Michael Morrison (footballer)

Michael Brian Morrison (born 3 March 1988) is an English professional footballer who plays for Championship club Reading. He plays primarily as a centre back.

Michael Morrison

Morrison in Birmingham City kit, 2016
Personal information
Full name	Michael Brian Morrison[1]
Date of birth	3 March 1988[2]
Place of birth	Bury St Edmunds, England
Height	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)[2]
Position(s)	Centre back
Club information
Current team	Reading
Number	4
Youth career
2004–2005	Cambridge United
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2005–2008	Cambridge United	108	(3)
2008–2011	Leicester City	77	(5)
2011	Sheffield Wednesday	12	(0)
2011–2015	Charlton Athletic	136	(6)
2014–2015	→ Birmingham City (loan)	10	(0)
2015–2019	Birmingham City	164	(14)
2019–	Reading	60	(4)
National team
2006–2008	England C	8	(3)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 18:22, 5 December 2020 (UTC)

Morrison began his senior career in the Conference National with Cambridge United. After three years as a first-team player, he moved on to Leicester City, contributing to their promotion to the Championship in 2009. He spent the second half of the 2010–11 season with Sheffield Wednesday of League One before moving to another League One club, Charlton Athletic. He helped Charlton gain promotion to the Championship in his first season, was appointed vice-captain, and played regularly until 2014, when he joined another Championship club, Birmingham City, initially on loan.

While a Cambridge United player, he represented England at semi-professional level.

Career

Cambridge United

Morrison was born in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk.[3] He grew up in nearby Haverhill, and attended Castle Manor School.[4] He started his football career with Cambridge United, where he came through their youth academy and at the age of 15 became the youngest player to ever feature for their reserve side.[5] He made his debut for Cambridge United in October 2005 against Halifax Town when he was aged 17,[6] and was voted young player of the year for three years in row between 2006 and 2008.[7] He appeared for England C – the team that represents England at semi-professional level – against Finland in November 2007 and against Wales in May 2008 when England retained the Four Nations Tournament title.[8][9]

Leicester City

Morrison joined Leicester City on 2 July 2008, signing a two-year contract for an undisclosed fee.[10] Pleased at joining Leicester, Morrison believed his transfer was in the best interests of Cambridge, who could have lost him on a free transfer.[11] He saw manager Nigel Pearson as his mentor due to his past experience as a defender.[12] Morrison made his professional debut in a 2–0 win over Milton Keynes Dons on 9 August,[13] and scored his first goal in a 4–2 win over Huddersfield Town on 24 January 2009.[14] He returned to the first-team line-up in November 2008 after Patrick Kisnorbo was ruled out by injury.[15] Helping Leicester win promotion as champions, he ended their last home game of the season by scoring two goals against Scunthorpe United on 24 April, the night they received the League One trophy.[16]

Morrison playing for Leicester City in a pre-season friendly, July 2010

Happy to fight for a first-team spot in the 2009–10 season,[17] Morrison's squad number was changed from 15 to 4. On 6 October 2009, Morrison signed a two-year contract extension with Leicester, to run until June 2012.[18] He scored his first goal of the season in a 2–1 home win over Sheffield United on Boxing Day.[19] Morrison took over the right back role in January 2010, after a poor display from teammate Robbie Neilson.[20]

Sheffield Wednesday

On 7 January 2011, Morrison signed for Sheffield Wednesday on a three-and-a-half-year contract for an undisclosed fee.[21]

Charlton Athletic

On 12 July 2011, Morrison joined League One side Charlton Athletic on a three-year contract for an undisclosed fee.[22] He quickly established himself as a key member of Chris Powell's team, winning League One Player of the Month for November 2011. He established himself as the team's first choice centre-half during the 2012–13 Championship campaign, in which the Addicks finished in ninth place. On 24 June 2014, Morrison signed a two-year contract extension, keeping him at the club until 2016.[23]

Birmingham City

Morrison playing for Birmingham City in 2016

Morrison joined Birmingham City on 31 October 2014 on a two-month emergency loan.[24] He went straight into the starting eleven for the following day's goalless draw at Wolverhampton Wanderers,[25] and kept his place thereafter, establishing himself as centre-back of choice alongside captain Paul Robinson. In December, it was announced that Morrison would sign a three-and-a-half-year contract with Birmingham once his loan ended and the January transfer window opened.[26] His loan was initially extended for a few days to ensure his eligibility for the third-round FA Cup tie against Blyth Spartans, when he captained the team, and the permanent move was confirmed on 5 January 2015.[27]

