Alex Henshall

Manchester City He attracted attention from major Premier League clubs, He made a positive start to his City career, winning the penalty that began an 8–0 rout of Empor Berlin by City's under-18 team in a pre-season tour of Germany in July 2010. City coach Scott Sellars said that Henshall "was a real threathe looks like a real talent". He appeared for City's under-19s in both seasons of the NextGen Series he joined Chesterfield on 22 February on a one-month loan deal. He made his club and Football League debut the next day, replacing Jay O'Shea in the 53rd minute of a 1–0 defeat at home to League Two leaders Gillingham. He made his first start three days later in a goalless draw with Aldershot Town, and was replaced at half-time by Jack Lester. On 28 March, his loan deal was extended until the end of the season.

Bristol Rovers (loan) On 17 October 2013, Henshall signed on a month's loan for Bristol Rovers of League Two. According to Rovers manager John Ward, Henshall "[came] looking for an opportunity to get his career going again". Manchester City had high hopes for him, and the ambitious Henshall hoped to use the loan spell to "ignite his career in the Premier League". Ward described him as "quite direct in his play and [liking] to run at defenders." He made his debut two days later, replacing Ryan Brunt in the 63rd minute of a 1–0 defeat at home to Wycombe Wanderers. In the following game, on 22 October, he scored his first senior goal in a 2–1 defeat away to Accrington Stanley.

Ipswich Town Henshall joined Championship club Ipswich Town on 24 March 2014 on a youth loan until the end of the season. He was released by Manchester City when his contract expired. Despite having made no first-team appearances during his loan spell, He said it was an easy decision because he liked working for manager Mick McCarthy and felt the club was making good progress. He made his debut on 12 August, starting in a League Cup match which Ipswich lost 1–0 to League One team Crawley Town in extra time.

Having made five appearances for Ipswich, Henshall joined their Championship rivals Blackpool on 9 January 2015 on loan for a month. He made his Blackpool debut the next day as a 61st-minute substitute for Connor Oliver in a 1–0 win over Millwall. After one more appearance, Henshall returned to his parent club after suffering a knee injury. At the end of the season, McCarthy said that although he felt Henshall should have been in the first-team squad more often, he had shown a positive attitude and the opportunity was still there. By September, he had been made available for transfer, and at the end of the January transfer window, his contract was terminated by mutual consent.

Kilmarnock On 30 March 2016, Henshall signed for Scottish Premiership club Kilmarnock, agreeing a contract until the end of the season. He played just twice, and was released at the end of his contract.

Non-league football Having turned down options "thinking [he] would get something better", Henshall went into the 2016–17 season without a club. He played just one National League South match, against Welling United, before moving up a division by signing for Braintree Town in early January 2017. In what remained of the season, he made seven National League appearances, all but one off the bench, and another three in the FA Trophy. Henshall made six league starts in the first couple of months of the campaign, worsened by what Wright later described as a misdiagnosis, and he left the club before his contract ended. He made 24 league appearances without scoring, and was released at the end of the season, after which he signed for Nuneaton Borough of the Southern League Premier Division Central. On 27 November 2019, he joined Swindon Supermarine on a month's loan until 28 December. On 3 January 2020, he signed permanently with Swindon Supermarine and his contract with Nuneaton was terminated. In the curtailed 2020–21 season he played for Southern League Premier Division sides Stratford Town and Banbury United for short spells. In the summer of 2021 he dropped down to Division One Central to play for Wantage Town.

In January 2024, Henshall joined Devizes Town on dual-registration terms with Melksham Town. Having ruptured his achilles in pre-season with the club that ruled him out for the entirety of the 2024–25 season, he returned to the club for the 2025–26 season, winning the Western League Division One title.

International career Henshall made his England under-16 debut on 15 October 2009, in a 1–0 win against Wales, and appeared twice more at that level. He made his debut for the under-17 team on 3 August 2010, in a 5–0 win against Finland in the first round of the Nordic Tournament. England beat Sweden 2–1 in the final, in which Henshall played 67 minutes before being substituted. He scored his first goal for the side on 27 February 2011, in a 2–2 draw with host nation Portugal in the Algarve tournament.

He played in all of England's games at the 2011 UEFA Under-17 Championships, helping them reach the semi-finals. He also represented England at the 2011 FIFA U-17 World Cup, playing in the final group-stage game, a 2–0 win against Uruguay, and helping England to reach the quarter-final stage.

Career statistics

Honours Devizes Town Western League Division One: 2025–26