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Donald Love

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For the video game character, see Grand Theft Auto III.

Donald Love
Personal information
Full name Donald Alistair Love[1]
Date of birth (1994-12-02) 2 December 1994 (age 30)
Place of birth Rochdale, England
Height 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[2]
Position(s) Defender
Team information
Current team
 Accrington Stanley
Number 2
Youth career
Northwich Town
2002–2013 Manchester United
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2013–2016 Manchester United 1 (0)
2015 → Wigan Athletic (loan) 7 (0)
2016–2019 Sunderland 27 (0)
2019–2021 Shrewsbury Town 42 (0)
2021–2022 Salford City 25 (0)
2022–2024 Morecambe 52 (2)
2024– Accrington Stanley 7 (1)
International career
2010–2011 Scotland U17 3 (0)
2013 Scotland U19 1 (0)
2015–2016 Scotland U21 5 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 21:04, 28 September 2024 (UTC)

Donald Alistair Love (born 2 December 1994) is a professional footballer who plays as a defender for EFL League Two club Accrington Stanley. He began his professional career with Manchester United, but made just two senior appearances, and after a loan spell with Wigan Athletic in 2015, he was sold to Sunderland at the end of the 2015–16 season. Three years into a four-year contract, he was released by the club and joined Shrewsbury Town.

Born in England, Love represents Scotland at international level, having played for the under-17, under-19 and under-21 national teams.

Club career

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Manchester United and Wigan Athletic (loan)

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Love was born in Rochdale, Greater Manchester.[3] He played junior football for Northwich Town and was personally scouted by Alex Ferguson. After rising through the ranks of the Manchester United academy, he first signed a professional contract with Manchester United in 2013.[4]

On 2 October 2015, he was loaned to Wigan Athletic for two months.[4] Love made his professional debut the following day, appearing as a 70th-minute substitute for Will Grigg in a goalless League One draw with Walsall at the DW Stadium.[5] Love totalled eight appearances for the Latics.

After returning from his loan spell, Love made his Manchester United debut in a 2–1 defeat against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light on 13 February 2016, coming on as a first-half substitute for the injured Matteo Darmian. Five days later, he made his first start in an injury-stricken United team, a 2–1 loss away to Midtjylland in the first leg of the Europa League round of 32, and was booked for a challenge on Martin Pušić that caused the Austrian to be substituted.[6]

Sunderland

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On 11 August 2016, Love joined Premier League club Sunderland on a four-year deal. He joined with his Manchester United teammate Paddy McNair, for a combined fee of £5.5 million.[7] He made his debut two days later, playing the full 90 minutes of a 2–1 loss at Manchester City,[8] and scored his first goal for Sunderland in an EFL Cup tie against Carlisle United on 22 August 2017.[9]

In August 2018, Love sustained an injury to his ankle which, after attempting to continue playing for another three matches, kept him out of first-team action for the remainder of the 2018–19 season.[10] After three years, a year before the end of his contract, Love was released by Sunderland in July 2019.[11]

Shrewsbury Town

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Following his release from Sunderland, on 12 July 2019, Love signed for fellow League One side Shrewsbury Town on a two-year deal.[12] He made his debut on 3 August, playing the full 90 minutes of a 1–0 home win over Portsmouth.[13] On 13 November, after coming on in the 67th minute for Louis Thompson in a 3–1 win over Macclesfield Town in the EFL Trophy group stage, he was sent off.[14]

On 26 January 2020, in the fourth round of the FA Cup at home to Liverpool, Love drove Neco Williams' cross into his own net in the first minute of the second half to give Liverpool a 2–0 lead, though Shrewsbury drew the match 2–2 to earn a replay.[15] On 12 May 2021 it was announced that he would leave Shrewsbury at the end of the season, following the expiry of his contract.[16]

Salford City

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On 31 August 2021, he signed a one-year contract with League Two side Salford City, with manager Gary Bowyer signing him to provide competition in various positions.[17]

Morecambe

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On 17 June 2022, Love agreed to join League One club Morecambe on a two-year deal upon the expiration of his contract with Salford City.[18]

Accrington Stanley

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On 23 July 2024, Love agreed to join League Two club Accrington Stanley on a two-year deal.[19]

International career

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Love was born in Rochdale, England but qualifies for the Scotland national team through his Stranraer-born grandmother.[20] He has represented Scotland at under-17, under-19 and under-21 level.[4][21]

