John McAtee
{{short description|English footballer}}
{{for|the Oklahoma Territorial Supreme Court justice|John L. McAtee}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2020}}
{{Use British English|date=January 2020}}
{{Infobox football biography
| name = John McAtee
| image =
| caption =
| fullname = John George McAtee{{cite web|url=http://www.efl.com/news/article/2016/efl-club-retained-and-released-lists-published-3151313.aspx|title=EFL: Club retained and released lists published|publisher=English Football League|date=23 June 2016|accessdate=1 May 2017}}
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1999|7|23|df=y}}
| birth_place = Salford, England
| height = 1.86m
| position = Forward
| currentclub = Bolton Wanderers
| clubnumber = 45
| youthyears1 = 2015–2017
| youthclubs1 = Shrewsbury Town
| years1 = 2017–2019
| clubs1 = Shrewsbury Town
| caps1 = 1
| goals1 = 0
| years2 = 2017
| clubs2 = → Halesowen Town (loan)
| caps2 = 10
| goals2 = 4
| years3 = 2018
| clubs3 = → AFC Telford United (loan)
| caps3 = 7
| goals3 = 1
| years4 = 2018
| clubs4 = → Ashton United (loan)
| caps4 = 9
| goals4 = 1
| years5 = 2018
| clubs5 = → AFC Telford United (loan)
| caps5 = 2
| goals5 = 0
| years6 = 2018–2019
| clubs6 = → Curzon Ashton (loan)
| caps6 = 19
| goals6 = 1
| years7 = 2019–2021
| clubs7 = Scunthorpe United
| caps7 = 49
| goals7 = 4
| years8 = 2021–2022
| clubs8 = Grimsby Town
| caps8 = 36
| goals8 = 14
| years9 = 2022–2024
| clubs9 = Luton Town
| caps9 = 0
| goals9 = 0
| years10 = 2022–2023
| clubs10 = → Grimsby Town (loan)
| caps10 = 26
| goals10 = 4
| years11 = 2023–2024
| clubs11 = → Barnsley (loan)
| caps11 = 40
| goals11 = 12
| years12 = 2024–
| clubs12 = Bolton Wanderers
| caps12 = 45
| goals12 = 11
| nationalyears1 =
| club-update = 22:21, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
}}
John George McAtee (born 23 July 1999) is an English footballer who plays as a striker for {{English football updater|BoltonWa}} club Bolton Wanderers.
He has previously played for Shrewsbury Town where he began his career, taking in loan spells with Halesowen Town, AFC Telford United, Ashton United and Curzon Ashton. He joined Scunthorpe United in 2019 where he remained for two seasons before joining Grimsby Town in the summer of 2021. McAtee was pivotal in Grimsby's promotion back to the Football League in 2022, scoring several goals in their play-off campaign before signing for Luton during the summer.
