Dion Charles

Dion Elie Charles (born 7 October 1995) is a professional footballer who plays as a forward for Bolton Wanderers. Born in England, he represents the Northern Ireland national team.

Dion Charles
Personal information
Full name Dion Elie Charles[1]
Date of birth (1995-10-07) 7 October 1995[2]
Place of birth Preston, England
Height 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[2]
Position(s) Forward
Team information
Current team
 Bolton Wanderers
Number 10
Youth career
0000–2013 Blackpool
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2013–2014 Blackpool 0 (0)
2014–2016 AFC Fylde 52 (18)
2014 → Skelmersdale United (loan)
2016–2018 Fleetwood Town 0 (0)
2017–2018 → Halifax Town (loan) 19 (3)
2018–2019 Southport 60 (18)
2019–2022 Accrington Stanley 81 (27)
2022– Bolton Wanderers 74 (31)
International career‡
2016 Northern Ireland U21 3 (0)
2021– Northern Ireland 13 (2)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 18:48, 4 October 2023 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 17:42, 6 April 2022 (UTC)

Club career

Blackpool

Charles was born in Preston, Lancashire. After rising through the youth ranks at Blackpool, he was named on the bench to face Barnsley during the 2013–14 campaign, in the 1–0 victory at Bloomfield Road on 10 August.[3]

AFC Fylde

After being released by Blackpool,[4] Charles joined Conference North side AFC Fylde following an impressive trial.[5] On 12 August 2014, he made his debut in a 3–0 away defeat against Stalybridge Celtic, replacing Richie Allen in the 80th minute.[6] He scored his first goal in a 5–0 victory over Colwyn Bay 13 days later.[7] He joined Northern Premier League Premier Division side Skelmersdale United on a one-month loan in November.[8]

On 15 August 2015, Charles opened his 2015–16 campaign by scoring both goals in a 2–2 draw against Gainsborough Trinity.[9] In September, he received a call-up for the England C contingency squad.[10] On 23 January 2016, Charles registered his 10th league goal of the season, in a 3–2 home defeat against Worcester City.[11]

Fleetwood

In September 2015, Charles had signed a two-year contract with AFC Fylde.[10] However, in July 2016, Charles joined League One side Fleetwood Town on a two-year deal.[12] Charles' former club AFC Fylde criticised Fleetwood Town, believing he was still contracted to them.[13][14] However, The Football Association stated they had not received the contract's paperwork from AFC Fylde, which meant that Fleetwood were able to sign him on a free transfer.[14] Fylde chairman David Haythornthwaite branded the situation "unethical", and began a legal challenge to receive compensation for the player.[15] Following an arbitration hearing in June 2017, it was established that Fleetwood were liable to pay compensation to Fylde based on FIFA's Article 17.[16] However, Fleetwood challenged this ruling, alleging the arbitrator breached his statutory duties by failing to disclose emails with the FA during the arbitration process. The challenge succeeded, and the case was referred back for further arbitration.[16]

On 9 November 2016, Charles made his Fleetwood debut in a 4–2 defeat to Carlisle United in the EFL Trophy.[17]

On 18 March 2017, Charles joined National League North side Halifax Town on loan until the end of the 2016–17 campaign.[18] On the same day, he made his debut in their 1–0 home defeat against Gloucester City, featuring for 63 minutes before being replaced by Adam Morgan.[19] A week later, he scored his first goal in their 3–0 away victory over FC United of Manchester, netting the opener in the 10th minute.[20] On 22 July, Charles rejoined Halifax Town on a six-month loan.[21] He featured twelve times before returning to Fleetwood in January 2018.

Southport

On 12 January 2018, Charles joined National League North side Southport for an undisclosed fee.[22]

Accrington Stanley

On 12 August 2019 Charles joined Accrington Stanley on a two-year deal for an undisclosed fee.[23] He made his debut for the League One team five days later, as a 76th-minute substitute for Courtney Baker-Richardson in a 1–1 draw at AFC Wimbledon.[24] Three days later he made another substitute appearance against Shrewsbury Town, scoring his first goal for the club but failing to prevent a 3–2 home loss.[25] He totalled nine goals in 40 games over all competitions, including the penalty equaliser in a 3–3 draw with ten men at Bristol Rovers on 7 September,[26] and a strike in a 7–1 home win over Bolton Wanderers on 23 November, in which he assisted another goal and won a penalty.[27]

In 2020–21, Charles was League One's joint fifth top scorer with 19 goals, as Stanley came 11th.[28] This included a hat-trick on 2 February 2021 in a 6–1 home win over Bristol Rovers.[29]

