Calum Chambers is an English professional footballer who plays for
Arsenal as a central defender. He was formally a right back.
Originally a member of Southampton's academy system, Chambers was promoted to
the first team at the beginning of the 2012–13 campaign. After two seasons with
the club, he moved to fellow Premier League side Arsenal.
Chambers made his senior international debut for the England national team in
2014. Club career
= Southampton = Born in Petersfield, Hampshire, Chambers
joined Southampton at the age of seven. He went through the ranks at the club
and at the beginning of the 2012–13 season, Chambers was revealed as one of
four youth players to be promoted to the first-team. During the pre-season period
he made a number of appearances for the team, playing in the Memorial Cup
against Anderlecht, coming on as a second-half substitute in the matches
against Evian Thonon Gaillard and Étoile Carouge, and making late appearances
against Ajax and Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Chambers made his full debut for Southampton on 28 August 2012 in a 4–1
win over Stevenage in the second round of the League Cup, coming on as an
84th-minute substitute for Dean Hammond and providing the assist for the final
goal of the match by Ben Reeves. On 31 July 2013, Chambers signed a new
four-year contract with Southampton. He made his first-team league debut on
17 August 2013, when he played the full 90 minutes at right-back of the opening
game of the 2013–14 season in a 1–0 win against West Bromwich Albion. He made a
total of 25 appearances for Southampton in all competitions, of which 22 were in
the league, before leaving in the summer of 2014.
= Arsenal = On 28 July 2014, it was announced that
he had signed for Arsenal on a long-term contract for an undisclosed fee, rising
to a potential £16 million with performance-related add-ons.
Chambers made his first appearance for Arsenal on 2 August 2014, starting in
central defence in a 5–1 win against S.L. Benfica in the pre-season Emirates
Cup tournament. On 10 August, Chambers made his competitive debut for Arsenal,
playing the full 90 minutes of the 2014 FA Community Shield against Premier
League champions Manchester City at Wembley Stadium. Playing at centre back
instead of his usual right back position to cover for Per Mertesacker, he gained
widespread praise for his commanding and mature performances at centre back
against the Premier League champions, with the BBC stating that "his mature
performance defied his youthful years". On 16 August 2014, Chambers played his
first Premier League game for Arsenal in a 2–1 win against Crystal Palace.
Chambers played the first European fixture of his career three days later,
a goalless draw in the first leg of Arsenal's Champions League play-off away
to Beşiktaş. Following a strong start to the season,
Chambers was nominated for the Golden Boy Award 2014, alongside international
team mates Raheem Sterling, Luke Shaw and John Stones. He scored the first
senior goal of his career and registered an assist on 1 November as Arsenal beat
Burnley 3–0 in a Premier League home victory. He was sent off for the first
time in his career on 6 December, as Arsenal lost 2–3 at Stoke City. Chambers
was not in Arsenal's matchday squad when they won the 2015 FA Cup Final 4–0
against Aston Villa at Wembley Stadium on 30 May, his appearances in the second
half of the season being limited by the emergence of Héctor Bellerín at
right-back. and the signing of Brazilian centre-back Gabriel Paulista in the
January 2015 transfer window who provided the main cover at centre-back.
International career Chambers made his debut for the England
under-17 team on 2 February against Portugal. In March he played in all
three of the side's matches in the 2012 UEFA European Under-17 Football
Championship elite round, scoring their only goal of the tournament in a 1–0 win
over Ukraine. On 26 September 2012, Chambers made the
step up to the England under-19 team, playing the full 90 minutes in the
side's 3–0 win over the Estonia under-19 team in the 2013 UEFA European Under-19
Football Championship qualifying round. On 28 September Chambers came on as a
second-half substitute in the England under-19 team's match against the Faroe
Islands, which England won 6–0, scoring the final goal of the match in the 84th
minute. He scored his second under-19 international goal in a 1–0 victory
against Turkey on 21 March 2013. On 28 August 2014, he was named in the
senior England squad for the first time, ahead of a friendly against Norway and a
Euro 2016 qualification match against Switzerland in September. He made his
debut against Norway on 3 September, coming on for the last 9 minutes in
place of John Stones as England won 1–0 at Wembley. Initially chosen for the
under-21 team, Chambers moved into the senior squad ahead of European
qualifiers against San Marino and Estonia in October 2014 due to an injury
to Stones. He was given his first start on his second cap, against San Marino on
9 October at Wembley, playing at right-back ahead of his former
Southampton teammate Nathaniel Clyne. Chambers then dropped back down to the
under-21 squad in March 2015, and made his debut in a 1-0 win against Czech
Republic in Prague. Career statistics
= Club = As of match played 24 November 2015
= International = As of match played 12 October 2014
Honours = Club =
Arsenal FA Cup: 2014–15
FA Community Shield: 2014 = Individual =
Arsenal Player of the Month: August 2014 References
External links Calum Chambers profile at Arsenal.com
Calum Chambers career statistics at Soccerbase