Club career
=Shrewsbury Town=
McAtee made his first appearance for the Shrewsbury Town first-team ahead of his second year as a scholar, in a pre-season friendly away at Stourbridge in July 2016.{{cite web|url=http://www.shropshirestar.com/sport/shrewsbury-town-fc/2016/07/27/shrewsbury-towns-kids-deserve-a-chance/|title=Shrewsbury Town's kids deserve a chance|publisher=Shropshire Star|date=27 July 2016|accessdate=1 May 2017|archive-date=26 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190226172718/https://www.shropshirestar.com/sport/shrewsbury-town-fc/2016/07/27/shrewsbury-towns-kids-deserve-a-chance/|url-status=dead}} He made his English Football League debut as an 84th-minute substitute for Ryan Yates in a 2–0 loss at Oxford United on the final day of the 2016–17 season,{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/39682629|title=Oxford United 2–0 Shrewsbury Town|publisher=BBC Sport|date=30 April 2017|accessdate=1 May 2017}} and subsequently signed a one-year professional contract, committing him to the club until summer 2018.{{cite web|url=http://www.shrewsburytown.com/news/article/2016-17/scholar-decisions-made-3672095.aspx|title=Scholar decisions made|publisher=Shrewsweb|date=12 April 2017|accessdate=1 May 2017}}{{cite web|url=https://www.shrewsburytown.com/news/2017/june/scholars-sign-first-pro-deals/|title=Scholars sign first pro deals|publisher=Shrewsweb|date=7 June 2017|accessdate=12 June 2017}}
McAtee joined Halesowen Town on an initial one-month youth loan on 30 September 2017.{{cite news|title=McAtee Goes Out On Loan|url=https://www.shrewsburytown.com/news/2017/september/mcatee-goes-out-on-loan/|accessdate=6 October 2017|publisher=Shrewsbury Town Official Site|date=30 September 2017}} This was later extended until Christmas 2017, with "Yeltz" manager John Hill eager to extend it further again,{{cite web|url=http://www.stourbridgenews.co.uk/sport/15794123.Halesowen_Town_boss_John_Hill_working_hard_to_extend_John_McAtee_loan/|title=Halesowen boss John Hill working hard to extend John McAtee loan|publisher=Stourbridge News|date=27 December 2017|accessdate=20 February 2018}} however he returned to his parent club, before being loaned out to National League North club AFC Telford United in February 2018.{{cite web|url=https://www.shrewsburytown.com/news/2018/february/mcatee-joins-telford/|title=McAtee joins Telford|publisher=Shrewsweb|date=12 February 2018|accessdate=20 February 2018}}
On 4 August 2018, McAtee joined National League North side Ashton United on a one-month loan deal.{{cite web|url=https://www.shrewsburytown.com/news/2018/august/loan-update/|title=Loan Update|publisher=Shrewsweb|date=6 August 2018|accessdate=7 August 2018}} Afterwards, on 26 September, McAtee was loaned out again for the rest of the season, back to Telford.{{cite web|url=http://www.telfordunited.com/News.aspx?ID=1499|title=Young Forward John McAtee Joins|publisher=AFC Telford United|date=26 September 2018|accessdate=2 October 2018|archive-date=3 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181003014038/http://www.telfordunited.com/News.aspx?ID=1499|url-status=dead}} However, on 21 December, he was loaned for a month to Curzon Ashton, again of the same league.{{cite news |title=McAtee Joins On Loan |url=https://www.curzon-ashton.co.uk/news/post/mcatee-joins-on-loan |accessdate=25 February 2019 |publisher=Curzon Ashton F.C. |date=21 December 2018 |archive-date=19 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220119221509/https://www.curzon-ashton.co.uk/news/post/mcatee-joins-on-loan |url-status=dead }} The deal was later extended for the rest of the season. He was released by Shrewsbury in May 2019.{{cite news |last1=Hillback |first1=Ryan |title=Shrewsbury Town confirm Mat Sadler and Doug Loft departure |url=https://www.shropshirelive.com/sport/2019/05/08/shrewsbury-town-confirm-mat-sadler-and-doug-loft-departure/ |accessdate=8 May 2019 |publisher=Shropshire Live |date=8 May 2019}}
=Scunthorpe United=
On 8 July 2019, McAtee signed for League Two side Scunthorpe United.{{cite web |title= Six additions to Under-23s squad |url=https://www.scunthorpe-united.co.uk/news/2019/july/six-additions-to-under-23s-squad/ |accessdate=8 July 2019 |publisher=Scunthorpe United FC official site |date=8 July 2019}}
