Tony Watt

Tony Watt

Watt with Celtic in 2013
Personal information
Full name Anthony Paul Watt[1]
Date of birth (1993-12-29) 29 December 1993
Place of birth Coatbridge, Scotland
Height 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)
Playing position Forward
Club information
Current team
 Heart of Midlothian
(on loan from Charlton Athletic)
Number 32
Youth career
2009–2010 Airdrie United
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2010–2011 Airdrie United 15 (3)
2011–2014 Celtic 25 (7)
2013–2014 → Lierse (loan) 15 (9)
2014–2015 Standard Liège 13 (2)
2015– Charlton Athletic 36 (7)
2015–2016 → Cardiff City (loan) 9 (2)
2016 → Blackburn Rovers (loan) 9 (1)
2016– → Heart of Midlothian (loan) 13 (1)
National team‡
2011–2012 Scotland U19 5 (1)
2012 Scotland U20 1 (0)
2012–2013 Scotland U21 9 (5)
2016– Scotland 1 (0)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 23:11, 22 November 2016.

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 22 November 2016

Anthony Paul "Tony" Watt (born 29 December 1993) is a Scottish footballer who plays as a forward for Heart of Midlothian, on loan from Charlton Athletic. He was a product of the Airdrie United youth academy before joining Celtic in 2011. His time at Parkhead is best remembered for his winning goal in a 2–1 win over Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League. Watt fell out of favour at Celtic and spent a season on loan at Belgian Pro League club Lierse during 2013–14, before signing for another Belgian club, Standard Liège, in the summer of 2014. He returned to the UK in January 2015 to join Charlton Athletic.

Watt has also played for Scotland at various youth levels, before winning his first senior cap in March 2016.

Club career

Airdrie United

Watt started his career with Airdrie United in 2009 at under 17 level,[2] after impressing in a bounce game,[3] previously to this he had only played football for fun.[2] He broke into their first team squad during the 2010–11 season making his debut on 24 July 2010, playing from the start in a Challenge Cup match against Ayr United.[2][4] He made his league debut on 7 August 2010, coming on as a 60th-minute substitute against East Fife. He scored their third goal to draw the match 3–3.[5] In all he made 19 appearances and scored three goals.[6] Following his departure to Celtic, he was awarded the SFL young player of the month award for December 2010.[2]

Celtic

Several clubs including Liverpool and Fulham showed interest in signing Watt during the 2011 January transfer window. After a trial with Rangers and a week's training with Liverpool, Watt was signed by his boyhood heroes Celtic on 4 January, for a reported fee of £80,000 and future payments dependent on his first-team progression.[7][8] He signed a three-year contract.[6]

Watt made his Celtic debut on 22 April 2012 in a 3–0 win over Motherwell. He scored two goals within five minutes of coming on as a substitute.[9]

On 25 August 2012, Watt made his first start for Celtic scoring two goals in their 4–2 away win against Inverness. He made his Champions League debut on 7 November 2012, coming on as a second-half substitute for Mikael Lustig and scoring in the 88th minute in a 2–1 home win against Barcelona.[10] Four days later, he came off the subs bench to score again, this time in a 1–1 draw against St Johnstone in the league.[11] On 15 November 2012, Watt signed a new contract extending his stay with Celtic until 2016.[12] Watt made a further 14 appearances for Celtic that season, mostly coming on as a substitute, and did not score any more goals.[13] He did however win his first major honour as Celtic won their 44th league championship title in May 2013; his 20 league appearances over the season entitling him to a league winner's medal.[14]

Lierse (loan)

Celtic qualified for the Champions League group stage and signed two new strikers, Amido Balde and Teemu Pukki, minimising Watt's opportunities at Celtic.[15] On 31 August 2013, Watt moved to Belgian Pro League club Lierse S.K. on a season long loan deal for the 2013–14 season.[15] In September 2013, the young striker was brought on as a substitute against Kortrijk in his debut for Lierse and, within 90 seconds of being on the field, he scored with his second touch of the ball.[16] Despite this, Watt was branded lazy and unfit by Lierse boss Stanley Menzo.[17] In response, Watt pulled off his shirt after scoring against Lommel United a few days later in the Belgian Cup resulting in a yellow card. Watt explained: "I just wanted to show that I am not fat. I knew perfectly well that if I took my top off I would get a yellow card – it happens all over the world but I just wanted to show everyone that I am in prime condition. I am not too fat and I wanted to prove this."[18]

