| Sonny Perkins | |
| Fullname: | Sonny Tufail Perkins[1] |
| Birth Date: | 10 February 2004 |
| Birth Place: | Waltham Forest, England[2] |
| Height: | 1.78 m |
| Position: | Forward |
| Currentclub: | Leyton Orient (on loan from Leeds United) |
| Clubnumber: | 20 |
| Youthyears1: | –2019 |
| Youthclubs1: | Leyton Orient |
| Youthyears2: | 2019–2021 |
| Youthclubs2: | West Ham United |
| Years1: | 2021–2022 |
| Clubs1: | West Ham United |
| Caps1: | 1 |
| Goals1: | 0 |
| Years2: | 2022– |
| Clubs2: | Leeds United |
| Caps2: | 1 |
| Goals2: | 0 |
| Years3: | 2023–2024 |
| Clubs3: | → Oxford United (loan) |
| Caps3: | 3 |
| Goals3: | 0 |
| Years4: | 2024– |
| Clubs4: | → Leyton Orient (loan) |
| Caps4: | 1 |
| Goals4: | 0 |
| Nationalyears1: | 2019 |
| Nationalteam1: | England U15 |
| Nationalcaps1: | 1 |
| Nationalgoals1: | 0 |
| Nationalyears2: | 2020 |
| Nationalteam2: | England U16 |
| Nationalcaps2: | 3 |
| Nationalgoals2: | 3 |
| Nationalyears3: | 2021–2022 |
| Nationalteam3: | England U18 |
| Nationalcaps3: | 10 |
| Nationalgoals3: | 4 |
| Nationalyears4: | 2022–2023 |
| Nationalteam4: | England U19 |
| Nationalcaps4: | 6 |
| Nationalgoals4: | 5 |
| Club-Update: | 18:33, 10 August 2024 (UTC) |
| Ntupdate: | 12:34, 26 March 2023 (UTC) |
Sonny Tufail Perkins (born 10 February 2004) is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for EFL League One club Leyton Orient, on loan from club Leeds United.
In 2019, Perkins joined West Ham United from Leyton Orient at under-15 level.[3] On 25 November 2021, Perkins was involved in a West Ham senior matchday squad for the first time, being named on the bench for a UEFA Europa League group game against Rapid Wien, coming on as a 78th minute substitute.[4] In July 2022, Perkins rejected West Ham’s offer of a professional contract and left the club with immediate effect.[5] He made three appearances for the club, one in the Premier League and two in the Europa League.[6]
On 19 July 2022, he joined Leeds United signing a three-year contract.[7] He made his debut for Leeds on 9 November 2022 in the starting line-up for the 1–0 EFL Cup third round defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers.[8] Perkins scored his first professional goal against Cardiff City at the Cardiff City Stadium in the FA Cup 3rd round tie on 8 January 2023 when he came on as a second-half substitute, scoring the equaliser in stoppage time to earn a 2–2 draw for Leeds, forcing a replay.[9]
On 25 August 2023, Perkins joined League One team Oxford United on loan for the remainder of the 2023–24 season.[10] He made his first Oxford appearance as a late substitute in a 1–2 home league defeat to Port Vale on 2 September and his full debut in an EFL Trophy home defeat to Milton Keynes Dons on 19 September. He scored once, in a 5–0 victory over Chelsea U21 in the EFL Trophy group stage on 7 November 2023. On 4 January 2024, Leeds recalled Perkins from his loan because of his limited playing time at Oxford.[11]
In June 2024, Perkins signed on loan for Leyton Orient for the 2024–25 season.[12]
In July 2018, whilst still at Leyton Orient, Perkins was called up to England's under-15 side.[13] In February 2020, Perkins scored a hat-trick for England U16 against the United States.[3] On 18 October 2021, a month after his debut for the side, Perkins scored his first goal for England U18's in a 3–0 win against Russia.[14]
On 21 September 2022, Perkins made his England U19 debut and scored during a 2–0 2023 U19 EURO qualifying win over Montenegro in Denmark.[15]
Perkins is eligible to represent Pakistan as he is of Pakistani descent through his maternal grandfather.[16]
Perkins' captain at West Ham, Mark Noble, praised Perkins' hold-up play, as well as his versatility, saying "he started in the No10 role and he’s moved up to the centre-forward role for the U23s, and scored a lot of goals".[17]
Perkins' father, Declan, is a former Irish youth international footballer.[18] His aunt is the actress Louise Lombard.[19]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | EFL Cup | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| West Ham United | 2021–22 | Premier League | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
| Leeds United | 2022–23 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | |
| Leeds United | 2023–24 | Championship | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Oxford United (loan) | 2023–24 | League One | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 1 | |
| Career total | 5 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 13 | 2 | |||