He scored his first league goal for the club on 18 January 2020, an equaliser in a 2–2 draw away at Bradford City.{{cite web |title= Bradford City 2–2 Scunthorpe United |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/51073098 |accessdate=19 January 2020 |publisher=BBC Sport |date=18 January 2020}}
=Grimsby Town=
On 8 June 2021, McAtee turned down a new contract with Scunthorpe to join local rivals Grimsby Town on a two-year deal, reuniting him with manager Paul Hurst for a third time. it is understood that Grimsby would have to pay a compensation fee for the player.{{Cite news|url=https://www.grimsbytelegraph.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/grimsby-town-mcatee-scunthorpe-united-5504141|title = John McAtee becomes Grimsby Town's second summer signing|newspaper = Grimsbylive|date = 8 June 2021}}
McAtee scored on his Mariners debut in a 1–0 win over Weymouth on 28 August 2021.{{cite news| url = https://www.grimsbytelegraph.co.uk/sport/football/match-reports/grimsby-town-weymouth-live-updates-5843657| title = Grimsby Town 1-0 Weymouth highlights and reaction: John McAtee fires Mariners to opening win - Grimsby Live| newspaper = Grimsbylive| date = 28 August 2021}} McAtee was awarded both the "Player of the Year" and the "Young Player of the Year" awards following on from his first season with Grimsby.{{cite news | url=https://www.grimsbytelegraph.co.uk/sport/football/paul-hurst-hopes-john-mcatee-7068094 | title=Paul Hurst hopes John McAtee has saved a few goals for the play-offs | newspaper=Grimsbylive | date=13 May 2022 }}
McAtee scored Grimsby's first goal in a 5–4 away victory over Wrexham in the National League play off semi-final.{{cite news | url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/61560268 | title=Grimsby end Wrexham's play-off dreams in thriller | work=BBC Sport }} He also scored the first goal in the 2–1 victory over Solihull Moors in the 2022 National League play-off final to send Grimsby back to the Football League.{{cite news | url=https://www.grimsbytelegraph.co.uk/sport/grimsby-town-ratings-solihull-moors-7167271 | title=Grimsby Town player ratings as McAtee and four others star in Solihull comeback | newspaper=Grimsbylive | date=5 June 2022 }}
=Luton Town=
On 2 August 2022, McAtee signed for EFL Championship club Luton Town for an undisclosed fee, returning to Grimsby Town on loan until the end of the 2022–23 season in order to continue his development.{{cite web|url=https://www.lutontown.co.uk/news/2022/august/mcatee-signs/|title=John McAtee joins Luton and heads back to Grimsby on loan!|website=www.lutontown.co.uk|date=2 August 2022|accessdate=2 August 2022}}
McAtee suffered a shoulder injury following the opening day of the season, initially dislocating it against Leyton Orient which would end up needing surgery.{{cite news | url=https://www.grimsbytelegraph.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/paul-hurst-provides-update-john-7437509 | title=Paul Hurst provides update on Grimsby Town forward John McAtee's injury status | newspaper=Grimsbylive | date=8 August 2022 }} On 1 November 2022, McAtee played his first football in months as he scored twice for Luton's development side in a 3–3 friendly with Stevenage.{{cite web | url=https://www.lutontoday.co.uk/sport/football/luton-town/mcatee-scores-twice-as-lutons-development-squad-draw-3-3-with-stevenage-3901596 | title=McAtee scores twice as Luton's Development squad draw 3-3 with Stevenage | date=November 2022 }}
McAtee was part of the Grimsby team that reached the quarter-finals of the FA Cup and although being cup tied in the fourth round game against Luton, he would play in the 2–1 victory away at Premier League side Southampton and the eventual defeat against Brighton & Hove Albion.{{cite news | url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/64543053 | title=Grimsby upset Luton to reach FA Cup fifth round | work=BBC Sport }}{{cite news | url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/64799742 | title=Grimsby stun Southampton to reach FA Cup last eight | work=BBC Sport }}{{cite news | url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/64984194 | title=Brighton end Grimsby's run to reach FA Cup semis | work=BBC Sport }}