Watt struggled to hold down a first team place thereafter, and was sent off on 2 November 2013, within a minute of coming on as a second-half substitute against Charleroi, however the red card was later rescinded.[19] A week later, Watt was sent home from training after a row with manager Stanley Menzo.[20] He was then again publicly criticised by Menzo in December 2013, with the manager stating he would not take him back from Scotland for the second half of the season. However, Watt was recalled to the side on Boxing Day and scored twice against Mechelen in a 3–0 win. Menzo commented afterwards about Watt, "Today I am glad we have him but tomorrow I might want to murder him! That’s just how it is with him."[21] Watt travelled with Lierse to Portugal in January 2014 for a mid-season friendly match against Dutch side Heerenveen, with the striker scoring both of his side's goals in a 2–3 defeat.[22]

Despite manager Stanley Menzo's earlier threats, Watt remained with Lierse for the second half of the season. He started for Lierse on 18 January 2014 away against Kortrijk and scored twice in a 4–3 win for his side.[23] Watt continued his run of impressive form on 31 January, scoring with a 20-yard shot in a surprise 2–0 win for Lierse over reigning Belgian champions Anderlecht.[24][25] The relationship between Watt and manager Stanley Menzo remained volatile though. In February 2014 Watt stated that he loved Lierse and Belgium,[26] however after losing his starting place in the team again during March 2014, he complained to the media that "Whenever we lose, Menzo blames me" and added that "Actually, it's his fault."[27] Lierse responded to Watt's comments by demoting him from the first-team squad to their 'B' squad.[28] Watt did not play for Lierse again, and returned to Celtic at the end of the season.[29]

Standard Liege

After his loan spell in the country, a number of top Belgian clubs were reported to be showing an interest in signing Watt permanently.[30][31] Watt left Celtic in July 2014 for a reported fee of £1.2m, signing a five-year contract with Belgian club Standard Liege.[32] He made his debut on 2 August 2014, coming on as a second-half substitute in a 3–2 league win away against Kortrijk.[33] Watt made his next appearance three days later, again as a second-half substitute, this time in a 2–1 away win against Panathinaikos Athens in the Champions League qualifying rounds.[34] However, Watt failed to make much impact and by the end of December 2014 had scored only three goals with most of his appearances being as a substitute.[35]

Charlton Athletic

The Addicks confirmed the signing of Watt on 6 January 2015. "He’s a guy who can score goals, he has a lot of pace, especially round the back of the defence, and although he’s only 21 he has a lot of experience already and has played in the Champions League" manager Bob Peeters said.[36] Watt scored his first goal for Charlton in a 3–2 loss at home against Norwich on 10 February 2015.[37] Four days later, Watt helped Charlton end a 13-game winless run in the league with a 3–0 victory over Brentford. Watt didn't score but turned in an outstanding performance which included an assist for Charlton's second goal, earning him the man of the match award.[38][39] On 28 February, Watt scored a brace in a 3–0 win against Huddersfield at The Valley in an impressive performance by both Charlton and Watt.[40] Despite only being at Charlton for a short time, Watt has established himself as a key figure in Charltons starting 11, forming a formidable partnership with fellow striker Igor Vetokele.[41]

Cardiff City (loan)

On 23 November 2015, Watt was loaned to Cardiff City, until 16 January 2016,[42] he later made his debut during a 2–2 draw with Burnley and scored his first goal the following game against Bolton Wanderers.[43] Cardiff were hit with a transfer embargo for the January transfer window, following a breach of financial fair play rules, meaning they couldn't sign Watt on a permanent deal. He returned to Charlton after they rejected an extension to the loan deal, making nine appearances and scoring twice in the Welsh capital.[44]

