53 Facts About Glenn Whelan

Glenn David Whelan was born on 13 January 1984 and is an Irish former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder.

Glenn Whelan represented the Republic of Ireland national football team.

Glenn Whelan is the assistant head coach of Wigan Athletic.

Glenn Whelan continued to be a regular in the side under Pulis and kept his place under Mark Hughes.

Glenn Whelan spent nine years at Stoke making 338 appearances before joining Aston Villa in July 2017 and then Hearts in August 2019.

Glenn Whelan grew up in Clondalkin and attended St Lorcan's Boys' National School.

Glenn Whelan started his career with Manchester City joining from Irish feeder club Cherry Orchard in 2001.

Glenn Whelan made a solitary appearance in the UEFA Cup coming on as a substitute for Paul Bosvelt against Total Network Solutions in August 2003, before joining Bury on a one-month loan the following month.

In total Glenn Whelan played 15 times on loan at Bury and caught the attentions of Sheffield Wednesday manager Chris Turner.

Glenn Whelan joined Sheffield Wednesday on a free transfer in the summer of 2004.

Glenn Whelan's promising start to his Wednesday career took a knock as he was sent off in a League Cup tie against Coventry City for "violent conduct".

Glenn Whelan was voted "man of the match" in the League One play-off final against Hartlepool United at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff after scoring the match-winning third goal for Wednesday.

In July 2006, Glenn Whelan was placed on the transfer list by Sturrock following increased competition for places in the Wednesday midfield after the arrival of Wade Small, Kenny Lunt and Yoann Folly.

Glenn Whelan was removed from the transfer list by the following manager, Brian Laws.

Glenn Whelan repaid the faith shown in him with seven goals.

Glenn Whelan's performances led to manager Laws entering into contract negotiations with Whelan.

Glenn Whelan made his first Stoke City appearance in a Championship match against Cardiff City on 2 February 2008 when he came on as a substitute in the 82nd minute for Mamady Sidibe.

Glenn Whelan started the club's first match in the Premier League against Bolton Wanderers.

Glenn Whelan did not have a good match and as a result he did not feature much in the first team, only playing in League Cup fixtures and even reserve matches.

In December 2008 Glenn Whelan was being linked with a move away from the Britannia Stadium but he revealed that he wanted to stay.

Glenn Whelan did manage to force his way back into the first team and he became an important player in Stoke's successful fight for survival.

Glenn Whelan signed a new four-year contract with Stoke on 15 September 2009.

Glenn Whelan reached a century of league appearances for the club on 8 May 2011 against Arsenal.

Glenn Whelan scored a rare goal for Stoke against FC Thun in the UEFA Europa League in August 2011.

Glenn Whelan scored his first league goal for more than 18 months against Blackburn Rovers in November 2011.

Glenn Whelan signed a new three-and-a-half-year contract on 11 January 2012 and said "I am loving life at the moment and things are going really well, so I am absolutely delighted to commit my long-term future to the club".

In March 2012, Glenn Whelan made his 37th international appearance for the Republic of Ireland, with all of his caps coming whilst at Stoke he surpassed Gordon Banks' record becoming Stoke's most capped player.

Glenn Whelan avoided a ban after a 'two footed' tacked on Manchester City's Javi Garcia in the FA Cup.

Glenn Whelan ended the season on a sour note as he was involved in a dressing room bust-up with Kenwyne Jones.

Glenn Whelan became a vital member of the team under Hughes and he made 36 appearances as Stoke finished in 9th position.

Glenn Whelan returned to the side in December 2014 after successfully recovering from his injury.

Glenn Whelan filled in as stand-in captain during the season due to injury to Ryan Shawcross.

On 14 August 2019, Glenn Whelan joined Scottish Premiership side Heart of Midlothian on a one-year contract.

Glenn Whelan left the club in January 2020, after new manager Daniel Stendel had dropped him from the team.

Glenn Whelan subsequently criticised Hearts, saying that he felt like he had been "thrown under a bus" by the club and described the way they handled his departure as "amateurish".

Glenn Whelan signed a short-term deal with League One club Fleetwood Town on 24 January 2020, joining until the end of the season.

On 4 September 2021, Glenn Whelan joined recently relegated League Two club Bristol Rovers on a one-year deal, linking up with former Fleetwood manager Joey Barton having trained with the club for part of pre-season.

On 13 November 2021, Glenn Whelan was sent off after receiving two bookings as Rovers held on to beat Northampton Town, a first sending-off since 2013.

Glenn Whelan continued on at the club in the role of a full-time coach.

In October 2000, Glenn Whelan played for the Republic of Ireland under-16 national team in a qualifying tournament in Riga for the 2001 UEFA European Under-16 Championship where he came up against Andres Iniesta.

Glenn Whelan represented the Republic of Ireland Under-20 team at the 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship and has been capped 19 times by the Republic of Ireland national under-21 football team, captaining the side on many of these occasions.

Glenn Whelan made his debut for the senior team against Serbia in May 2008 and scored his first international goal against Georgia in Mainz, Germany on 6 September 2008.

Since the appointment of Giovanni Trapattoni, Glenn Whelan became a key member of the squad and made 11 straight appearances despite previously being considered an " -ran".

Glenn Whelan was named in Trapattoni's 23-man squad for UEFA Euro 2012 in Poland and Ukraine.

Glenn Whelan won his 50th Irish cap on 14 August 2013 against Wales.

Glenn Whelan was branded a "terrible" player by RTE pundit and former Republic of Ireland international Eamon Dunphy in the aftermath of a poor performance in a 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying match against Sweden.

Glenn Whelan hit back at Dunphy stating that he is nothing more than a "media bully".

Glenn Whelan earned his 90th cap against Switzerland in October 2019 making him the ninth most capped Irish player of all time.

In October 2022, Glenn Whelan was a part of the Republic of Ireland Under-16s coaching team at the Victory Shield competition.

Glenn Whelan grew up in Dublin as a Liverpool supporter; however, he cites Paul McGrath as his hero.

Whilst living in Dublin, Glenn Whelan attended matches at League of Ireland side St Patrick's Athletic and cites Paul Osam as his favourite St Pat's player, stating Osam was the player that inspired him to play football.

Glenn Whelan is married to Karren, with whom he has a daughter, Abbie and a son Jack.

In January 2022, Glenn Whelan avoided a driving ban due to mitigating circumstances of needing to be able to drive to and from matches.