Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Michael James Devlin[1] | ||
Date of birth | [2] | 3 October 1993||
Place of birth | Motherwell, Scotland | ||
Height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)[3] | ||
Position(s) | Centre-back | ||
Team information | |||
Current team | Livingston | ||
Number | 5 | ||
Youth career | |||
Heart of Midlothian | |||
2007–2009 | Aberdeen | ||
2009–2010 | Celtic | ||
2010–2011 | Hamilton Academical | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
2011–2018 | Hamilton Academical | 125 | (4) |
2011 | → Stenhousemuir (loan) | 10 | (3) |
2012 | → Stenhousemuir (loan) | 13 | (0) |
2018–2022 | Aberdeen | 37 | (1) |
2022–2023 | Fleetwood Town | 2 | (0) |
2023 | Hibernian | 1 | (0) |
2023– | Livingston | 22 | (0) |
International career‡ | |||
2019 | Scotland | 3 | (0) |
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 13:18, 31 March 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 18:46, 16 November 2019 (UTC) |
Michael James Devlin (born 3 October 1993) is a Scottish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Livingston. He has previously played for Hamilton Academical, Stenhousemuir, Aberdeen, Fleetwood Town and Hibernian. He was selected for Scotland three times in 2019.
Born in Motherwell,[3] Devlin grew up in a street near to fellow footballer Mark Reynolds and attended the same school, where the older pupil was held up as an example to follow.[4] As a teenager Devlin spent time in the youth systems of Heart of Midlothian, Aberdeen and Celtic,[4] making the squad for a Glasgow Cup final with the latter in May 2010.[5]
He was picked up by Hamilton Academical, with assurances that hard work would result in a swift path to first team football.[4] He made his senior debut for Hamilton in the Scottish Premier League on 15 January 2011, aged 16,[6] in a 0–4 defeat away at Rangers;[7] the performance of Devlin and other young players in that match, including Lee Kilday who also made his debut, was praised by manager Billy Reid.[8]
He signed on loan for Stenhousemuir on 16 March 2011,[9] and re-joined the Warriors on an emergency loan in February 2012,[10] at the same time signing a two-year contract extension with Hamilton.[11]
He scored his first goal for the Accies in the Scottish Cup in December 2012.[12] In February 2014, he signed a contract extension until the end of the 2014–15 season.[13]
In August 2016 he was appointed the club's new captain.[14] In May 2017, he was involved in an altercation with a fan following a 1–0 home Lanarkshire derby defeat to relegation rivals Motherwell.[15] In the last regular game of the 2016–17 season, Devlin suffered a serious knee injury, meaning he missed the club's two relegation play-off matches.[16]
Devlin moved to Aberdeen in January 2018 for an undisclosed fee, despite having not yet fully recovered from the knee injury suffered in May 2017.[17][6] He eventually made his competitive debut for Aberdeen on 26 July 2018, in the first leg of a Europa League tie against Burnley at Pittodrie Stadium.[18][19]
In August 2020 he was one of eight Aberdeen players who received a suspended three-match ban from the Scottish FA after they breached coronavirus-related restrictions by visiting a bar earlier in the month.[20] He missed most of the 2020–21 season due to hamstring and ankle ligament injuries,[21] and agreed new short-term contracts during 2021–22 with it being anticipated that he would eventually return to full fitness,[22] but by April 2022 he had yet to be named in a matchday squad, and it was initially announced that he would leave Aberdeen at the end of the season[23] but soon clarified that this would be immediate.[24][25]
Devlin trained with English club Fleetwood Town, managed by his former Aberdeen teammate Scott Brown, in June 2022.[26] He signed a short term contract with Fleetwood in August 2022.[27] He departed the club in January following the expiration of his short-term deal.[28]
After leaving Fleetwood before the end of the January transfer window, Devlin trained with Hibernian.[29] He signed a short-term contract with the club on 13 February 2023.[30]
Devlin left Hibs at the end of the 2022–23 season and signed for Livingston.[31][32] He was appointed club captain.[33]
Devlin was included in the Scotland squad for the first time in October 2018.[34] He was recalled in May 2019, one of five uncapped players to feature.[35] He made his international debut on 10 October 2019 in a Euro 2020 qualifier against Russia, playing the whole match as Scotland lost 0–4.[36]
Club | Season | League | Scottish Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
Hamilton Academical | 2010–11[7] | Scottish Premier League | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |
2011–12[37] | Scottish First Division | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
2012–13[38] | Scottish First Division | 22 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 27 | 2 | |
2013–14[39] | Scottish Championship | 27 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 32 | 1 | |
2014–15[40] | Scottish Premiership | 28 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 32 | 0 | ||
2015–16[41] | Scottish Premiership | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 17 | 0 | ||
2016–17[42] | Scottish Premiership | 28 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 2 | |
2017–18[43] | Scottish Premiership | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
Total | 125 | 4 | 8 | 1 | 13 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 148 | 5 | ||
Stenhousemuir (loan) | 2010–11[7] | Scottish Second Division | 10 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 3 |
2011–12[37] | Scottish Second Division | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 0 | |
Total | 23 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 3 | ||
Aberdeen | 2017–18[43] | Scottish Premiership | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2018–19[18] | Scottish Premiership | 22 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2[b] | 0 | 30 | 1 | |
2019–20[44] | Scottish Premiership | 14 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1[b] | 0 | 19 | 0 | |
2020–21[45] | Scottish Premiership | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
2021–22[46] | Scottish Premiership | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Total | 37 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 51 | 1 | ||
Fleetwood Town | 2022–23[47] | EFL League One | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2[c] | 0 | 4 | 0 |
Hibernian | 2022–23[47] | Scottish Premiership | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Livingston | 2023–24[48] | Scottish Premiership | 22 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 0 |
Career total | 210 | 8 | 15 | 1 | 23 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 255 | 9 |