Karl Jenkinson is a Finnish-born football player who plays for London club Arsenal and the England national team. He is a graduate of Charlton, for which he spent only eight fights. On the field, he plays as a right-back. Throughout his professional career, he also played for the junior and youth national team of the country.
First steps in sports
February 8, 1992, in the small town of Harlow, Karl Jenkinson was born into an international family of an Englishman and a Finn. Football has been interested in the future star since childhood. When the boy was eight years old, he entered the club academy of the Charlton team. Here he stayed until 2009, after which he signed a contract with the club at the age of seventeen.
Charlton
A few months after signing an agreement with Charlton, the head coach sent Carl on loan to the Eastbourne Borough team, which was playing at that time in the national conference, where the young defender was supposed to receive stable playing practice. A little later the playerdefended the colors of Welling United, and in December 2010 he returned to Charlton. At the same time, Karl Jenkinson made his debut in his composition in the match against Brentford in the League Cup. On February 15, 2011, the defender played for the club for the first time in the First League. Until the end of the season, he spent seven more matches for him, after which he fell into the sphere of interests of one of the English football giants - the Arsenal club from London.
Arsenal
During the 2011 summer transfer window, the young defender signed a 4.5-year deal with Arsenal. For the education of a football player, the London club paid Charlton one million euros. Already in August, Karl Jenkinson made his debut as part of a new team. Then, he came on as a substitute in the Champions League qualifier against Italian Udinese. A few days later, he played his first match in the national championship, replacing an injured main player in this position. Back then, Arsenal's rivals were Liverpool. Soon, the football player himself injured his back, which is why he flew out for three whole months. In the new season, he again predominantly came on as a substitute, appearing on the field in 21 matches throughout the year. From time to time, the Gunners' mentor used him on the right flank of midfield. Very often it was Karl Jenkinson who actively participated in such games in scoring combinations of his team. The football player's statistics largely contributed to the fact that the club offered him a contract extension.
In the new season, the Arsenal coach tested the playerin the position of a central defender. As it turned out, such an idea fully justified itself, since the Gunners often finished their matches without conceding goals. Throughout the year, Karl repeatedly helped his partners score goals, scoring assists and scoring balls into the opponents' goal. The team's mentor has repeatedly called the player his lifesaver in an interview with the press.
West Ham
31 July 2014 Carl Jenkinson was loaned for one season by West Ham. Londoners mentor agreed to let the young player go only because all the main defenders of his team were he althy. His official debut as part of a new team took place on September 15 in a match against Hull City. For a month, the football player won a place in the first team. In the season, he took part in 36 official fights in various tournaments. As a result, West Ham offered to sell the defender to Arsenal for £10 million, which was refused. The only thing the Arsenal management agreed to was to extend the loan for another year. In the new season, Carl appeared in the first team in all West Ham matches in the first round and became a real leader of the team. However, in January he was sidelined for two months due to an injury. Arsene Wenger admitted later that even then he intended to return the defender from the loan, but because of his injury, he abandoned this idea. Be that as it may, in February the player returned to Arsenal, however, due to damage to the cruciate ligament, he never played to the endseason.
England Team
At the age of seventeen, the player managed to play several matches for the youth teams of England and Finland. Since there were no invitations from the British for several years, he decided to play for the Finns. As part of their youth team, he even participated in the qualification of the 2011 world championship.
The situation changed a year later. Then the mentor of the national English team, Roy Hodgson, said that the country should not lose such talents. As a result, on November 14, 2012, Karl Jenkinson made his debut for England at the age of twenty in a friendly match with Sweden. The football player did not manage to win the competition against the main defenders of the team on the right flank, however, in the future he was regularly involved in the national team under the age of 21. In the qualification of the European Championship in 2014, the guy took part in all meetings, and went to the final tournament as a captain. There he spent all the fights in the group stage, but the England team failed, taking off in the first stage.
