Thomas Delaney

For the American lawyer and politician, see Thomas A. Delaney. For the English novelist, see Thomas Deloney.

Thomas Delaney

Delaney training with Werder Bremen in 2017
Personal information
Full name	Thomas Joseph Delaney[1]
Date of birth	(1991-09-03) 3 September 1991 (age 33)
Place of birth	Frederiksberg, Denmark
Height	1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)[2]
Position(s)	Defensive midfielder
Team information
Current team	Copenhagen
Number	27
Youth career
1993–2008	Copenhagen
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2008–2016	Copenhagen	172	(19)
2017–2018	Werder Bremen	45	(7)
2018–2021	Borussia Dortmund	62	(4)
2021–2024	Sevilla	34	(2)
2023	→ TSG Hoffenheim (loan)	6	(0)
2023–2024	→ Anderlecht (loan)	25	(1)
2024–	Copenhagen	12	(2)
International career
2008–2009	Denmark U18	3	(0)
2009–2010	Denmark U19	11	(1)
2011	Denmark U20	2	(0)
2010–2012	Denmark U21	11	(0)
2013–2024	Denmark	81	(8)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 23:06, 2 December 2024 (UTC)

Thomas Joseph Delaney (born 3 September 1991) is a Danish professional footballer, who plays as a defensive midfielder for Danish Superliga club Copenhagen.

Delaney began his career at Copenhagen, making 249 total appearances and scoring 24 goals, while winning the Danish Superliga five times and the Danish Cup on four occasions. He then played in Germany for Werder Bremen and Borussia Dortmund, making 107 total Bundesliga appearances, before a move to Sevilla in 2021. Following loan stints at TSG Hoffenheim and Anderlecht, Delaney returned to Copenhagen in 2024.

Delaney made his international debut for Denmark in 2013. He was part of their squads at the 2018 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2020, the 2022 World Cup and Euro 2024, reaching the semi-finals of the 2020 tournament.

Club career

Copenhagen

Delaney started playing youth football at Kjøbenhavns Boldklub, the reserve team of Danish club Copenhagen.^[3]

Delaney made his debut for Copenhagen in an unofficial friendly in August 2008. After playing the first half of the 2008–09 season in the KB youth team, he was a part of the FCK squad in the Danish Cup that campaign. He made his official debut in the first leg of the semi-finals against Nordvest FC in April, where he substituted Hjalte Nørregaard in the middle of second half.^[3] In the return leg two weeks later Delaney was among the starting eleven playing the first 60 minutes before he was substituted with Şaban Özdoğan.

Delaney playing for Copenhagen in 2013

In the summer break 2009, he was promoted to the first team squad together with Şaban Özdoğan. He scored on his continental debut on 22 July 2009, playing the full second leg in Copenhagen's Champions League second qualifying round victory over FK Mogren.^[4][5] His first Superliga match was on 9 August 2009 against SønderjyskE replacing Atiba Hutchinson near the end of the match.^[6] On 29 December 2011, signed a contract extension keeping him at Copenhagen until the end of 2014.^[3] At the time, Delaney had the distinction of being the longest serving current player at the club, despite being only 20.^[3]

On 6 July 2013, Delaney extended his contract with the club to 2015. At the same time, he got jersey number 8.^[7] In the following season, he became a regular starter in his favorite position, including UEFA Champions League matches against Juventus, Real Madrid and Galatasaray. On 23 January 2014, he again extended his contract, until 2017.^[6] At the same time, he was officially named vice-captain of the team.^[6] Half a year later, Delaney was promoted to club captain.

On 14 May 2015 he was named Man of the Match as his side won the Danish Cup final 3–2 after extra-time against fellow Superliga side FC Vestsjælland.^[8][9]

On 27 September 2016, Delaney contributed to a comfortable 4–0 victory for his side with a left-footed half-volley from 30 yards against Belgian side Club Brugge KV^[10] in the UEFA Champions League.^[11] The goal came third in the vote for goal of the season in the UEFA Champions League.^[12]

Werder Bremen

Delaney playing for Werder Bremen in 2018

On 17 August 2016, Werder Bremen announced Delaney would be joining the club in January 2017.^[13][14] On 18 February 2017, he scored his first goal for the club, a free kick, in Werder Bremen's 2–0 win away to Mainz 05 before being stretchered off the pitch with a suspected concussion. It was the club's first win of the new year following four straight defeats.^[15]

