Introduction
Isaiah Jay "Izzy" Brown (born 7 January 1997) is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward or a winger for Brighton & Hove Albion, on loan from fellow Premier League club Chelsea. He also represents the England natonal under-20 team.
Brown played for West Bromwich Albion's academy and under-21 teams before making his senior debut in 2013. Since signing for Chelsea, he has played for their under-21 team.
Early life
Brown was born in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire.
Club career
West Bromwich Albion
On 2 March 2013, Brown made the West Bromwich Albion bench for the first time in an away league match against Chelsea, an unused substitute as West Brom lost 1–0. On 6 April 2013, again Brown made the bench and was again not used as West Brom lost 2–1 to Arsenal at The Hawthorns.
Brown made his debut for West Bromwich Albion on 4 May 2013 in a 3–2 home Premier League defeat by Wigan Athletic, replacing Youssouf Mulumbu for the last four minutes and becoming the second-youngest player in Premier League history at the age of 16 years and 117 days.
On 8 July 2013, West Bromwich Albion rejected an offer for Brown from Chelsea. Later that month, Chelsea confirmed that they had signed Brown, with compensation between the clubs reportedly set to be decided by a tribunal. After Brown left the club West Brom's chairman considered scrapping the club's category one development academy as the EPPP rules Chelsea used to sign Brown meant that the club were losing their best prospects for nominal fees that failed to cover the cost of running an academy.
Chelsea
Brown scored his first goals for the Chelsea first team on 16 July 2014 in a 5–0 pre-season friendly victory over Wycombe Wanderers. On 29 July 2014, Chelsea manager José Mourinho said that he should be blamed if Brown were not to become a senior England international under his management.
On 28 October, Brown made the Chelsea bench for the first time in a competitive fixture, but was an unused substitute as Chelsea beat Shrewsbury Town 2–1 to advance into quarter-finals of the League Cup.
On 31 January 2015, Brown made the Chelsea bench against current league title holders, Manchester City, but was again an unused substitute as Chelsea drew 1–1. Three days after the match, on 3 February, Brown was promoted into Mourinho's first team squad alongside fellow teenager Ruben Loftus-Cheek.
On 12 April, Brown was named on the first team bench for the third time that season for a West London derby against Queens Park Rangers. Less than 24 hours later he captained Chelsea U19 in the final of the 2014–15 UEFA Youth League against Shakhtar Donetsk in Switzerland and put in a man of the match performance scoring twice to help Chelsea take the title.
On 18 May, Brown made his Chelsea debut, coming off the bench for Loïc Rémy for the final eleven minutes of a 3–0 defeat at his former club West Bromwich Albion. Although Brown only made one league appearances out of the whole season, José Mourinho stated that he would receive a winner's medal for his contributions this season.
Loan to Vitesse
On 10 July 2015, Chelsea agreed to a deal that will see Brown go on loan to Dutch side Vitesse along with new signing Nathan. A week later, Brown made his debut and played for the entire first half in a friendly 1–0 win against the Turkish side Çaykur Rizespor. He made his competitive debut 13 days later in a UEFA Europa League third qualifying round first leg against Southampton at St. Mary's, playing the full 90 minutes of a 3–0 defeat.
On 6 March 2016, Brown scored his first senior goal, giving Vitesse the lead in the 34th minute in their 2–1 victory over Roda JC Kerkrade.
Loan to Rotherham United
On 15 August 2016, Brown joined Championship side Rotherham United on loan until the end of the 2016–17 season. On 20 August 2016, Brown made his debut in a 1–0 victory over Brentford. On 10 September 2016, Brown scored his first goal after the opening six minutes of a 2–2 draw against Bristol City. On 10 December 2016, Brown went onto score the winner in a 1–0 home victory against Queens Park Rangers.
The loan was terminated early by Chelsea on 6 January 2017.
Loan to Huddersfield Town
It was announced later that day that Brown had joined fellow Championship side Huddersfield Town on loan for the remainder of the season. On 7 January 2017, Brown made his Huddersfield debut in an FA Cup tie against Port Vale, which resulted in a 4–0 victory for the Championship side. Two weeks later, Brown scored his first goal for Huddersfield in a 2–0 victory against Ipswich Town, netting in the 41st minute.
Loan to Brighton & Hove Albion
On 25 July 2017, Brown joined newly promoted Premier League club Brighton & Hove Albion on a season-long loan.
International career
Brown has represented England at under-16, under-17, under-19 and under-20 levels.
Career statistics
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| West Bromwich Albion | 2012–13 | Premier League | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |
| Chelsea | 2013–14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2014–15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Vitesse (loan) | 2015–16 | Eredivisie | 22 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 24 | 1 | |
| Rotherham United (loan) | 2016–17 | Championship | 20 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 20 | 3 | |
| Huddersfield Town (loan) | 2016–17 | 15 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 21 | 5 | |
| Career total | 59 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 67 | 9 | ||
Honours
Club
- FA Youth Cup: 2013–14, 2014–15
- Barclays Under 21 Premier League: 2013–14
- UEFA Youth League: 2014–15
- EFL Championship: 2017 play-offs
International
- Victory Shield: 2011–12
- UEFA European U-17 Championship: 2014
Individual
- West Bromwich Albion Academy Player of the Year: 2012–13