// Workers AI · dad joke modeIs Tom Dele-Bashiru a baker? He kneads the ball.
.jpg) Tom Dele-Bashiru in 2025. | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ayotomiwa Sherif Dele-Bashiru[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 17 September 1999[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Manchester, England | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)[3] | ||
| Position | Defensive midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Aris | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2005–2017 | Manchester City | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2017–2019 | Manchester City | 0 | (0) |
| 2019–2026 | Watford | 71 | (6) |
| 2021–2022 | → Reading (loan) | 38 | (4) |
| 2025–2026 | → Gençlerbirliği (loan) | 28 | (0) |
| 2026– | Aris | 0 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2014 | England U16 | 2 | (0) |
| 2019 | Nigeria U20 | 3 | (1) |
| 2019 | Nigeria U23 | 1 | (1) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 25 July 2026 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 6 September 2020 | |||
Ayotomiwa Sherif "Tom" Dele-Bashiru (born 17 September 1999) is a professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Super League Greece club Aris.[4] Born in England, Dele-Bashiru represents Nigeria internationally.
Club career
[edit]Dele-Bashiru made his professional debut for Manchester City on 19 December 2017 in the EFL Cup against Leicester City, replacing Phil Foden in the 91st minute and playing in extra time.[5]
On 24 July 2019, Dele-Bashiru joined Watford on a six-year deal after his contract with Manchester City expired.[6] He made his Watford debut and scored the opening goal in a 3–3 draw against Tranmere Rovers in the FA Cup third round.[7]
On his first league start, Dele-Bashiru came off injured in the first-half against Reading on 3 October 2020. It was confirmed that he would undergo surgery for an anterior cruciate ligament injury and would be out for around six months.[8]
After returning to training and representing the Hornets during the pre-season in Summer 2021, Dele-Bashiru joined Reading on a season-long loan, in order to get more playing time and fully restore his fitness.[4] He scored his first goals for Reading when he scored twice against Peterborough United on 14 September 2021 in a 3–1 win.[9]
On 12 September 2025, Dele-Bashiru joined Süper Lig club Gençlerbirliği on a season-long loan.[10]
On 22 May 2026, Watford said it had triggered a one-year extension to his contract.[11]
International career
[edit]Dele-Bashiru has represented the England under-16 team,[12] but he is also eligible for Nigeria. He was part of the Nigeria national under-20 football team in the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Poland. Dele-Bashiru scored Nigeria's third goal in their opening match win against Qatar, with the game finishing 4–0.
Personal life
[edit]Dele-Bashiru's younger brother Fisayo also came through the ranks at Manchester City before joining Sheffield Wednesday.[13]
Career statistics
[edit]- As of match played 18 April 2026
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | EFL Cup | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Manchester City U21 | 2017–18[14] | — | — | — | — | 3[a] | 0 | 3 | 0 | |||||
| 2018–19[15] | — | — | — | — | 5[a] | 1 | 5 | 1 | ||||||
| Total | — | — | — | — | 8 | 1 | 8 | 1 | ||||||
| Manchester City | 2017–18[14] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |
| 2018–19[15] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |||
| Watford | 2019–20[16] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 3 | 1 | ||
| 2020–21[17] | Championship | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 | |||
| 2021–22[18] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2022–23[19] | Championship | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 6 | 0 | |||
| 2023–24[20] | Championship | 35 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 38 | 3 | |||
| 2024–25[21] | Championship | 27 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 30 | 4 | |||
| 2025–26[21] | Championship | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 | |||
| Total | 71 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 0 | — | — | 81 | 8 | ||||
| Reading (loan) | 2021–22[18] | Championship | 38 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 39 | 4 | ||
| Gençlerbirliği (loan) | 2025–26[21] | Süper Lig | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 25 | 0 | |||
| Career total | 134 | 10 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 154 | 12 | ||
- 1 2 Appearances in EFL Trophy
References
[edit]- ↑ "Updated squads for 2017/18 Premier League confirmed". Premier League. 2 February 2018. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
- ↑ "FIFA U-20 World Cup Poland 2019: List of Players: Nigeria" (PDF). FIFA. 13 June 2019. p. 12. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 February 2020.
- ↑ "Tom Dele-Bashiru". Watford F.C. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
- 1 2 FC, Reading. "TDB: "I'm excited to be back doing what I love!"". Reading FC. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
- ↑ "LEICESTER CITY VS. MANCHESTER CITY 1 - 1". uk.soccerway.com. 19 December 2017. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ "Watford sign ex-Man City midfielder Dele-Bashiru". FA Premier League. Retrieved 29 October 2020.
- ↑ "Watford 3–3 Tranmere Rovers". BBC Sport. 4 January 2020. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
- ↑ "Injury News: Dele-Bashiru Set For Surgery". watfordfc.com. 5 October 2020. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
- ↑ "Reading 3-1 Peterborough". BBC. 14 September 2021. Retrieved 15 September 2021.
- ↑ "Official: Loan Move For Dele-Bashiru". www.watfordfc.com. 12 September 2025. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
- ↑ "Watford: Tom Ince and Nampalys Mendy released by Hornets". BBC Sport. 22 May 2026. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
- ↑ "Manchester City U18s Tom Dele-Bashiru profile". MCFC.
- ↑ "Fisayo Dele-Bashiru: Manchester City midfielder joins Sheffield Wednesday for undisclosed fee". BBC. 28 July 2020. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
- 1 2 "Games played by Tom Dele-Bashiru in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
- 1 2 "Games played by Tom Dele-Bashiru in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
- ↑ "Games played by Tom Dele-Bashiru in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
- ↑ "Games played by Tom Dele-Bashiru in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
- 1 2 "Games played by Tom Dele-Bashiru in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
- ↑ "Games played by Tom Dele-Bashiru in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
- ↑ "Games played by Tom Dele-Bashiru in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
- 1 2 3 "Games played by Tom Dele-Bashiru in 2024/2025". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
External links
[edit]- Tom Dele-Bashiru at Soccerway.com
- Tom Dele-Bashiru at FBref.com
- Tom Dele-Bashiru at Kicker (in German)
- Tom Dele-Bashiru at the Turkish Football Federation
- 1999 births
- Living people
- Footballers from Manchester
- Nigerian men's footballers
- Nigeria men's under-20 international footballers
- English men's footballers
- England men's youth international footballers
- English people of Nigerian descent
- Sportspeople of Nigerian descent
- Manchester City F.C. players
- Watford F.C. players
- Reading F.C. players
- Gençlerbirliği S.K. footballers
- Aris Thessaloniki F.C. players
- Men's association football midfielders
- English Football League players
- 21st-century English sportsmen
- 21st-century Nigerian sportsmen
- English expatriate men's footballers
- Nigerian expatriate men's footballers
- Expatriate men's footballers in Turkey
- English expatriate sportspeople in Turkey
- Nigerian expatriate sportspeople in Turkey