Football
Exclusive: Blackburn Rovers Plan Loan Move for Young Goalkeeper Felix Goddard
Blackburn Rovers are seeking a loan deal for their talented young goalkeeper Felix Goddard. The highly-rated 21-year-old has signed a new two-year deal with the Championship club and is looking to make the next step in his career with a loan move to a League One or Two club. Goddard has been on loan spell with several clubs and aims to follow in the footsteps of other successful academy graduates from the Rovers system.
Dundalk v St Patrick's Athletic - SSE Airtricity Men's Premier Division by Ben McShane | Getty Images
Blackburn Rovers are looking to find a loan move for highly-rated shot-stopper Felix Goddard, SportsBoom can exclusively reveal.
The talented 21-year-old is held in high regards by the Championship club and signed a new two-year deal at Ewood Park this summer.
The former Manchester City and Rovers academy star has spent the last few seasons out on loan to get some much-needed first-team football under his belt.
The Frankfurt-born keeper has been on loan twice with Lancaster City and Bamber Bridge, as well as Marine, Dundalk and Ebbsfleet United.
And Lancashire outfit Rovers are keen for the youngster to now make the next step up in his blossoming career with a loan move to a League One or Two club this season.
MAN CITY START
Goddard joined City in 2017 after the former Premier League champions identified him as a real talent for the future.
But he left the Etihad Stadium for a move to Rovers just short of three years later.
His impressive displays for the club’s youth team earned him his first professional contract in 2022 when he signed a two-year deal with Rovers with the option of a further year.
Rovers activated that extension last year and quickly tied the keeper down to a new two-year contract this summer, with the view to potentially one day integrating him into their first team squad or potentially selling to another club in the future.
The Rovers academy is well-known for having nurtured top talent, with current England international and Crystal Palace midfielder Adam Wharton arguably the highest-profile graduate.
Wharton joined the Eagles in an £18million deal in February 2024 and in June last year was included in England’s final 26-man squad for UEFA Euro 2024 in Germany.
PROVEN PATHWAY
Goddard would understandably love to replicate in such an illustrious pathway, with current Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya, Scotland international Grant Hanley and experienced pros including Lewis Travers, Matty Pearson and Scott Wharton – Adam’s older brother – having all come through the club’s academy system.
After penning a new deal with Rovers, Goddard said: “I want to continue to learn and grow each day, and that’s what I intend to do over the next two years."
“I’ll take each day as it comes, push myself, work hard and just get the most out of every single session."
“I’m really grateful to sign this new contract and I’m looking forward to what the future has in store for me.”
Neil has been a journalist for longer than he'd care to remember, having written for national newspapers and respected publications for over 25 years. For the last three years he has worked freelance for BBC Sport, working on the production desk as a sub-editor and also as a writer, covering a whole range of sports.