Morrison left the club after his contract expired in June 2019, after failing to agree a new deal.[28]

Reading

On 19 July 2019, Morrison joined another Championship club, Reading, on a two-year contract.[29] He scored his first goal for Reading to complete a 2–0 league win against Huddersfield Town on 24 August.[30]

International career

Morrison represented England at semi professional level during his time at Cambridge United playing for the England C, sometimes known as the National Game XI. He played against Finland in November 2007 and against Wales in May 2008 when England retained the Four Nations Tournament title.[8][9]

Career statistics

As of match played 22 July 2020

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			FA Cup		League Cup[lower-alpha 1]		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Cambridge United	2005–06[6]	Conference Premier	22	2	1	0	—		4[lower-alpha 2]	2	27	4
	2006–07[31]	Conference Premier	46	1	1	0	—		1[lower-alpha 3]	0	48	1
	2007–08[32]	Conference Premier	40	0	5	0	0	0	2[lower-alpha 4]	0	47	0
	Total		108	3	7	0	0	0	7	2	122	5
Leicester City	2008–09[33]	League One	35	3	3	0	2	0	3[lower-alpha 5]	0	43	3
	2009–10[34]	Championship	31	2	2	1	2	0	—		35	3
	2010–11[35]	Championship	11	0	—		4	1	—		15	1
	Total		77	5	5	1	8	1	3	0	93	7
Sheffield Wednesday	2010–11[35]	League One	12	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	15	0
Charlton Athletic	2011–12[36]	League One	45	4	3	1	1	0	1[lower-alpha 5]	0	50	5
	2012–13[37]	Championship	44	1	1	0	0	0	—		45	1
	2013–14[38]	Championship	45	1	5	1	1	0	—		51	2
	2014–15[39]	Championship	2	0	0	0	2	0	—		4	0
	Total		136	6	9	2	4	0	1	0	150	8
Birmingham City	2014–15[39]	Championship	21	0	2	0	0	0	—		23	0
	2015–16[40]	Championship	46	3	1	1	2	0	—		49	4
	2016–17[41]	Championship	31	3	0	0	1	0	—		32	3
	2017–18[42]	Championship	33	1	2	0	0	0	—		35	1
	2018–19[43]	Championship	43	7	1	0	0	0	—		44	7
	Total		174	14	6	1	3	0	—		183	15
Reading	2019–20[30]	Championship	44	2	2	0	2	0	—		48	2
	2020–21[44]	Championship	0	0	0	0	0	0	—		0	0
	Total		44	2	2	0	2	0	—		48	2
Career total			551	30	32	4	17	1	11	2	611	37

1. Includes Football League Cup/EFL Cup, Conference League Cup
2. Three appearances and one goal in Football League Trophy, one appearance one goal in FA Trophy
3. Appearance in FA Trophy
4. One appearance in FA Trophy, one in Conference Premier play-offs
5. Appearance(s) in Football League Trophy

Honours

Leicester City

• Football League One: 2008–09[3]

Charlton Athletic

• Football League One: 2011–12

Individual

• PFA Team of the Year: 2011–12 League One[45]

