| Ben Nelson | |
| Birth Name: | Benjamin Harvey Nelson[1] |
| Birth Date: | 18 March 2004 |
| Birth Place: | Northampton, England |
| Position: | Defender |
| Currentclub: | Leicester City |
| Clubnumber: | 26 |
| Years1: | 2021– |
| Clubs1: | Leicester City |
| Caps1: | 5 |
| Goals1: | 1 |
| Years2: | 2022–2023 |
| Clubs2: | → Rochdale (loan) |
| Caps2: | 10 |
| Goals2: | 0 |
| Years3: | 2023 |
| Clubs3: | → Doncaster Rovers (loan) |
| Caps3: | 15 |
| Goals3: | 0 |
| Nationalyears1: | 2020 |
| Nationalteam1: | Scotland U16 |
| Nationalcaps1: | 1 |
| Nationalgoals1: | 0 |
| Nationalyears2: | 2021–2022 |
| Nationalteam2: | England U18 |
| Nationalcaps2: | 6 |
| Nationalgoals2: | 0 |
| Nationalyears3: | 2022–2023 |
| Nationalteam3: | England U19 |
| Nationalcaps3: | 5 |
| Nationalgoals3: | 0 |
| Nationalyears4: | 2024– |
| Nationalteam4: | England U20 |
| Nationalcaps4: | 4 |
| Nationalgoals4: | 1 |
| Club-Update: | 12:51, 3 March 2024 (UTC) |
| Nationalteam-Update: | 08:30, 14 June 2024 (UTC) |
Benjamin Harvey Nelson (born 18 March 2004)[2] is an English professional footballer who plays as a defender for club Leicester City.[2]
In the 2020–21 season, Nelson featured in a first-team squad during Leicester City's UEFA Europa League campaign.[3] He was named Academy Player of the Season at the end of the season.[2]
On 28 July 2022, Nelson joined EFL League Two side Rochdale on a season-long loan.[4] [5] He was recalled from his loan on 6 January 2023.[6] Later that month he joined Doncaster Rovers on loan for the remainder of the season.[7]
In 2023–24 season, Nelson was promoted to the first team.[8] On 29 August 2023, he made his senior debut for Leicester as an 82nd-minute substitute for James Justin in a 2–0 away win over Tranmere Rovers in the Second Round of EFL Cup. On 8 December 2023, he signed a new contract until 2027.[9] On 9 December 2023, he made his league debut in EFL Championship for Leicester as an 81st-minute substitute for Jannik Vestergaard in a 4–0 win against Plymouth Argyle.[10] On 2 March 2024, he scored his first goal for the club in a 2–1 league defeat against Queens Park Rangers.[11]
Nelson is eligible to play for either England or Scotland. After making one appearance for Scotland's under-16 team,[12] he made his England U18 debut starting in a 3–2 defeat against the Netherlands on 11 November 2021.[13]
On 21 September 2022, Nelson made his England U19 debut during a 2–0 2023 U19 EURO qualifying win over Montenegro.[14]
On 22 March 2024, Nelson made a goalscoring debut for the England Elite League squad during a 5-1 win over Poland at the Bialystok City Stadium.[15]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | EFL Cup | Europe | Other | Total | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Leicester City | 2023–24 | Championship | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 8 | 1 | |||
| Leicester City U21 | 2020–21 | — | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||||||
| 2021–22 | — | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |||||||
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |||
| Rochdale (loan) | 2022–23 | League Two | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | 12 | 0 | ||
| Doncaster Rovers (loan) | 2022–23 | League Two | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 12 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 30 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 35 | 1 | |||
Leicester City