Bolton Wanderers

On 1 January 2022, Charles joined fellow League One side Bolton Wanderers on a three-and-a-half year deal for an undisclosed fee reported to be £320,000.[30] It was the first time since Wanderers signed Charles' international team mate Josh Magennis in 2018 that the club had paid a transfer fee for a player.[31] On 11 February 2023, in Bolton’s 5000th league game, he scored a hat-trick in a 5-0 win against Peterborough United.[32] On 2 April, he started in the 2023 EFL Trophy Final. He scored the second goal, with the Final against Plymouth Argyle eventually ending with a 4–0 Bolton win.[33] He scored 21 goals during the 2022–23 season, which was the most for a Bolton player in one season in 22 years.[34] On 28 August 2023, he signed a new contract until 2026.[35]

International career

In March 2021, Charles was called up to the Northern Ireland senior team for the first time for the 2022 World Cup Qualifiers.[36] He debuted in a friendly 2–1 loss to the United States on 28 March 2021.[37] He scored his first international goals in a victory away to San Marino in March 2023.[38]

Career statistics
As of match played 24 October 2023
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Blackpool 2013–14[39] Championship 000000—00
AFC Fylde 2014–15[40] National League North 12400—00124
2015–16[40][41] National League North 401442—8[lower-alpha 1]05216
Total 521842—806420
Fleetwood Town 2016–17[42] League One 0000001[lower-alpha 2]010
Halifax Town (loan) 2016–17[40] National League North 83——2[lower-alpha 3]0103
2017–18[40] National League 11010——120
Total 19310—20223
Southport 2017–18[40] National League North 174———174
2018–19[40][43] National League North 411462—2[lower-alpha 4]04916
2019–20[40] National League North 20———20
Total 601862—206820
Accrington Stanley 2019–20[44] League One 33810006[lower-alpha 2]1409
2020–21[45] League One 421910105[lower-alpha 2]14920
2021–22[46] League One 6000210081
Total 812720311129730
Bolton Wanderers 2021–22[47] League One 238——1[lower-alpha 2]0248
2022–23[48] League One 421610118[lower-alpha 5]45221
2023–24[49] League One 128002100149
Total 77321032949038
Career total 2899714463326342111
  1. Five appearances in FA Trophy, three in National League North play-offs
  2. Appearance(s) in the Football League Trophy
  3. Appearances in National League North play-offs
  4. Appearance(s) in the FA Trophy
  5. Six appearances in the EFL Trophy, two appearances in the League One play-offs

International
As of match played 17 October 2023[50]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Northern Ireland 202160
202270
202372
Total202
Scores and results list Northern Ireland's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Charles goal.
List of international goals scored by Dion Charles
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
123 March 2023 San Marino Stadium, Serravalle, San Marino San Marino1–02–0UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying
22–0