On 1 April 2017, Delaney scored a hat-trick, the first of his career, in Werder Bremen's 5–2 win away against SC Freiburg.^[16]

Borussia Dortmund

On 7 June 2018, Delaney signed for Borussia Dortmund on a four-year contract. The transfer fee paid to Werder Bremen was reported as €20 million.^[17][18]

On 13 May 2021, Delaney was a second-half substitute for Dortmund in their 4–1 victory over RB Leipzig in the 2021 DFB-Pokal Final.^[19]

Sevilla

On 25 August 2021, Delaney moved to Spain to join La Liga side Sevilla on a four-year deal for a fee reported by Diario de Sevilla as €7 million.^[20]

Loan to TSG Hoffenheim

On 30 January 2023, Delaney returned to Germany and joined TSG Hoffenheim on loan until the end of the 2022–23 season.^[21]

Loan to Anderlecht

On 22 August 2023, Delaney joined Belgian Pro League club Anderlecht on a season-long loan with an option-to-buy.^[22]

He made his debut for the club on 27 August 2023 in a 2-1 victory against Charleroi.

He scored his first goal for the Mauves on 1 december 2023, in a 3-1 away win against KVC Westerlo.

With Anderlecht, Delaney was inconsistent, mainly due to injuries, which limited his playing time at the Belgian giants, eventually leading to Anderlecht not triggering the buy option for Delaney.^[23] He made a total of 25 appearances for the club.

Return to Copenhagen

On 20 July 2024, after 7,5 years he finally made his return to Danish Superliga club FC København, signing a two year deal. ^[24]

International career

Delaney made his debut for the Denmark under-18 team in October 2008, and went on to play three matches in total. He played 11 games for the Denmark U-19 team. On 11 August 2010, he made his debut for the Denmark U-21 team in a friendly against the Italy U-21 team.

Delaney made his debut for the senior national team on 15 October 2013 in a 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification match against Malta. He played the full 90 minutes of the 6–0 home win.^[25] His second cap did not come until 25 March 2015, as a half-time substitute in a 3–2 friendly win over the United States in Aarhus.^[26]

Delaney scored his first international goal on 1 September 2017 to open a 4–0 home win over Poland in 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification.^[27] Three days later, he scored a hat-trick as the team came from behind to win 4–1 away to Armenia.^[28]

In June 2018, he was named in Denmark's squad for the World Cup in Russia.^[29] He was also named in the 26-man squad for UEFA Euro 2020.^[30] He scored the first goal in the 2–1 quarter-final game against the Czech Republic.^[31]

On 25 August 2024, Delaney announced his retirement from international football. He scored eight goals in 81 international appearances.^[32]

Personal life

Delaney was born in Denmark and spent his youth there. His father was also born in Denmark but has American citizenship due to his own father (Thomas Delaney's paternal grandfather) being born in the United States.^[33] Delaney also has Irish roots through his paternal great-grandfather who moved from Ireland to the United States in the 19th century during the Great Famine.^[34]

Delaney is red–green colour blind.^[35][36][37]

Delaney married Michelle Lindemann Jensen on 27 December 2020. Michelle is the daughter of former Brøndby coach Henrik Jensen and the sister of former national team player Mike Jensen.^[38] Delaney and Michelle met while studying at Niels Brock Copenhagen Business College. They have a daughter, Billie, born in February 2021.^[39]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 12 December 2024^[40]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National cup[a]		Europe		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Copenhagen	2008–09	Danish Superliga	—		2	0	—		—		2	0
	2009–10	Danish Superliga	9	0	3	0	3[b]	1	—		12	1
	2010–11	Danish Superliga	16	1	2	0	2[c]	0	—		20	1
	2011–12	Danish Superliga	19	1	1	0	7[d]	0	—		27	1
	2012–13	Danish Superliga	21	1	3	0	8[e]	0	—		32	1
	2013–14	Danish Superliga	32	3	5	0	6[c]	0	—		43	3
	2014–15	Danish Superliga	27	2	5	1	10[f]	0	—		42	3
	2015–16	Danish Superliga	29	5	5	1	4[g]	0	—		38	6
	2016–17	Danish Superliga	19	6	0	0	11[c]	2	—		30	8
	Total		172	19	26	2	51	3	—		249	24
Werder Bremen	2016–17	Bundesliga	13	4	—		—		—		13	4
	2017–18	Bundesliga	32	3	4	0	—		—		36	3
	Total		45	7	4	0	—		—		49	7
Borussia Dortmund	2018–19	Bundesliga	30	3	2	0	6[c]	0	—		38	3
	2019–20	Bundesliga	11	0	0	0	3[c]	0	0	0	14	0
	2020–21	Bundesliga	20	1	6	0	7[c]	0	1[h]	0	34	1
	2021–22	Bundesliga	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
	Total		62	4	9	0	16	0	1	0	88	4
Sevilla	2021–22	La Liga	26	2	2	0	7[i]	0	—		35	2
	2022–23	La Liga	8	0	0	0	4[g]	0	—		12	0
	Total		34	2	2	0	11	0	—		47	2
TSG Hoffenheim (loan)	2022–23	Bundesliga	6	0	1	0	—		—		7	0
Anderlecht (loan)	2023–24	Belgian Pro League	23	1	2	0	—		—		25	1
Copenhagen	2024–25	Danish Superliga	12	2	2	1	7[j]	0	—		21	3
Career total			354	35	46	3	85	3	1	0	486	41

