League One club Bristol Rovers on a season-long loan deal. He made his debut the following day as a late substitute in a 2–0 victory over Cambridge United. On 21 September 2024, he scored his first goal for the club in a 3–2 defeat to Peterborough United.

Personal life

Born in England, O'Donkor is of Ghanaian descent.

Career statistics

References

External links

* 2004 births Living people English men's footballers Men's association football forwards Oxford United F.C. players Oxford City F.C. players Barnet F.C. players Bristol Rovers F.C. players English Football League players National League (English football) players English people of Ghanaian descent Sportspeople of Ghanaian descent Place of birth missing (living people) {{England-footy-forward-2000s-stub