Keiren Westwood (born 23 October 1984) is a 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 ...

who last played as a

goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...

for

Queens Park Rangers Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England, which compete in the . After a nomadic early existence, they have played home matches at Loftus Ro ...

. Born in England, he played international football for the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...

Club career

Manchester City

Westwood was born in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

. He started his career at Fletcher Moss Rangers, he then moved onto

Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...

. He never played a first team game and was released as he was understudy to David James and Nicky Weaver. Weeks before his release he had broken his hand while on

loan In finance, a loan is the lending of money by one or more individuals, organizations, or other entities to other individuals, organizations, etc. The recipient (i.e., the borrower) incurs a debt and is usually liable to pay interest on that d ...

Oldham Athletic Oldham Athletic Association Football Club is a professional football club in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The history of Oldham Athletic ...

. He then had unsuccessful trials at

Bradford City Bradford City Association Football Club is an English professional football club in Bradford, West Yorkshire. The team competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system and are currently managed by Mark Hughes. Th ...

and

Accrington Stanley Accrington Stanley Football Club is a professional association football club based in Accrington, Lancashire, England. The club competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. They have spent their complete his ...

Carlisle United

Westwood then joined Carlisle United, becoming the understudy to

Matt Glennon Matthew William Glennon (born 8 October 1978) is an English former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. A graduate of the Bolton Wanderers Academy, he spent 1997 to 2001 at the club without making a first team appearance. Instea ...

. Although he played in most cup games, in March 2005, when Glennon was injured, Westwood played some

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 ...

games for

Carlisle Carlisle ( , ; from xcb, Caer Luel) is a city that lies within the Northern England, Northern English county of Cumbria, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, Scottish border at the confluence of the rivers River Eden, Cumbria, Eden, River C ...

before being replaced by the fit-again Glennon. In the 2005–06 season, Glennon left Carlisle and they signed Anthony Williams as his replacement. It looked like Westwood would be the club's number two goalkeeper again, though he finally got his chance to compete for the number one shirt and he succeeded in taking his chance. He started 35

League Two The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football Lea ...

games in their title season and continued to be the club's number one goalkeeper. At the end of the 2007–08 season in

League One The English Football League One (often referred to as League One for short or Sky Bet League One for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League One from 2004 until 2016) is the second-highest division of the English Football Leag ...

, Westwood was named in the

PFA Team of the Year The Professional Footballers' Association Team of the Year (often called the PFA Team of the Year, or simply the Team of the Year) is an annual award given to a set of 55 footballers across the top four tiers of men's English football; the Premie ...

and also won all of the club's Player of the Season awards.

Coventry City

On 18 June 2008, Westwood signed a three-year contract with

Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...

club

Coventry City Coventry City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Coventry, West Midlands, England. The team currently compete in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. The club is nicknamed t ...

for an undisclosed fee. He was named in the Championship PFA Team of the Year for 2009 in his debut season at the club. He won the club's player of the year award for the 2009–10 season.

Sunderland

It was confirmed on 22 June 2011 that Westwood would join

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...

on 1 July on a free transfer. He made his first start for Sunderland on 23 August in the

League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...

defeat to

Brighton & Hove Albion Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club (), commonly referred to simply as Brighton, is an English professional football club based in the city of Brighton and Hove. They compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league ...

. His first

Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...

appearance came against

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...

on 29 October, when he was brought on to replace the injured

Simon Mignolet Simon Luc Hildebert Mignolet (, ; born 6 March 1988) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Belgian Pro League club Club Brugge and the Belgium national team. Mignolet started his career with Belgian Second Divisi ...

. Westwood later denied former Sunderland striker

Darren Bent Darren Ashley Bent (born 6 February 1984) is an English former professional footballer who played as a striker. He played in the Premier League and Championship for nine clubs, and at senior international level for the England national team. ...

a goal after the striker was through one on one, with the game level at 1–1. In the following game, away to Manchester United, Westwood made a 'magnificent double save' to deny

Wayne Rooney Wayne Mark Rooney (born 24 October 1985) is an English professional football manager and former player, who is the manager of Major League Soccer club D.C. United in the United States. He spent much of his playing career as a forward while ...

and

Patrice Evra Patrice Latyr Evra (; born 15 May 1981) is a French football coach and former professional player. Originally a forward, he primarily played as a left-back. Evra served as captain for both Manchester United and the France national team. His ...

