1. Luke David Ayling was born on 25 August 1991 and is an English professional footballer who plays as a defender for EFL Championship club Middlesbrough.
27 Facts About Luke Ayling
1. 2.
Luke Ayling was loaned out to Yeovil Town in March 2010 and played four matches.
3.
Luke Ayling joined Arsenal at the age of 8 despite being a Chelsea fan, progressing through the Arsenal youth teams, playing alongside Jack Wilshere and Kyle Bartley, before signing scholarship forms with the club in the summer of 2007.
4.
In July 2009, Luke Ayling signed his first professional contract with Arsenal.
5.
Luke Ayling departed the club in June 2010 after his contract expired.
6.
On 30 June 2010, Luke Ayling agreed a permanent contract with Yeovil.
7.
Luke Ayling made forty appearances in his first full season with Yeovil but had discipline issues receiving thirteen yellow cards and two red cards.
8.
Luke Ayling made his debut for Bristol City, on 9 August 2014, in their opening day victory over Sheffield United.
9.
The fee would later be considered one of the biggest bargains in the club's recent history, as Luke Ayling would go on to become a seminal figure in the club's resurgence and promotion to the Premier League four years later.
10.
The Whites would only win one of their 17 games as Leeds slipped in the bottom half of the table, before Luke Ayling returned ahead of schedule in the final game of the season against Queens Park Rangers.
11.
Luke Ayling would achieve personal milestones during the season, with his first goal for the club coming against Rotherham United and his 100th appearance later being made at home to Swansea City.
12.
Luke Ayling would begin deputising for Liam Cooper as captain.
13.
Luke Ayling would make 42 appearances as Leeds slowly lost their grip on automatic promotion, having led the division at Christmas, before losing to Derby County in the play-offs.
14.
Luke Ayling signed a new four-year contract with the club in October 2019.
15.
On 30 December 2019, Luke Ayling was chosen as the right-back for the "Football League Team of the decade" by The Guardian.
16.
On 8 January 2020, after impressive performances during the month of December, Luke Ayling won the EFL Championship PFA Player of the Month award for December 2019, beating former United player Tom Lees as well as Jed Wallace, Lee Tomlin, Sam Johnstone and Andre Ayew.
17.
Luke Ayling won Leeds' goal of the season award for his volley against Huddersfield Town at the club's end of season awards on 24 July 2020.
18.
On 12 December 2021, Luke Ayling joined a select group of just 70 players that have made over 200 appearances for the club, including then teammates Stuart Dallas, Liam Cooper and Kalvin Phillips.
19.
On 18 March 2022, Luke Ayling netted a stoppage time winner against Wolverhampton Wanderers in a thrilling comeback for Leeds United.
20.
On 8 May 2022, during a Premier League match against Arsenal, Luke Ayling was sent off for a two footed tackle on Gabriel Martinelli.
21.
Luke Ayling was initially shown a yellow card, which was later upgraded to red by VAR.
22.
Fitness and injuries limited Luke Ayling's playing time during the pre-World Cup portion of the season.
23.
Luke Ayling made 19 appearances and contributed eight assists during his loan spell.
24.
Luke Ayling plays as a right-back but can play as a centre-back or as a defensive midfielder.
25.
Luke Ayling has one daughter, Maisie, who was born in March 2017.
26.
Luke Ayling has the nickname "Bill", and is often referred to as such by Leeds players and fans.
27.
Luke Ayling's uncle is Ray Lewington, and his cousin is Ray's son Dean Lewington.