Blackburn Rovers (loan)

On 29 January 2016, Watt was loaned to Blackburn Rovers, until the end of the 2015–16 season, with a fee already agreed for a permanent move in the Summer of 2016. Watt scored his first goal for Rovers on his debut in an FA Cup match away to Oxford United on 30 January.[45] Watt scored his first league goal for Rovers against Birmingham City at Ewood Park.[46] On 7 April 2016, Watt returned to Charlton Athletic due to an injury.[47]

Heart of Midlothian (loan)

Watt was loaned to Scottish Premiership club Heart of Midlothian for the whole of the 2016–17 season.[48]

International career

Watt has played for Scotland U19s, his debut came on 12 May 2011, in a 1–0 loss to Denmark.[49][50] He scored his first goal on 23 September 2011, in a 3–1 victory over Wales[51] After his Celtic debut, Scotland U20s manager Billy Stark said that he wanted to move Watt up from the U19 squad to the under 20s,[52][53] Watt made his debut for Scotland U21s in August 2012 in a friendly match against Belgium.[54] He went on to make a total of nine appearances for the U21 side, scoring five times.[55]

On 21 May 2013, Watt was called up by Gordon Strachan to the senior Scotland squad for the World Cup qualifier in Zagreb against Croatia on 7 June 2013.[56] He didn't play, and was subsequently dropped from the Under 21 side by manager Billy Stark, with Stark citing issues with Watt's fitness as the main reason for not selecting him.[57]

Watt was called up to the senior Scotland squad again in March 2016 for a friendly against Czech Republic,[58] and made his debut in the match on 24 March, a 1–0 win for Scotland, when he came on as a 78th-minute substitute for Ross McCormack.[59][60]

Career statistics

As of 21 November 2016[35]
Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Europe Other Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Airdrie United
2010–11 15310200010193
Total 15310200010193
Celtic
2011–12 320000000032
2012–13 20510205100286
2013–14 200000100030
Total 25710206100348
Lierse SK
2013–14 159110000001610
Total 159110000001610
Standard Liège
2014–15 13211007000213
Total 13211007000213
Charlton Athletic
2014–15 22500000000225
2015–16 14200110000153
Total 36700110000378
Cardiff City
2015–16 920000000092
Total 920000000092
Blackburn Rovers
2015–16 9121000000112
Total 9121000000112
Heart of Midlothian
2016–17 13100100000141
Total 13100100000141
Career Total 1353263611311016137

Personal life

Watt grew up in Coatbridge and attended St Andrew’s High School.[61]