Honours

Bolton Wanderers

References
  1. "Player Details: Dion Charles". English National Football Archive. Retrieved 1 October 2021.
  2. "Dion Charles profile". Bolton Wanderers F.C. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  3. "Blackpool 1-0 Barnsley". BBC Sport. 10 August 2013. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
  4. McDougall, John (18 February 2022). "Charles on Bolton start and non-league after Blackpool release shaping career". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  5. "Dion Charles - AFC Fylde". AFC Fylde. Archived from the original on 17 June 2016.
  6. "Stalybridge Celtic vs. Fylde". Soccerway. 12 August 2014. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
  7. "Colwyn Bay vs. Fylde". Soccerway. 25 August 2014. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
  8. "Charles joins Skelmersdale on loan". AFC Fylde Official Site. 19 November 2014. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
  9. "Fylde vs. Gainsborough Trinity". Soccerway. 15 August 2015. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
  10. "Double Delight for Dion Charles". AFC Fylde Official Site. 21 September 2015. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
  11. "Fylde vs. Worcester City". Soccerway. 23 January 2016. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
  12. "Charles joins Fleetwood Town". Fleetwood Town Official Site. 11 July 2016. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
  13. Agnew, Daniel (11 July 2016). "Club statement - Dion departs". AFC Fylde. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  14. "Dion Charles: AFC Fylde hit out at Fleetwood Town for signing midfielder". BBC Sport. 12 July 2016. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
  15. "AFC Fylde to unleash Sir Alex Ferguson's legal team over Dion Charles' move to Fleetwood". The Non-League Football Paper. 21 July 2016. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  16. "Fleetwood Wanderers Ltd (t/a Fleetwood Town Football Club) v AFC Fylde Ltd [2018] EWHC 3318 (Comm) (30 November 2018)". www.bailii.org. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  17. "Carlisle United vs. Fleetwood Town". Soccerway. 9 November 2016. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
  18. "Charles Signs For Shaymen". Halifax Town Official Site. 18 March 2017. Retrieved 23 March 2017.
  19. "Halifax Town vs. Gloucester City". Soccerway. 18 March 2017. Retrieved 23 March 2017.
  20. "United of Manchester vs. Halifax Town". Soccerway. 25 March 2017. Retrieved 26 April 2017.
  21. "Dion Charles: Fleetwood midfielder rejoins Halifax on six-month loan deal". BBC Sport. 22 July 2017. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  22. "Southport Sign Dion Charles From Fleetwood". Southport Official Site. 12 January 2018. Retrieved 20 March 2018.
  23. "Accrington Stanley: Southport striker Dion Charles signs for undisclosed fee". BBC Sport. 12 August 2019. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  24. "AFC Wimbledon 1–1 Accrington Stanley". 17 August 2019. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  25. "Accrington Stanley 2–3 Shrewsbury Town". BBC Sport. 20 August 2019. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  26. "Bristol Rovers 3–3 Accrington Stanley". BBC Sport. 7 September 2019. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  27. "Accrington 7-1 Bolton: Keith Hill's Wanderers thrashed at Crown Ground". Sky Sports. 23 November 2019. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  28. Wignall, Ben (10 June 2021). "Opinion: Amid transfer interest from Middlesbrough, Reading and QPR, Championship move for Charlton man would be a big risk". Football League World. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  29. "Accrington 6-1 Bristol Rovers: Dion Charles hits hat-trick in Stanley romp". Sky Sports. 2 February 2021. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  30. Iles, Marc (1 January 2022). "Bolton Wanderers complete deal for Northern Ireland striker Dion Charles". The Bolton News. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  31. Iles, Marc (27 December 2021). "Are Bolton Wanderers and Accrington's Dion Charles the perfect fit for January?". Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  32. The Bolton News: "Bolton Wanderers boss Ian Evatt's joy at Ricardo Santos first goals"
  33. Pilnick, Brent (2 April 2023). "Bolton Wanderers 4–0 Plymouth Argyle". BBC Sport. Retrieved 3 April 2023.
  34. BWFC: "Twenty-goal Dion Not Stopping Yet"
  35. Bolton Wanderers: Dion Charles signs new deal until 2026
  36. "Dion Charles: Northern Ireland call up Accrington Stanley striker for first time – Football News". Sky Sports. 18 March 2021. Retrieved 18 March 2021.
  37. "Match Report of Northern Ireland vs United States – 2021-03-28 – FIFA Friendlies". Global Sports Archive. 28 March 2021. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
  38. "Match Report of San Marino vs Northern Ireland – 2023-03-23". BBC Sport. 23 March 2023. Retrieved 23 March 2023.
  39. "Games played by Dion Charles in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
  40. "D. Charles". Soccerway. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
  41. For FA Cup second qualifying round: "AFC Fylde vs Stockport County". AFC Fylde. 26 September 2015. Retrieved 9 June 2022. For FA Cup third qualifying round: "AFC Fylde vs Coleshill Town". AFC Fylde. 10 October 2015. Retrieved 9 June 2022. For FA Trophy third qualifying round: "Warrington Town vs AFC FyldeZ". Southport F.C. 28 November 2015. Retrieved 9 June 2022.
  42. "Games played by Dion Charles in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
  43. For FA Cup second qualifying round: "MATCH REPORT Farsley Celtic 0-3 Southport – FA Cup". Southport FC. 23 September 2018. Retrieved 5 June 2022. For FA Cup third qualifying round: "MATCH REPORT Curzon Ashton 1-2 Southport – FA Cup". Southport FC. 7 October 2018. Retrieved 9 June 2022. For FA Trophy third qualifying round: "MATCH REPORT Southport 0-0 Chester – FA Trophy". Southport F.C. 25 November 2018. Retrieved 1 June 2022. For FA Trophy third qualifying round replay: "MATCH REPORT Chester 0-2 Southport – FA Trophy". Southport F.C. Retrieved 1 June 2022.
  44. "Games played by Dion Charles in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
  45. "Games played by Dion Charles in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  46. "Games played by Dion Charles in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  47. "Games played by Dion Charles in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
  48. "Games played by Dion Charles in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
  49. "Games played by Dion Charles in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 5 August 2023.
  50. World Football: "Dion Charles"
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