Following an injury with three games to go, manager Paul Hurst stated McAtee had played his final game for the club ahead of his move to Luton, stating "He's been great and we've been great for him. He's needed managing at times, and he'll accept that, but he's got great character. Myself and Chris have put a lot of trust, time, and effort into him going back to Shrewsbury and Scunthorpe as well as here because we believed in him. Last season, in particular, he repaid some of that faith and got a reward for an excellent season. I really hope that he can prove himself at Luton or certainly higher up than he has played currently because he has got the ability, he just has to show that dedication, work extremely hard, not take anything for granted and be disappointed when things aren't quite going his way."{{cite news | url=https://www.grimsbytelegraph.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/grimsby-town-paul-hurst-mcatee-8387680 | title=Paul Hurst's parting message to John McAtee following Town loan spell | newspaper=Grimsbylive | date=26 April 2023 }}
Following Luton's promotion to the Premier League, McAtee was named as a substitute for the clubs opening day defeat against Brighton & Hove Albion.{{cite web |title=Full Report {{!}} Brighton 4-1 Town |url=https://www.lutontown.co.uk/news/2023/august/report-brighton/ |website=lutontown.co.uk |publisher=Luton Town |access-date=12 August 2023}}
On 25 August 2023, McAtee joined EFL League One club Barnsley on a season-long loan.{{Cite news |title=Luton loan forward McAtee to Barnsley for season |language=en-GB |work=BBC Sport |url=https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/66614174 |access-date=2023-08-25}} McAtee came off the bench to score on his debut in a 2–0 win away at Wigan Athletic.{{cite web |title=Wigan Athletic 0-2 Barnsley |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/66552472 |website=bbc.co.uk/sport |publisher=BBC Sport |access-date=26 August 2023}}
=Bolton Wanderers=
On 9 August 2024, McAtee signed for Bolton Wanderers for an undisclosed fee on a three year contract.{{Cite news |title=Wanderers Secure McAtee Deal |language=en-GB |work=Bolton Wanderers |url=https://www.bwfc.co.uk/news/wanderers-secure-mcatee-deal |access-date=2024-08-09}}
Personal life
McAtee is the older brother of Manchester City midfielder James McAtee.{{cite web| url = https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/james-mcatee-interview-man-city-19101850| title = James McAtee is growing into Man City role as he follows Phil Foden path| work=Manchester Evening News| date = 14 October 2020}} He is from Walkden.{{cite web |last1=Bajkowski |first1=James |title=Meet the McAtees |url=https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/man-city-james-mcatee-interview-26483220 |website=Manchester Evening News |date=17 March 2023 |publisher=MEN |access-date=22 April 2023}} Their father, paternal grandfather (also both called John) and great-uncles played rugby league professionally,[https://www.sthelensstar.co.uk/news/19613760.james-mcatee-son-former-saint-manchester-city-champions-league-squad/ James McAtee, son of former Saint, in Manchester City Champions League squad], Mike Critchley, St Helens Star, 29 September 2021 and the football players and managers Alan Ball Sr. and Alan Ball Jr. are their maternal great-grandfather and great-uncle respectively.[https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/64982805 John & James McAtee on FA Cup runs, sibling rivalry and Mother's Day], Kelly Somers / Ian Woodcock, BBC Sport, 17 March 2023
Career statistics
{{updated|match played 3 December 2024}}
{{notelist}}
Honours
References
{{reflist}}
{{Bolton Wanderers F.C. squad}}
{{Navboxes
| title = Awards
| bg = Gold
| list1 =
{{Grimsby Town F.C. Player of the Year}}
{{2021–22 National League Team of the Year}}
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{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:McAtee, John}}
Category:Footballers from Salford
Category:AFC Telford United players
Category:Men's association football forwards
Category:English Football League players
Category:English men's footballers
Category:Halesowen Town F.C. players
Category:Shrewsbury Town F.C. players
Category:Ashton United F.C. players
Category:Curzon Ashton F.C. players
Category:Scunthorpe United F.C. players
Category:Grimsby Town F.C. players
Category:Luton Town F.C. players
Category:Bolton Wanderers F.C. players
Category:National League (English football) players
Category:Northern Premier League players
Category:Barnsley F.C. players