Honours

Club

Celtic

Individual

References

  1. ↑ "The Football League Retained List". The Football League. 12 June 2015. Retrieved 16 June 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Watt an award for Tony and Mike". Scottish Football League. 30 January 2011. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
  3. ↑ "Celtic goal hero Tony Watt has a newspaper ad to thank for setting him on the road to stardom, says Airdrie boss Jimmy Boyle". Daily Record. 24 April 2012. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
  4. ↑ "Airdrie United 1–2 Ayr United". Scottish Football League. 24 July 2010. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
  5. ↑ "East Fife 3–3 Airdrie Utd". BBC Sport. 7 August 2010. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
  6. 1 2 "Celtic hope for early Kelvin Wilson switch from Forest". BBC Sport. 8 January 2011. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
  7. ↑ "Airdrie United set to earn £20,000 Tony Watt windfall". The Telegraph. 23 April 2012. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
  8. ↑ "Celts beat Gers to Watt". The Scottish Sun. 4 January 2011. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
  9. ↑ "Motherwell 0–3 Celtic". BBC Sport. 22 April 2012. Retrieved 22 April 2012.
  10. ↑ Lamont, Alasdair (7 November 2012). "Celtic 2–1 Barcelona". BBC Sport. Retrieved 8 November 2012.
  11. ↑ "Celtic 1–1 Vs St Johnstone in Scottish League (11/11/2012)". FitbaStats. Retrieved 11 February 2015.
  12. ↑ "Tony Watt signs new Celtic contract until 2016". BBC Sport. 15 November 2012. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  13. ↑ "Games involving Watt, Tony in Season 2012/2013". FitbaStats. Retrieved 11 February 2015.
  14. ↑ "Watt, Tony". FitbaStats. Retrieved 11 February 2015.
  15. 1 2 "Celtic striker Tony Watt joins Lierse SK on loan". BBC Sport. 1 September 2013. Retrieved 1 September 2013.
  16. ↑ Lindsay, Matthew (24 September 2013). "Lennon says Watt will learn in Lierse". Evening Times. Retrieved 28 December 2013.
  17. ↑ Wright, Angus (23 September 2013). "Tony Watt branded lazy and unfit by loan club boss". Scotland on Sunday. Retrieved 28 December 2013.
  18. ↑ Walker, Mark (27 September 2013). "Celtic's Tony Watt hits back over Lierse fat jibes". The Scotsman. Retrieved 11 February 2015.
  19. ↑ "Celtic's Tony Watt sent off within 40 seconds of coming on for Lierse v Sporting Charleroi". 101 Great Goals. 3 November 2013. Retrieved 28 December 2013.
  20. ↑ Askew, Carl (14 November 2013). "Celtic starlet Tony Watt turfed out of training in Belgium after bust-up with coach". Daily Record. Retrieved 28 December 2013.
  21. ↑ Swan, Craig (28 December 2013). "Neil Lennon brands teenage striker Tony Watt immature and warns on-loan Bhoy it's time to grow up and become a man". Daily Record. Retrieved 28 December 2013.
  22. ↑ "Heerenveen klopt Lierse met 3–2 in oefenduel". HLN 24U Nieus & Sport. 10 January 2014. Retrieved 10 January 2014.
  23. ↑ "Kortrijk – Lierse Game Result, Statistics and Goals 25/01/2014". Fussball Datenbank. Retrieved 26 January 2014.
  24. ↑ "Lierse SK 2 Anderlecht 0". Live Sproza. 31 January 2014. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
  25. ↑ McHugh, Joe (1 February 2014). "Watt scores against Anderlecht as Lierse win 2–0". Video Celts. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
  26. ↑ "Are Celtic about to lose their next big striking sensation in Tony Watt?". Metro. 13 February 2014. Retrieved 11 March 2014.
  27. ↑ "He Always Blames Me! Celtic Striker Tony Watt Blasts Lierse Coach Stanley Menzo". Inside Futbol. 11 March 2014. Retrieved 11 March 2014.
  28. ↑ McPartlin, Patrick (13 March 2014). "Tony Watt demoted to Lierse 'B team'". The Scotsman. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
  29. ↑ "Belgians await a decision from Celtic as new bid comes in for striker Tony Watt". Daily Record. 9 May 2014. Retrieved 14 May 2014.
  30. ↑ Beresford, Jack (9 May 2014). "Celtic's Barcelona hero edges ever closer to Parkhead exit". Here Is The City. Retrieved 4 March 2015.
