Cooper, Liam David Ian (Liam)
2014-Current
(Leeds Player Details)(Player Details)
Centre Back
Born: Kingston-upon-Hull, Yorkshire: 30-08-1991
Debut: v Middlesbrough (h): 16-08-2014
Height & Weight: 5ft 11ins 11st 13lb
Born in Hull, he was educated at Malet Lambert School and joined Hull City as an under-twelve. He
was a member of the Hull Youth team that won the Puma Youth Alliance Cup Final by beating Colchester
United 3-0 in the final at Layer Road on 28th April 2008. It was a bitter-sweet occasion for Cooper as he
opened the scoring in the first half and then was later sent-off for deliberate handball, but to compound
Colchester's misery they missed the ensuing penalty. Although born in Hull is is qualified by ancestry to
play for Scotland and in 2008 he was capped five times at Under-seventeen level for his adopted country.
He made his debut when playing the full game in the UEFA European Championship game on 17th March
2008 at Mourneview Park, Lurgen in which Scotland beat Northern Ireland 3-1. Two days later he made
his second appearance as Scotland beat Wales 1-0 at The Showgrounds, Newry and then on 22nd March
he recieved his third cap in a 1-0 win over Slovenia at the same venue. He was on the bench in the UEFA
Under-Seventeen 0-2 defeat by Netherlands at the Mardan Antalyaspor Stadium in Turkey on 10th May
2008. His fourth cap came in the UEFA European Championship in Turkey on 4th May 2008 at the World
Wonder Football Centre, Antalya, where they were beaten 0-2 by Serbia. His fifth and final cap came
three days later at Mardan Sport Complex, Antalya where they were beaten 0-1 by the host nation. On
26th August 2008 he made his debut for Hull when he started in a 1-2 loss, after extra time, at Swansea
City in the League Cup. Four days later on his seventeenth birthday he signed professional forms for Hull
City on a three year contract and was called up to the first team squad, but sat unused as Hull were
soundly beaten 0-5 at home by Wigan Athletic. He also sat unused on 16th May 2009 as they managed a
1-1 draw with Bolton Wanderers at the Reebok, as Hull managed to avoid relegation from the EPL. His
only Scotland Under-Nineteen Cap came on 9th September 2009 in a 1-3 home defeat by Iceland at
Fortbank Stadium Stirling. He started two League Cup games early in the season, on 25th August 2009
in a 3-1 home win over Southend United and in the 0-4 home defeat by Everton on 23rd September 2009.
After once more sitting unused on the bench for the first team in a 1-1 draw at Molineu against
Wolverhampton Wanderers on 29th August 2009, he made his first EPL start on 26th September 2009 at
Anfield in the 6–1 defeat by Liverpool. He replaced Kamil Zayatte in the 1-2 home loss to Arsenal on 13th
March 2010 for his second game of the season. On 17th March 2010 Cooper signed a new three year
contract with the club. By the end of the season he had started one, come off the bench once and been
an unused substitute on seven occasions, but had spent much of the season with the Premier Reserve
League North side, making eleven starts and being an unused substitute once. He was on the bench for
Hull's second game of the 2010-11 season on 14th August 2010 when they went down 0-4 at the Den
against Millwall. He played his first game of the season on 21st August 2010 in a 0-0 home draw with
Watford and then had another full game in the 1-2 League Cup loss to Brentford at Griffin Park on 24th
August and four days later he again had a full game in a 3-1 home win over Doncaster Rovers, before
finding himself on the bench on 11th September in Hull's next game in which they lost 0-2 at Cardiff City
and then he was not included in the squad. In the ensuing twenty League fixtures he sat unused on the
bench eight times and did not make the squad in the rest. On 8th January 2011 he was on the bench in
Hull's 2-3 home defeat by Wigan Athletic in the F.A. Cup but two days later he was loaned for a month
to Division One side Carlisle United, making his debut five days later in a 4-0 home win over Bristol
Rovers and he scored his first League goal when he got Carlisle's third in the seventy-third minute. He
then played another full game on 18th January as Carlisle won their home leg 4-0 against Huddersfield
Town in the Football League Trophy. This was followed by three more full League games to 1st February
when they lost 0-2 at Huddersfield, when he sustained a hand injury which saw the end of his loan spell.
