Ciaran Clark

Ciaran Clark (born 26 September 1989) is a former professional footballer who played as a centre-back.

Born in England, Clark captained his home country at under-17, under-18, under-19 and under-20 level, but in October 2010 declared his ambition to play for the Republic of Ireland, the country of his parents' birth. He switched allegiances and was subsequently called up to the national team a month later for the friendly match against Norway, and made his full debut against Wales on 8 February 2011.

Club career Aston Villa Early career Clark was born in Harrow, London,

2009–10 season Clark was included in the squads for the pre-season friendlies and the 2009 Peace Cup. On 30 August 2009, he made his debut in a 2–0 win against Fulham. With Curtis Davies unavailable through injury, the 19-year-old was named in Villa's starting line-up, partnering Carlos Cuéllar in defence. He helped keep a clean sheet and nearly marked his debut with a goal but sent his header inches wide. Garth Crooks of the BBC named the youngster in his team of the week. Although the formidable partnership of new signings James Collins and Richard Dunne limited him to the bench, he was tipped to break into the first team on a regular basis within several years. In November 2009, he signed a contract extension until June 2012.

2010–11 season Clark started in the first two league games of the 2010–11 season: against West Ham United, partnering Richard Dunne and keeping a clean sheet; then against Newcastle United. Clark was also handed a start in Gérard Houllier's first match as new Villa manager, against Blackburn Rovers in the League Cup. He then started the match against local rivals Birmingham City in midfield and continued in the role against Fulham and Blackpool due to the club's injury crisis. On 27 November 2010, Clark scored his first two goals for the club in a 4–2 defeat against Arsenal at home. He scored a 91st-minute equaliser against Chelsea on 2 January 2011 to rescue a point. He also became the only player in Premier League history to be booked in six successive appearances within the same season.

2011–12 season Clark scored his first FA Cup goal for the club against Bristol Rovers on 29 January 2012, with a solo run, including stepovers and a left-footed strike curled into the bottom corner.

2012–13 season

On 25 August 2012, he was sent off against Everton for a professional foul on Nikica Jelavić. On 3 September 2012, he scored his first goal of the season in a 1–1 draw away to Newcastle United. On 8 December 2012, after captaining Villa's youth and reserve sides, Clark was handed the armband for the senior side for the first time in a 0–0 draw at home to Stoke, after Gabriel Agbonlahor who had started the match as captain was replaced by Darren Bent. Three days later, Clark followed up his initial role as captain by performing the role again, this time for the full 90 minutes, in a 4–1 victory in the League Cup away at Norwich which saw Villa qualify for the semi-finals.

2013–14 season Clark started Aston Villa's first game in their 3–1 away victory at Arsenal. After a dip in his form midway through Aston Villa's season, he was dropped to the bench as Lambert preferred a partnership between Ron Vlaar and fellow academy graduate, Nathan Baker. However, due to injury constantly plaguing Aston Villa's defence, along with consistently poor results, Clark still managed 28 appearances in a season that saw Villa finish 15th on 38 points. He accumulated nine yellow cards throughout the season.

In January 2014 during a training game Clark broke the right leg of his team-mate Libor Kozák. The mishandled injury virtually ended Kozák's Premier League career.

2014–15 season Aston Villa began the 2014–15 season in good form with Paul Lambert re-introducing Alan Hutton, forming a new look back four of Alan Hutton, Ron Vlaar, Philippe Senderos and Aly Cissokho. When an injury ruled Vlaar out, Nathan Baker came into the back four, with Clark remaining on the bench. After injuries to both Baker and Senderos, Clark was called on along with Jores Okore and formed a solid partnership. Clark scored his first goal of the season from a free-kick curled in by Ashley Westwood in a 2–1 home victory over Leicester City.

Newcastle United

On 3 August 2016, Newcastle announced that they had completed the signing of Clark. Having established himself alongside club captain Jamaal Lascelles in central defence, he scored his first goal for the club in a 6–0 win against Queens Park Rangers on 13 September 2016. He went on to add further goals against Brentford and Bristol City while also helping Newcastle concede the joint-lowest number of goals in the division as they returned to the Premier League at the first time of asking. He remained a regular starter for Newcastle in league games for the first half of the following season. However, he was left out of the side for most of the second half of the season with Florian Lejeune and Lascelles being preferred at central defence. In the 2018–19 season he only managed 8 appearances in the first team in the Premier League; however he still managed to score three goals, against Arsenal, Burnley, and Chelsea respectively.

On 16 December 2020, Clark scored a header against Leeds United to level the score 2–2 for Newcastle. On 20 January 2021, Clark extended his contract with Newcastle, signing a new two-and-a-half-year contract.

On 30 November 2021, he was sent off after just nine minutes in a home game against Norwich City. In February 2022, Clark was one of the names excluded from Newcastle's 25-man squad for the remainder of the 2021–22 season.

On 16 June 2023, it was announced that Clark would be released by Newcastle at the expiration of his contract.

Loan to Sheffield United On 13 July 2022, Clark joined EFL Championship side Sheffield United on loan for the 2022–23 season. He scored his first goal for the club in a 3–1 win over Coventry City on 26 December.

Stoke City Following his release by Newcastle, Clark joined Championship club Stoke City on 10 October 2023 on a short-term deal until the end of the season. He made three appearances during his tenure with Stoke of which all came in the final three games under Alex Neil which all were lost.

International career England Clark captained the England U19 team through qualification for the 2008 UEFA European Under-19 Championship, playing in five out of the six qualifiers and scoring a goal. He missed out on the tournament through an ankle injury sustained during training. After being promoted to the England U20s, he was appointed captain and scored in only his second match, in a friendly against Italy in March 2008.

Republic of Ireland

In late September 2010, Football Association of Ireland (FAI) officials approached Clark about switching his allegiance. They sent scout and former Republic of Ireland under-21 manager, Don Givens, to watch him in the match against Blackburn. On 5 October 2010, it was reported that Clark had pledged his international future to the Irish national team as he qualified through his Irish parents. Club teammate Richard Dunne played a role in convincing him and had spoken to FAI scouts about his eligibility. On 12 November 2010, Clark was named in the Republic of Ireland squad for the friendly against Norway. He then made his debut on 8 February 2011 against Wales at the Aviva Stadium. On 6 February 2013, Clark scored his first goal for the Republic of Ireland, helping them to a 2–0 friendly victory against Poland.

In Republic of Ireland's opening match at Euro 2016 against Sweden, Clark deflected a ball from Zlatan Ibrahimović into his own net to level the scores. Wes Hoolahan had earlier given Ireland the lead but Clark's mishap saw them share the spoils as the match ended 1–1.

In November 2019, Clark said that he had previously considered leaving Newcastle United in order to maintain his place in the Irish international squad.

Other ventures

Baller League In March 2025, Clark was drafted to Trebol FC in the Baller League, an indoor six-a-side football competition hosted in Germany and the United Kingdom. The competition involves ex-footballers and managers, as well as influencers and celebrities.

Career statistics Club

International

Republic of Ireland score listed first, score column indicates score after each Clark goal.

Honours Newcastle United EFL Championship: 2016–17

Republic of Ireland Nations Cup: 2011

Individual Newcastle United Player of the Year: 2016–17