From a prodigy at Nottingham Forest, Patrick Bamford became part of Chelsea’s infamous loan army in his late-teens.
He played across the country on temporary deals before finding a permanent home with Middlesbrough and then Leeds. Bamford was integral in Leeds’ return to Premier League betting odds, and even earned a first England cap for his efforts.
He has fallen from the betting picture since a stellar debut campaign in the topflight, however, with a string of injuries limiting him to just 560 Premier League minutes in 2021-22.
With Leeds reinforcing considerably in the summer transfer window, it is unclear what the future holds for Bamford, who turned 29 in September 2022.
Clearly possessing the quality to be a factor in Premier League predictions, fitness is the biggest obstacle for the Grantham native.
Net Worth
Patrick Bamford had a privileged upbringing compared to most professional footballers.
His net worth is in the millions (likely somewhere between £2 million and £10 million according to various estimates), but he has taken a different path to the top, starting at a fee-paying school in Nottingham.
Bamford, a versatile and talented musician, can speak French, Spanish and German to a good standard and turned down a place at Harvard University to pursue a career in football.
His well-spoken nature and intelligence comes across in interviews, but it is his goal scoring ability which has seen the stacks of cash accumulate.
Contract
Initially penning a four-year deal with Leeds in 2018, Patrick Bamford agreed to a five-year contract extension in 2021. Spotrac reports Bamford’s weekly salary to be just £35,000, which places joint-63rd among Premier League forwards.
The new contract can keep Bamford at Elland Road until the second half of the decade following interest from Tottenham.
Leeds will be hoping he doesn’t prove to be a one-season wonder, and can get back to the form which saw him score 17 Premier League goals in 2020-21.
Following the announcement of the extension, Bamford spoke about what the future holds for himself and the club.
"It was something that was spoken about at the end of last season, I wanted to try and get it sorted as soon as possible before this season started.
"It dragged on a bit because of the Euros, everyone was busy. It took a bit of time but I'm really happy to finally have tied down my long-term future.
"As a person, I'm always wanting to improve and am always chasing something else. It's almost like we're growing at the same rate.
"The club wants to get back to where it was, hopefully reaching Europe at some point, but that's my ambition as well. So while they are matching, it is obviously perfectly suited."
He also cited a desire to earn an England call-up, which followed later that year.
Unfortunate to miss out on the squad for the Euros, Bamford was included in the squad for the World Cup qualifiers in September 2021. He ultimately made his Three Lions debut in a 4-0 win over Andorra.
Wife
Patrick Bamford is engaged to Michaela Ireland. The couple have been together for three years, and had their first child together in 2022.
Ireland is a model and pastry chef, and it has been reported that the couple first met while Bamford was playing for Middlesbrough in 2018.
Politics
Patrick Bamford has often been outspoken on social issues, including following the killing of George Floyd.
Bamford, like many athletes, was met with the ‘stick to sport’ rhetoric, and took the opportunity to make a point by screenshotting some of the direct messages he was receiving.
Along with the screenshots, Bamford said, "Mindless idiots like this are the people who need educating the most. Happy to ignore it as long as it doesn’t affect him. I wonder how he would act if the shoe were on the other foot."
In the discussion with a furious fan, Bamford explained his stance.
"I'm not far left or anything close to interested in politics. I just think that if people like you were to open your mind and consider the struggles others go through then it would help solve the problem.
"Imagine you were constantly picked on because of a trait/characteristic you didn't choose. I'm sure then you'd have a problem with it."
Bamford has also made a point of using a ‘bolt’ celebration, which he provided some background on in 2021.
This is the bolt. It’s a symbol for (the) planet, a force of nature and the symbol of @hyloathletics mission using sport to inspire positive change for our planet.
"Sport, and particularly football, in this country has enormous power for good.
"Celebrating with the bolt is my way of standing up for our earth. Climate change is a threat to sport and if we don’t act, it’s going to get worse.
"I’m passionate about leaving our Planet in a better place we found it."
The Leeds striker was praised by former manager Marcelo Bielsa for taking a public stand against racism.
Over a year after his public spat in his Twitter direct messages, Bamford was again defending the right of people in sport to voice their opinions in an interview with JOE.
"It annoys me. I saw it on Twitter yesterday, someone had a go at Gary Lineker for talking about politics, saying he should talk about football only because ‘that’s what you’re good at’ and ‘you shouldn’t have an opinion on this’.
"That’s nonsense because, if everyone just spoke about the industry they were in, one, life would be boring, and two, we’d just never get anywhere, so I totally disagree with that."
Career Statistics
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Nottingham Forest 2011-12 – two appearances, no goals
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Chelsea 2012-17 – no appearances
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MK Dons 2012-14 (loan) – 44 appearances, 21 goals
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Derby County 2014 (loan) – 23 appearances, eight goals
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Middlesbrough 2014-15 (loan) – 44 appearances, 19 goals
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Crystal Palace 2015 (loan) – nine appearances, no goals
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Norwich 2016 (loan) – seven appearances, no goals
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Burnley 2016-17 (loan) – six appearances, no goals
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Middlesbrough 2017-18 – 53 appearances, 14 goals
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Leeds 2018-present – 124 appearances, 45 goals
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England 2021-present – one appearance, no goals
