Kaleem Strawbrige-Simon (born 8 July 1996) is a professional footballer who plays as a winger for UAE Third Division League club Arabian Falcons. Born in England, he plays for the Montserrat national team.[1]

Kaleem Simon
Personal information
Full nameKaleem Strawbrige-Simon
Date of birth (1996-07-08) 8 July 1996 (age 27)
Place of birthLondon, England
Height1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s)Winger
Team information
Current team
Arabian Falcons
Number33
Youth career
2013–2014UCD
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2014UCD3(0)
2015–2016Longford Town54(3)
2017Bohemians15(0)
2017Longford Town5(0)
2018Cabinteely8(0)
2019Athlone Town17(2)
2019Warrenpoint Town0(0)
2020Wexford8(2)
2020–2021Welling United4(0)
2021Drogheda United1(0)
2022–2023Fleetwood United
2023–Arabian Falcons
International career
2021–Montserrat16(3)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 22 February 2024
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 10 June 2024

Club career edit

Simon came through the UCD academy as a student, and made his senior breakthrough as an 18 year old in July 2014. His debut came against Bradford City in a friendly match. He faced competition for places, and after making just 3 appearances for the club, he joined newly promoted side Longford Town in December 2014.[2] He spent 2 seasons there, and established himself as a key squad member, making 54 appearances in total and scoring 3 goals.

Following the club's relegation after the 2016 season, he sealed a move to Bohemians.[3] He spent the first half of the 2017 season in Phibsborough, where he made 15 league appearances, before returning to Longford in July. By December he had played a further 5 matches

Pat Devlin signed Kaleem for Cabinteely in February 2018, and he made his debut against Wexford on opening day of the First Division season. He never really found his form, and was offloaded once again in 2019. After 17 games with Athlone Town, he joined NIFL Premiership team Warrenpoint Town, where he failed to make a single appearance. [4]

Simon spent the first half of 2020 with Wexford FC,[5] but during the summer he secured a move across the water to non league outfit Welling United in the UK. He played 4 games for the club before being released a year later. Drogheda United signed him on a free transfer in August 2021,[6] but he only managed a single substitute appearance in 6 months with the County Louth side.

In September 2022, Simon signed for Fleetwood United in the UAE Second Division, the third tier of UAE football. The following season, he dropped down a division to the UAE Third Division League to sign for Arabian Falcons.[7]

International career edit

Born in England to an English father and Irish mother, Simon became eligible to play for Montserrat through his paternal grandmother.[8] Recruitment team of Montserrat Football Association contacted him in Instagram after noticing his eligibility and enquired if he would be interested in representing them. This led to his inclusion in Montserrat national team for World Cup qualifiers in March 2021.[9][10]

Simon made his international debut on 24 March 2021 in a 2–2 draw against Antigua and Barbuda.[11] He was also eligible to play for Republic of Ireland or Dominica prior to this match.[8]

Career statistics edit

Club edit

As of 6 January 2023[12]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
ClubSeasonLeagueNational Cup[a]League Cup[b]OtherTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
UCD2014League of Ireland Premier Division3000000[c]030
Longford Town2015League of Ireland Premier Division25250101[c]0322
201629120100[c]0321
Total543702010643
Bohemians2017League of Ireland Premier Division150001[c]0160
Longford Town2017League of Ireland First Division500050
Cabinteely2018League of Ireland First Division8000001[c]090
Athlone Town2019League of Ireland First Division17200001[c]0182
Warrenpoint Town2019–20NIFL Premiership00000000
Wexford2020League of Ireland First Division82001092
Welling United2020–21National League South40100040
Drogheda United2021League of Ireland Premier Division1010
Fleetwood United2022–23UAE Second Division League
Career total11578030401307

International edit

As of match played 9 June 2024[7]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Montserrat202150
202231
202361
202421
Total163
Scores and results list Montserrat's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Simon goal.
List of international goals scored by Kaleem Simon
No.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
17 June 2022Félix Sánchez Olympic Stadium, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic  Haiti1–22–32022–23 CONCACAF Nations League
217 November 2023Blakes Estate Stadium, Lookout, Montserrat  Dominican Republic2–02–12023–24 CONCACAF Nations League
39 June 2024Nicaragua National Football Stadium, Managua, Nicaragua  Panama1–11–32026 FIFA World Cup qualification

References edit

  1. ^ Kaleem Simon at Soccerway
  2. ^ "Longford Town signal intent with Rossiter capture". 31 December 2014. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
  3. ^ "2017 squad taking shape". 9 December 2016. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
  4. ^ "Four New Faces at The Point". 21 June 2019. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
  5. ^ "First Division Wexford snap up Kaleem Simon and James Carroll". 27 January 2020. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
  6. ^ "Drogheda United are delighted to announce the signing of Kaleem Simon". facebook.com.
  7. ^ a b "Kaleem Simon - Soccer player profile & career statistics - Global Sports Archive". globalsportsarchive.com.
  8. ^ a b "Kaleem Simon living the World Cup dream in the Emerald Isle of the Caribbean". 28 March 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
  9. ^ "INTERNATIONAL CALL UP FOR WINGS MAN". 20 March 2021. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
  10. ^ "FORMER ATHLONE TOWN PLAYER RECEIVES WORLD CUP QUALIFICATION INTERNATIONAL CALL-UP". 22 March 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
  11. ^ "Antigua vs. Montserrat". FootballCritic. 24 March 2021. Retrieved 12 September 2021.
  12. ^ "K.Simon". Soccerway. Retrieved 14 September 2021.

External links edit