  31. ↑ "Transfer news: Celtic striker Tony Watt aware of interest in his services". Sky Sports. 19 June 2014. Retrieved 4 March 2015.
  32. ↑ "Transfer news: Tony Watt has joined Standard Liege on a five-year deal". Sky Sports. BSkyB. 28 July 2014. Retrieved 28 July 2014.
  33. ↑ "Kortrijk vs. Standard Liège 2 – 3". Soccerway. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
  34. ↑ "Panathinaikos vs. Standard Liège 1 – 2". Soccerway. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
  35. 1 2 Tony Watt profile at Soccerway. Retrieved 21 November 2016.
  36. ↑ Kyle, Gregor (6 January 2014). "Former Celtic striker Tony Watt signs for Charlton Athletic". Daily Record. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
  37. ↑ "Jerome earns Norwich a late 3–2 win at battling Charlton". Sky Sports. 10 February 2015. Retrieved 11 February 2015.
  38. ↑ "Charlton 3 – 0 Brentford". BBC Sport. 14 February 2015. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
  39. ↑ Virtue, Rob (14 February 2015). "Charlton 3 Brentford 0 – Watt leads charge as Addicks end winless run". Wharf. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
  40. ↑ Wright, Nick (28 February 2015). "Charlton turn on the style for sell-out crowd as Tony Watt downs Chris Powell's Huddersfield". London 24. Retrieved 2 March 2015.
  41. ↑ Mendez, Louis (2 March 2015). "Addicks midfielder full of admiration for strike partnership". News Shopper. Retrieved 2 March 2015.
  42. ↑ "Tony Watt joins Cardiff City on loan until January". Charlton Athletic FC. 23 November 2015. Retrieved 23 November 2015.
  43. ↑ "Bolton 2–3 Cardiff". BBC Sport. 5 December 2015. Retrieved 5 December 2015.
  44. ↑ "Tony Watt: Cardiff City fail to extend Charlton striker loan". BBC Sport. 16 January 2016. Retrieved 16 January 2016.
  45. ↑ "Tony Watt joins Blackburn Rovers on loan". Charlton Athletic FC. 29 January 2016. Retrieved 29 January 2016.
  46. ↑ "Blackburn Rovers 2 Birmingham City 0". BBC Sport. 8 March 2016.
  47. ↑ http://www.rovers.co.uk/news/article/blackburn-rovers-charlton-athletic-tony-watt-3047238.aspx
  48. ↑ McLauchlin, Brian (20 July 2016). "Tony Watt: Hearts sign former Celtic striker on season-long loan". BBC Sport. BBC. Retrieved 20 July 2016.
  49. ↑ "Anthony Watt". Scottish Football Association. Retrieved 22 April 2012.
  50. ↑ "Denmark 1–0 Scotland". Scottish Football Association. 12 May 2011. Retrieved 25 April 2012.
  51. ↑ "Wales 1–3 Scotland". Scottish Football Association. 23 September 2011. Retrieved 25 April 2012.
  52. ↑ "Anthony Watt". www.scottishfa.co.uk. Scottish Football Association. Retrieved 22 April 2012.
  53. ↑ "Celtic young star Tony Watt set for Scotland Under-20 call after hitting debut double". Daily Record. Trinity Mirror. 24 April 2012. Retrieved 25 April 2012.
  54. ↑ "Scotland U21 0–1 Belgium U21". BBC Sport. BBC. 14 August 2012. Retrieved 14 August 2012.
  55. ↑ "U21 Profile – Anthony Watt". Scottish Football Association. Retrieved 13 March 2014.
  56. ↑ "Scotland: Leigh Griffiths & Tony Watt called up for Croatia match". BBC Sport. 21 May 2013. Retrieved 11 February 2014.
  57. ↑ Haggerty, Anthony (2 October 2013). "No place in Scotland Under-21 squad for Tony Watt as manager Billy Stark tells the striker to show some 'personal responsibility'". Daily Record. Retrieved 13 March 2014.
  58. ↑ "Scotland: Six new call-ups for Czech Republic and Denmark friendlies". BBC Sport. BBC. 10 March 2016. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
  59. ↑ Lamont, Alasdair (24 March 2016). "Czech Republic 0 - 1 Scotland". BBC Sport. Retrieved 29 March 2016.
  60. ↑ Ruthven, Graham (25 March 2016). "How did Scotland's fringe players fare in win over Czech Republic?". STV Sport. Retrieved 29 March 2016.
  61. ↑ "Meet the man who helped make Celtic's Tony Watt a star". STV. 3 December 2012. Retrieved 26 September 2016.
  62. ↑ Berry, Gavin (1 May 2013). "Celtic striker Tony Watt insists Bhoys won't take their foot off the gas with Scottish Cup final in sight". Daily Record. Retrieved 19 June 2014.
  63. ↑ "Griffiths voted Player of the Month for August". spfl.co.uk. 13 September 2012. Retrieved 19 June 2014.
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