, but United won 1–0. Despite Sunderland struggling for results, which saw Steve Bruce sacked on 30 November, Westwood remained in good form. However, after missing Sunderland's 1–0 victory over Manchester City on New Year's Day 2012, Westwood found himself second choice to Mignolet for the remainder of the season. Westwood remained behind Mignolet in the pecking order at the start of the 2012–13 season, with the Belgian playing in Sunderland's first two league games, although Westwood did play in Sunderland's League Cup victories over

Morecambe Morecambe ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the City of Lancaster district in Lancashire, England. It is in Morecambe Bay on the Irish Sea. Name The first use of the name was by John Whitaker in his ''History of Manchester'' (1771), w ...

and

Milton Keynes Dons Milton Keynes Dons Football Club (), usually abbreviated to MK Dons, is a professional association football club based in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the third tier of the English football league system. The ...

before a 1 – 0 defeat to

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...

in the fourth round, a game in which Westwood also played. Following Mignolet's departure to

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

at the end of the season, Westwood regained his place as Sunderland's first choice keeper, with competition now coming from

Vito Mannone Vito Mannone (born 2 March 1988) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Ligue 1 club Lorient. He has represented Italy at U21 level. Previously Mannone played for Arsenal, Barnsley, Hull City, Sunderland, Reading ...

. At the end of 2013–14 season, he was released by the club.

Sheffield Wednesday

On 7 July 2014, Westwood signed for Championship club

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot of ...

on a two-year deal. At the end of the 2014–15 season, Westwood was named in the 2014–15 Championship PFA Team of the Year. In July 2019 he signed a new two-year contract with the club. Westwood is one of only three players to have won the Sheffield Wednesday F.C. Player of the Year award on multiple occasions, the others being

Eric Potts Eric Potts (born 13 September 1965) is a Scottish actor, writer and director, who appeared in ''Coronation Street'' as the eccentric baker Diggory Compton after playing four smaller parts, the father of Molly Compton, and ''Brookside'' as Wr ...

and

Barry Bannan Barry Ryan Bannan (born 1 December 1989) is a Scottish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for EFL League One club Sheffield Wednesday. Bannan began his career at Albion Rovers before moving to the Celtic Academy and later the ...

. He has received the award twice, at the end of the 2014–15 and 2016–17 seasons. On 20 May 2021 it was announced that he would leave Sheffield Wednesday at the end of the season, following the expiry of his contract.

Queens Park Rangers

On 18 March 2022, Westwood joined

until the end of the season.

International career

Westwood was eligible to represent his native

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and the

because his grandparents had emigrated to

from

Wexford Wexford () is the county town of County Wexford, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the island of Ireland. The town is linked to Dublin by the M11/N11 N ...

. On 17 May 2009, Westwood was called up by the

to attend their training camp in Portugal after impressing against

Leeds United Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire in England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of England's football league system, and plays its home matches at Elland Road S ...

in a League One match. Three days later he played as a second-half substitute in a practice match against Portuguese club Lagos, replacing Joe Murphy after 66 minutes. On 29 May 2009, Westwood made his first appearance for Ireland in a friendly against

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

. He played in the friendly match with

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

Thomond Park Thomond Park is a stadium in Limerick in the Irish province of Munster. The stadium is owned by the Irish Rugby Football Union and has Munster Rugby, Shannon RFC and UL Bohemian RFC as tenants. Limerick FC played home games in Thomond Park fr ...

on 8 September 2009. On 26 March 2011, Westwood made his competitive debut in a European Championship qualifier with Macedonia. He made a crucial save in the closing minutes of the match. Westwood was part of the Ireland squad for

UEFA Euro 2012 The 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2012 or simply Euro 2012, was the 14th European Championship for men's national football teams organised by UEFA. The final tournament, held between 8 June and 1 ...

, although he did not feature in any games. Following the retirement from internationals by

Shay Given Séamus John James Given (born 20 April 1976) is an Irish former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. With 134 caps, he is the second-highest capped Republic of Ireland player. Given started his career at Celtic, however he neve ...

after Euro 2012, Westwood assumed the No.1 position for his country. He later lost this place to David Forde. He made his 15th appearance for Ireland on 2 June 2013, in a 4–0 win over

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. In 2015; following a number of injuries which ruled him out of previous squads, Westwood was recalled to the Starting XI for Ireland's post-season friendly fixture versus

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

, Westwood was replaced in the second half by

with the scores at 0–0. He played at 2016 UEFA European Championship, where he helped the national team to reach the 1/8 European Championship for the first time.

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours

Carlisle United *

Football League Two The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football Lea ...

: 2005–06 Republic of Ireland * Nations Cup: 2011 Individual *

: 2007–08 League One, 2008–09 Championship, 2014–15 Championship * Carlisle United Player of the Year: 2007–08 * Coventry City Player of the Year: 2009–10 *

Player of the Year: 2014–15

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Westwood, Keiren 1984 births Living people Footballers from Manchester English footballers Republic of Ireland association footballers Republic of Ireland international footballers Association football goalkeepers Fletcher Moss Rangers F.C. players Manchester City F.C. players Oldham Athletic A.F.C. players Carlisle United F.C. players Coventry City F.C. players Sunderland A.F.C. players Sheffield Wednesday F.C. players Queens Park Rangers F.C. players National League (English football) players English Football League players Premier League players UEFA Euro 2012 players UEFA Euro 2016 players English people of Irish descent