1. Includes Danish Cup, DFB-Pokal, Copa del Rey, Belgian Cup
2. One appearance and one goal in UEFA Champions League, two appearances in UEFA Europa League
3. Appearances in UEFA Champions League
4. Three appearances in UEFA Champions League, four appearances in UEFA Europa League
5. Two appearances in UEFA Champions League, six appearances in UEFA Europa League
6. Four appearances in UEFA Champions League, six appearances in UEFA Europa League
7. Appearances in UEFA Europa League
8. Appearance in DFL-Supercup
9. Four appearances in UEFA Champions League, three appearances in UEFA Europa League
10. Appearances in UEFA Conference League

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year^[41]

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Denmark	2013	1	0
	2014	0	0
	2015	4	0
	2016	9	0
	2017	9	4
	2018	11	0
	2019	9	1
	2020	7	0
	2021	15	2
	2022	7	0
	2023	3	1
	2024	6	0
Total		81	8

Scores and results list Denmark's goal tally first.^[41]

List of international goals scored by Thomas Delaney

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	1 September 2017	Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark	Poland	1–0	4–0	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
2.	4 September 2017	Vazgen Sargsyan Republican Stadium, Yerevan, Armenia	Armenia	1–1	4–1	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
3.				3–1
4.				4–1
5.	5 September 2019	Victoria Stadium, Gibraltar	Gibraltar	4–0	6–0	UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying
6.	3 July 2021	Olympic Stadium, Baku, Azerbaijan	Czech Republic	1–0	2–1	UEFA Euro 2020
7.	7 September 2021	Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark	Israel	4–0	5–0	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
8.	17 November 2023	Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark	Slovenia	2–1	2–1	UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying

Honours

Copenhagen

• Danish Superliga: 2009–10, 2010–11, 2012–13, 2015–16, 2016–17
• Danish Cup: 2011–12, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17

Borussia Dortmund

• DFB-Pokal: 2020–21
• DFL-Supercup: 2019

Individual

• Arla's Talent Award: 2009^[3]
• F.C. Copenhagen Player of the Year: 2015, 2016^[42]