References

1. "Notification of shirt numbers: Reading" (PDF). English Football League. p. 58. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
2. "Michael Morrison". Birmingham City F.C. Archived from the original on 5 January 2015. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
3. Hugman, Barry J., ed. (2010). The PFA Footballers' Who's Who 2010–11. Edinburgh: Mainstream Publishing. p. 296. ISBN 978-1-84596-601-0.
4. Tappin, Jack (21 July 2013). "Footballer Michael Morrison gives gongs to Castle Manor students". Haverhill Echo. Archived from the original on 19 January 2015. Retrieved 17 January 2015.
5. "Michael Morrison profile". Cambridge United F.C. Archived from the original on 17 February 2012. This towering centre-half played for the reserves at the age of 15 while still a schoolboy and became the youngest-ever Cambridge United player to do so.
6. "Games played by Michael Morrison in 2005/2006". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 November 2014.
   One FA Cup and one FA Trophy appearance not included in Soccerbase source:
   "Weymouth vs Cambridge". Cambridge United F.C. 22 October 2005. Archived from the original on 18 December 2010.
   "Robinson stuns United". Dorset Echo. 19 December 2005. Retrieved 23 January 2018.
7. "Morrison makes Foxes move". NonLeague Daily. 1 July 2008. Archived from the original on 19 September 2011. The fee for Morrison, who has been voted Cambridge's young player of the year for the past three years, also includes additional payments for appearances and a sell-on clause.
8. "Comfortable win for Fairclough's boys". Non League Daily. 15 November 2007. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013.
9. "Joy for Fairclough's boys". Non League Daily. 25 May 2008. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013.
10. "Morrison moves to Walkers". Leicester City F.C. 2 July 2008. Archived from the original on 1 March 2012. Retrieved 29 October 2013.
11. "Morrison pleased with Foxes move". BBC Sport. 2 July 2008. Retrieved 29 October 2013.
12. "Pearson can be mentor – Morrison". BBC Sport. 24 July 2008. Retrieved 29 October 2013.
13. "Leicester 2–0 MK Dons". BBC Sport. 9 August 2008. Retrieved 9 August 2008.
14. "Leicester 4–2 Huddersfield". BBC Sport. 24 January 2009. Retrieved 25 January 2009.
15. "Morrison relishes first-team spot". BBC Sport. 12 November 2008. Retrieved 29 October 2013.
16. "Leicester 2–2 Scunthorpe". BBC Sport. 24 April 2009. Retrieved 25 April 2009.
17. "Morrison happy to fight for place". BBC Sport. 7 July 2009. Retrieved 29 October 2013.
18. "Morrison signs new Foxes contract". BBC Sport. 6 October 2009. Retrieved 29 October 2013.
19. "Leicester City too reliant on Matt Fryatt – Morrison". BBC Sport. 30 December 2009. Retrieved 29 October 2013.
20. "Injury-hit Bruno Berner misses Leicester City's match at Swansea". Leicester Mercury. 16 January 2010. Archived from the original on 30 October 2013. Retrieved 29 October 2013.
21. "Morrison capture complete". Sheffield Wednesday F.C. 7 January 2011. Archived from the original on 29 March 2012. Retrieved 29 October 2013.
22. "Addicks move for Morrison". Charlton Athletic F.C. 12 July 2011. Archived from the original on 10 September 2011. Retrieved 29 October 2013.
23. Groome, Olly (24 June 2014). "Michael Morrison signs new contract". Charlton Athletic F.C. Archived from the original on 24 June 2014.
24. "Michael Morrison: Birmingham City sign Charlton defender on loan". BBC Sport. 31 October 2014. Retrieved 31 October 2014.
25. Scott, Ged (1 November 2014). "Wolves 0–0 Birmingham". BBC Sport. Retrieved 23 January 2018.
26. "Sky Bet Championship: Birmingham reach agreement to sign defender Michael Morrison". Sky Sports. 16 December 2014. Retrieved 17 December 2014.
27. "Morrison signs on the dotted line". Birmingham City F.C. 5 January 2015. Retrieved 23 January 2018.
28. "Michael Morrison: Birmingham City captain leaves after failing to agree new deal". BBC Sport. 1 July 2019. Retrieved 24 August 2019.
29. "Michael Morrison makes move to the Madejski". BBC Sport. 19 July 2019. Retrieved 25 August 2019.
30. "Games played by Michael Morrison in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 5 September 2020.
31. "Games played by Michael Morrison in 2006/2007". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 November 2014.
    One Conference (Northwich Victoria (H), 12 August), one FA Cup and one FA Trophy appearance not included in Soccerbase source:
    "Fixtures and Results: 2006–07". Cambridge United F.C. Archived from the original on 7 August 2011.
32. "Games played by Michael Morrison in 2007/2008". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 November 2014.
    Two FA Cup appearances against Stafford Rangers not included in Soccerbase source:
    "Fixtures and Results: 2007–08". Cambridge United F.C. Archived from the original on 24 June 2012.
33. "Games played by Michael Morrison in 2008/2009". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 November 2014.
34. "Games played by Michael Morrison in 2009/2010". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 November 2014.
35. "Games played by Michael Morrison in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 November 2014.
36. "Games played by Michael Morrison in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 November 2014.
37. "Games played by Michael Morrison in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 November 2014.
38. "Games played by Michael Morrison in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 November 2014.
39. "Games played by Michael Morrison in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 May 2015.
40. "Games played by Michael Morrison in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 7 May 2016.
41. "Games played by Michael Morrison in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
42. "Games played by Michael Morrison in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 7 May 2018.
43. "Games played by Michael Morrison in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 22 April 2019.
44. "Games played by Michael Morrison in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 5 September 2020.
45. "Arsenal striker Robin van Persie named PFA Player of the Year". BBC Sport. 22 April 2012. Retrieved 23 May 2018.

External links

• Michael Morrison at Soccerbase
• Leicester City profile