A product of our Academy system, 19-year-old James recently made his first team debut when he stepped off the bench in our 1-1 Premier League draw with Liverpool.
Having initially come through the club’s Global Football Development programme, with his talent first identified during local after-school sessions, the Welwyn Garden City-born defender made good progress in our Academy before going full-time as a scholar in 2022.
Part of our Under-17 Premier League Cup-winning squad in 2022/23, he signed his first professional contract during the following campaign before establishing himself in our Under-21 side in 2025. This season, he has captained us at that level on several occasions while also starring in our Under-19 UEFA Youth League team, scoring four goals in six league stage matches.
A former England Under-16 international, James first appeared on the bench for our first team in a Carabao Cup tie at Newcastle United in October last year and has so far been named in our senior squad on 13 occasions, including his memorable debut at Anfield in March.
Congratulations, James!