References

1. "UEFA Nations League 2019: Booking List before League phase Matchday 5" (PDF). UEFA. 6 November 2018. p. 8. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
2. "Thomas Delaney". Bundesliga. Retrieved 27 May 2023.
3. "Contract Extension for Delaney". FCK. 29 December 2011. Retrieved 2 August 2019.
4. "Misery for Mogren in Copenhagen". UEFA. 15 July 2009. Retrieved 2 August 2019.
5. "Mogren 0-6 Copenhagen". Sky Sports. 22 July 2009. Retrieved 2 August 2019.
6. "Delaney signs new contract". FCK. 24 January 2014. Retrieved 2 August 2019.
7. Thomas Delaney forlænger til 2015, F.C. Copenhagen, 6 July 2013
8. "FC Vestsjaelland - FC Kobenhavn". FCK. 14 May 2015. Retrieved 2 August 2019.
9. "FCK beat Vestsjælland to win Danish Cup". UEFA. 14 May 2015. Retrieved 2 August 2019.
10. "Delaney stunner helps Danish champions canter to victory". beIN SPORTS.
11. uefa.com (27 September 2016). "UEFA Champions League 2016/17 - History - København-Club Brugge – UEFA.com".
12. UEFA.com (5 June 2017). "Observers' choice: goals of the #UCL season".
13. "Thomas Delaney to move to Werder in the winter". Werder Bremen. 17 August 2016. Archived from the original on 18 August 2016. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
14. Walsh, Jonathan (17 August 2016). "Delaney delight at Werder move". VAVEL. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
15. "Bremen bounce back at Mainz". Bundesliga. 18 February 2017. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
16. "Thomas Delaney treble boosts Werder Bremen". Bundesliga. 1 April 2017. Retrieved 1 April 2017.
17. "Delaney wechselt für 20 Millionen Euro zum BVB". kicker Online (in German). 7 June 2018. Retrieved 7 June 2018.
18. "Borussia Dortmund verpflichtet Thomas Delaney" (in German). 7 June 2018. Retrieved 7 June 2018.
19. "Borussia Dortmund beats Leipzig 4-1 in German Cup final". AP. 13 May 2021.
20. "El Sevilla cierra a Delaney por 7 millones de euros". Diario de Sevilla (in Spanish). 24 August 2021. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
21. "TSG Hoffenheim sign Thomas Delaney on loan". TSG 1899 Hoffenheim. 30 January 2023. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
22. "Mercato : Anderlecht officialise l'arrivée de Thomas Delaney, sa 10e recrue". Le Soir (in French). 22 August 2023. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
23. "Geen Delaney voor Anderlecht, Brusselaars zien af van terugkeer Deen" [No Delaney for Anderlecht, Brussels club backs out of Danish player’s return.]. Voetbalprimeur.be (in Dutch). 18 July 2024.
24. "Thomas Delaney returns to Copenhagen". FCK.DK. 20 July 2024.
25. "Delaney, Larsen og Duncan med fra start". Berlingske (in Danish). 15 October 2013. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
26. "Hattrick af Bendtner sikrer 3-2 sejr" (in Danish). Danish Football Association. 25 March 2015. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
27. "Poland thrashed 4-0 by Denmark in World Cup qualifying". Associated Press. 1 September 2017. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
28. "Thomas Delaney hat-trick helps Denmark to victory over Armenia". Shropshire Star. 4 September 2017. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
29. "Revealed: Every World Cup 2018 squad - Final 23-man lists". Goal.com.
30. Pope, Conor (13 June 2021). "Euro 2020 squads: Every confirmed team for the 2021 tournament". FourFourTwo. Retrieved 3 July 2021.
31. "Denmark beat Czechs to reach last four". BBC Sport. Retrieved 3 July 2021.
32. Asmussen, Birgitte Skovlund; Nielsen, Morten Løvig (25 August 2024). "Thomas Delaney stopper på landsholdet". DR (in Danish). Archived from the original on 25 August 2024. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
33. "DELANEY DISCUSSES AMERICAN ROOTS". Yanks Abroad. 11 April 2012. Archived from the original on 13 March 2015.
34. Croke, Ruaidhrí (10 November 2017). "Thomas Delaney: Dane with Irish name has eyes only for Russia". The Irish Times. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
35. Seales, Rebecca (10 July 2018). "World Cup 2018: Why millions of fans see the football like this". BBC.com. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
36. "Socceroos play nice with kit change". Blue Mountains Gazette. 22 June 2018. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
37. "Thomas Delaney: An inspiration for colour blindness". MARCA. 5 July 2021. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
38. Mayoni, Sebastian Dall (27 January 2018). "Thomas Delaney: "Det var ekstremt angstprovokerende, da jeg som 16-årig begyndte at træne med FCKs førstehold"". Euroman (in Danish). Archived from the original on 21 March 2023. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
39. Kofoed, Pernille Lewinsky; Knutzen, Susanne (8 October 2021). "7 ting om Thomas Delaney, som du (måske) ikke vidste". 7 ting om Thomas Delaney, som du (måske) ikke vidste (in Danish). Archived from the original on 22 October 2021. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
40. Thomas Delaney at Soccerway
41. "Delaney, Thomas". National Football Teams. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
42. "Årets spiller..." (in Danish). F.C. Copenhagen Fan Club. 2006. Retrieved 2 January 2008. ^{[dead link‍]}

External links

• Thomas Delaney national team profile at the Danish Football Association (in Danish)
• F.C. Copenhagen profile (in Danish)
• Thomas Delaney on Twitter
• Profile at Football-Lineups.com