Career statistics

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As of 21 September 2024[22]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club! Season League FA Cup League Cup Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Manchester United 2015–16 Premier League 1 0 0 0 0 0 1[a] 0 2 0
Wigan Athletic (loan) 2015–16 League One 7 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 8 0
Sunderland 2016–17 Premier League 12 0 2 0 2 0 — 16 0
2017–18 Championship 11 0 1 0 2 1 — 14 1
2018–19 League One 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0
Total 27 0 3 0 4 1 0 0 34 1
Sunderland U21s/U23s 2016–17 EFL Trophy — — — 2[b] 1 2 1
2017–18 EFL Trophy — — — 3[b] 1 3 1
Total — — — 5 2 5 2
Shrewsbury Town 2019–20[23] League One 28 0 7 0 0 0 3[b] 0 38 0
2020–21[24] League One 14 0 0 0 1 0 3[b] 0 18 0
Total 42 0 7 0 1 0 6 0 56 0
Salford City 2021–22[25] League Two 25 0 2 0 0 0 2[b] 0 29 0
Total 25 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 29 2
Morecambe 2022–23[26] League One 36 2 0 0 2 0 3[b] 0 41 2
2023-24 League Two 16 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 19 0
Total 52 2 1 0 3 0 4 0 60 2
Accrington Stanley 2024-25 League Two 7 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 8 1
Career total 161 3 14 0 8 1 19 2 202 8
  1. ^ Appearance in Europa League
  2. ^ a b c d e f Appearances in the EFL Trophy

References

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  1. ^ "Premier League Clubs submit Squad Lists". Premier League. 17 December 2015. Archived from the original on 28 September 2015.
  2. ^ "Donald Love Premier League Profile". Premier League. Retrieved 12 August 2016.
  3. ^ Marshall, Adam (2 October 2015). "Donald Love loaned to Wigan Athletic". Manchester United. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
  4. ^ a b c "Manchester United youngster Donald Love joins Wigan Athletic on loan". Sky Sports. 2 October 2015. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
  5. ^ "Wigan Athletic 0–0 Walsall". BBC Sport. 3 October 2015. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  6. ^ "Midtjylland 2–1 Manchester United". BBC Sport. 18 February 2016. Retrieved 12 August 2016.
  7. ^ "Sunderland sign Man Utd duo". safc.com. Sunderland AFC. 11 August 2016. Retrieved 11 August 2016.
  8. ^ Osborne, Chris (13 August 2016). "Manchester City 2–1 Sunderland". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
  9. ^ "Carlisle United 1–2 Sunderland". BBC Sport. 22 August 2017. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  10. ^ "Forgotten man Donald Love opens up on his Sunderland injury hell and comeback". Sunderland Echo. 13 April 2019.
  11. ^ Fraser, Paul (11 July 2019). "Donald Love set to depart Sunderland with 12 months remaining on deal". The Northern Echo. Newsquest Media Group. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  12. ^ "Former Manchester United defender Donald Love signs for Shrewsbury Town". Shropshire Star. 12 July 2019. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  13. ^ Cox, Lewis (3 August 2019). "Shrewsbury Town 1 Portsmouth 0 - Report and pictures". Shropshire Star. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
  14. ^ Hillback, Ryan (14 November 2019). "Match Report: Shrewsbury Town 3 – 1 Macclesfield Town". Shropshire Live. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
  15. ^ "Shrewsbury Town 2–2 Liverpool". BBC Sport. 26 January 2020. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
  16. ^ "Released and retained list". www.shrewsburytown.com.
  17. ^ "Donald Love: Salford City sign ex-Shrewsbury defender". BBC Sport. 31 August 2021. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  18. ^ "All You Need Is Love!". www.morecambefc.com. 17 June 2022. Retrieved 17 June 2022.
  19. ^ accringtonstanley.co.uk. 23 July 2024 https://www.accringtonstanley.co.uk/news/2024/july/23/signing-donalds-a-red/. Retrieved 23 July 2024. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  20. ^ "Manchester United kid Donald Love tipped for Scotland call-up". The Scotsman. 15 February 2016. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
  21. ^ "Donald Love". Scottish Football Association. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
  22. ^ "Donald Love". Soccerbase. Retrieved 23 August 2017.
  23. ^ "Games played by Donald Love in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 28 October 2020.
  24. ^ "Games played by Donald Love in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 28 October 2020.
  25. ^ "Games played by Donald Love in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 17 June 2022.
  26. ^ "Games played by Donald Love in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 17 June 2022.
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