Aziz Deen-Conteh
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| Aziz Deen-Conteh | |
| |
| Full Name | Aziz Deen-Conteh |
| Date of Birth | 14 January 1993 |
| Place of Birth | Bumpeh, Sierra Leone |
| Position | Defender |
| Chelsea career | 2008 - 2013 |
| Debut | n/a |
| Games (goals) | n/a |
| Other clubs | None |
Aziz Deen-Conteh (born 14 January 1993 in Bumpeh, Sierra Leone) is a defender who formerly played for Chelsea
Contents |
Pre-Chelsea career
Aziz joined Chelsea's academy at the age of 13, having been spotted playing for Waterloo FC in London.
Chelsea career
Aziz was initially used in the Under-16 team as a utility player, his physical attributes lending themselves to defensive, wing and striker roles. Predominantly left footed, he was used to fine effect on that side.
Having made a great impression during the 2008 Cobham Cup, he was selected for England’s Under-16 squad, and proved to be a useful player in their Victory Shield success. Growing in confidence throughout the 2008-09 season, he made his first steps into the Under-18 team, scoring as a schoolboy and making strides at left-back, where he had now settled.
The 2009-10 season started slowly, as he was unable to work his way into the starting eleven, although he was consistently used off the subs bench, making an appearance in every one of the first ten games. With Billy Knott impressing at left-back, he was used in attack in a depleted team away to Norwich, but then slotted into the centre-back role for the FA Youth Cup with both Jeffrey Bruma and Rohan Ince suffering from injury. Despite being of slight stature and not thoroughly familiar with the role, he excelled alongside Daniel Mills Pappoe and looked extremely competent, reading the game well and using his athletic ability to his advantage.
He was rewarded for his progress with a professional contract in July 2010, and a promotion to the Reserve team setup, where he spent most of the 2010-11 campaign before moving up full time for 2011-12. He spoke of frustration mid-season at a lack of playing time but featured heavily in the second half of the season and earned the praise of manager Dermot Drummy for his professional approach.
That positive progress was not maintained in 2012-13 though, and whilst he made a decent number of appearances for the Under-21s, he was unable to secure a much-needed loan move. With his contract expiring at the end of the season, he was released as a free agent.
International
Aziz has represented England (for whom he qualifies through residency and schooling) at Under-16, Under-17 and Under-19 levels. As part of the 2009 England Under-16 party, he won the Sky Sports Victory Shield tournament, a feat shared with three other Chelsea team-mates.
He was called up to the Under-19 squad during the 2010-11 season and was capped by Noel Blake in 2011-12, but in March of 2013 he accepted a call into the senior Sierra Leone squad for their World Cup Qualifier against Tunisia and declared his commitment to the nation of his birth.
Career statistics
Youth, Reserve and Under-21 Football
| Season | Under-18 | NextGen | Under-21 | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |
| 2008-09 | 6 | 1 | - | - | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 |
| 2009-10 | 32 | 0 | - | - | 0 | 0 | 32 | 0 |
| 2010-11 | 16 | 1 | - | - | 13 | 0 | 29 | 1 |
| 2011-12 | 1 | 0 | - | - | 14 | 0 | 15 | 0 |
| 2012-13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 1 | 15 | 1 |
| Total | 55 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 42 | 1 | 97 | 3 |
(Statistics accurate as of the end of the 2012-13 season)
Career honours
- 2009-10 FA Youth Cup
- 2009 Sky Sports Victory Shield (England Under-16s)
- Premier Reserve League 2010-11
Post Chelsea career
Aziz played for Greek top flight club Ergotelis FC after leaving Chelsea before joining Port Vale in the summer of 2014.
