Leon King Explained

Leon King
Full Name:	Leon Thomson King
Birth Date:	14 January 2004
Birth Place:	Barrhead, Scotland
Height:	1.83 m
Position:	Defender
Clubnumber:	38
Youthclubs1:	Rangers
Years1:	2020–
Clubs1:	Rangers
Caps1:	23
Goals1:	0
Nationalyears1:	2018
Nationalteam1:	Scotland U16
Nationalcaps1:	2
Nationalgoals1:	0
Nationalyears2:	2019
Nationalteam2:	Scotland U17
Nationalcaps2:	4
Nationalgoals2:	0
Nationalyears3:	2022-
Nationalteam3:	Scotland U21
Nationalcaps3:	8
Nationalgoals3:	0
Club-Update:	2 January 2024
Nationalteam-Update:	19 June 2023

Leon Thomson King (born 14 January 2004) is a Scottish professional footballer who plays as a defender for club Rangers.

Career

Club

King joined Rangers in his early years,^[1] soon appearing to be one of the club's brightest prospects.^{[2] [3]} He made his Rangers Under-20s debut aged only 14 under the management of Graeme Murty in November 2018.^{[4] [5]} At the end of the 2018–19 season, he was also part of the squad that won the Scottish Youth Cup against Celtic.^[6]

King made his Rangers debut on 29 November 2020 in a League Cup match against Falkirk.^[7] He made his Scottish Premiership debut for on 12 May 2021, replacing Joe Aribo in the 86th minute of a 3–0 away win against Livingston.^{[8] [9] [10]}

On 5 January 2022, King signed a contract extension until the summer of 2024 and was subsequently promoted to the first-team squad on a full time basis.^[11]

International

King was selected for the Scotland under-21 squad in May 2022.^[12]

Career statistics

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National cup		League cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Rangers	2020–21	Scottish Premiership	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	2	0
	2021–22		4	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	6	0
	2022–23		15	0	0	0	2	0	6	0	23	0
	2023–24		3	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	4	0
	Total		23	0	3	0	3	0	6	0	35	0
Rangers B	2021–22	—			—		—		2	0	2	0
Rangers B	2022–23	—			—		—		1	0	1	0
Career total			23	0	3	0	3	0	9	0	38	0

Honours

Rangers

• Scottish Premiership

2020–21^[13]

• Scottish Cup

2021–22^[14]

• Scottish League Cup

2023–24^[15]

• UEFA Europa League runner-up: 2021–22^[16]

Notes and References

1. Web site: 10 March 2020. Introducing... Leon King. 3 May 2021. Rangers F.C.. Youtube.
2. Web site: Campbell. Jordan. Nov 9, 2019. Chelsea and Liverpool among those looking at Rangers' 15-year-old defender King. 2021-05-23. The Athletic.
3. Web site: Wright. Angus. 9 November 2019. Rangers face fight to keep hold of 15-year-old defender as English and European giants circle. 2021-05-23. The Scotsman. en.
4. Web site: 2018-11-26. Rangers Academy continues to go from strength to strength. 2021-05-23. Rangers News. en-GB.
5. Web site: 27 November 2018. Rangers U20s 6-1 Partick Thistle U20s. 3 May 2021. Rangers F.C.. Youtube.
6. Web site: 25 April 2019. Rangers crowned Scottish Youth Cup winners. 23 May 2021. SFA.
7. Web site: Falkirk 0–4 Rangers . BBC Sport. Elgott. Jordan . 29 November 2020.
8. Web site: McDougall. Mark. 2021-05-12. Livingston 0 Rangers 3 as Steven Gerrard's men edge closer to 100 point mark. 2021-05-12. Glasgow Live. en.
9. News: Campbell. Andy. 2021-05-12. Rangers win to stay unbeaten in league. en-GB. BBC Sport. 2021-05-12.
10. Web site: Black. James. 2021-05-13. Rangers veteran delighted after landmark appearance for Ibrox prodigy in Livi win. 2021-05-23. HITC. en-GB.
11. News: LEON KING SIGNS NEW RANGERS CONTRACT . Rangers.co.uk . Rangers Football Club. 5 January 2022.
12. Web site: Rangers' Alex Lowry one of five new call-ups by Scotland Under-21s . BBC Sport . 19 May 2022 . 19 May 2022.
13. News: Rangers top-flight champions for first time since 2011 after Celtic drop points . BBC Sport. 7 March 2021. 7 March 2021.
14. News: 21 May 2022 . Rangers 2-0 Hearts . BBC Sport . 21 May 2022.
15. News: Rangers 1-0 Aberdeen. BBC . BBC Sport . 17 December 2023. Nick . McPheat.
16. News: Eintracht Frankfurt 1-1 Rangers . BBC Sport. 18 May 2022. 18 May 2022.