He returned on 4th March for a month but after being sent off in his second game in a 0-6 defeat at
Peterborough, his loan came to an end having made a total of six League starts and one in the Football
League Trophy. On 8th July 2011 Cooper went on a season long loan to League One side Huddersfield
Town. He played his first game for his new club on 9th August 2011 in a 4-2 win at Port Vale in the
League Cup. He was on the bench on 6th August 2011 for the 1-1 draw with Bury in the League, but was
not in the squad for next three League games. He was on the bench on 23rd August for 3-5 (aet) loss at
Cardiff City in the League Cup and on 27th August he was on the bench in the 3-0 home win over
Wycombe Wanderers. He had a full game in the Football League Trophy 2-1 win at Northampton on
30th August, then had four more League games on the bench before coming on as a substitute on 24th
September in a 2-2 home draw with Leyton Orient, in which he came on in the eighty-fifth minute for
Gary Roberts. He was again called upon for the injured Calum Woods after 13 minutes in a 4-0 win at
Brentford 1st October 2011, but after starting the game on 4th October he was taken off at half time
with a back injury and replaced by Antony Kay in the Football Trophy as Town lost on penalties at home
to local Rivals Bradford City. He was not in the squad for the next three games due to that injury. He
was unused on the bench on 25th October in the 2-2 draw at Scunthorpe United, but came back to play
full games on 29th October in a 1-0 win at Yeovil, and in the 1-1 home draw with Walsall on 5th
November 2011, but was on the bench on 19th November in the 2-1 home win over Notts County. He
was not in the squad on 28th November for the game at Charlton. Due to infrequent chances Cooper
thought he would at least have a good a chance of making the first team squad at Hull and asked for
his loan to be terminated and this occurred on 2nd December 2011. It proved to be a sound move for
Cooper, for after full games in the F.A. Cup in a 3-1 home win against Ipswich Town on 7th January
2012 and on 28th January in their upset 0-1 home defeat by Crawley town in the same competition
and a run of four games where he was unused on the bench around the same time, he was called into
the team on 31st March as the replacement for Captain Jack Hobbs, who had been ruled out for the
rest of the year with cruciate ligament problems, and he played the final six games of the season and
formed a good defensive partnership with James Chester. Unfortunately for Cooper, Hull replaced
Manager Nicky Barmby by Steve Bruce and he brought in Abdoulaye Faye and his son Alex Bruce
and suddenly Cooper was third in the pecking order and out of the first team squad. Apart from being
an unused substitute on 28th August in a 2-3 loss at Doncaster Rovers in the League Cup, it was not
until 6th October that Cooper made the squad and then had four games as an unused substitute. He
joined League Two side Chesterfield on a months loan on 1st November 2012 and made his debut
for them on 16th November in a 2-1 home win over Oxford United and got his side's equalising goal
in injury time at the end of the first half. He scored again, this time in a 1-2 defeat at Tranmere Rovers
in the F.A. Cup on 1st December when he opened the scoring in the thirty-first minute and soon
became a first team fixture and had his loan period extended a further month. He had started nine
League and two F.A. Cup games and scored one goal in each competition when he signed a
permanent two-and-a-half year deal with Chesterfield on 5th January 2013. He made his debut as a
Chesterfield player on the same day in a 1-2 defeat at Wycombe Wanderers and added a further
League goal to his achievements when he reduced the arrears in the seventy-seventh minute in a
1-2 away defeat to Torquay United on 19th March 2013. He also added a further twenty League
starts to make it twenty-nine appearances for the season. After picking up a pre-season injury
Cooper missed the first game at Bury and sat unused on the bench in the League Cup tie at Leeds
United and the second League fixture at home to Cheltenham Town, before going on to start thirty-
eight League games, come off the bench three times and sit once unused on the bench in the
League. He scored three times in the League with goals on 12th October when he headed his
team into the lead in the fifty-fifth minute in a 1-1 draw at Fleetwood Town, on 25th February when
he headed his side's fourth goal in a 4-1 win at Cheltenham Town and finally his left foot shot
brought the Spitites back on level terms as they went on to win 2-1 at Hartlepool United on 12th
April 2014. He also started one F.A. Cup tie and six Football League Trophy games as they lost
1-3 in the Final to Peterborough United at Wmbley on 30th March 2014. They also gained
promotion to League One as Champions of League Two and he was included in the PFA team of
the year for League Two. Throughout the close season his name had been linked with Leeds
United and on 30th July 2014 Chesterfield confirmed that they had twice rejected offer from Leeds
for his services. He made his first apprance of the season for Chesterfield in a 2-1 win at Leyton
Orient on 9th August 2014, but on 12th August the two clubs announced a fee had been agreed
and on the following day, after he had undergone a medical, he signed a three year contact and a
fee in the region of £600,000 changed hands between the clubs. He made his debut on 16th August
in a 1-0 home win over Middlesbrough. He scored his first Leeds goal on 8th November 2014 with
the opening goal in the ninth minute of a 3-1 home win over Blackpool. He was appointed Captain
of Leeds United before the F.A. Cup-tie at Sunderland on 4th January 2015, after Steve Warnock
was sidelined by injury. He became the permanent Captain after Warnock left the club and it was a
role he continued to play even though he was not always assured a place in the starting line-up.
However, he started twenty-five League games and four more from the bench as well as one start
in each of the F.A. Cup and League Cup. For the 2015-16 season he became the United Vice-
Captain as Souleymane Bamba took over the captaincy, however due to Bamba's absence due
to injury and other reasons, he started as captain on twenty occasions in all games. The two
central defensive roles were shared between Bamba, Cooper and Bellusci with the first two the
preferred choice for the majority of the season. Cooper had his share of injuries and loss of form
as did the other two but he impressed enough to be called into the Scottish squad along with
teammate Liam Bridcutt for the game against Denmark on 10th March, but while Bridcutt took the
field, Cooper remained unused on the bench. He scored the Leeds goal in the twenty-second
minute of the 1-2 home defeat by Brighton and Hove Albion on 17th October 2015, his second for
the club, and started all but seven League games and two F.A. Cup games in the season. On 17th
October 2015, Cooper scored his second goal for Leeds United in the 1–2 loss to Brighton. After
the departure of Sol Bamba in late August 2016, Cooper remained the club's vice-captain with
Liam Bridcutt being appointed club captain, but both Bridcutt and Cooper were injured for long
spells and third choice Kyle Bartley deputised on many occasions.It was also Cooper's lot to be
an unused substitute on over twenty occasions, as the Kyle Bartley/Pontus Jonsson partnership
shone throughout the season. He made eight starts and three games from the bench in the League
and started two F.A. Cup ties and made four starts and one game as a substitute in the League
Cup. In March 2017, he was called up to the Scotland squad for a friendly match against Canada
and a World Cup Qualifier against Slovenia, but was not in the final XI. After a good 2017-18 pre-
season, Cooper was selected for the first League game on 6th August 2017 at Bolton Wanderers
and reappointed as club captain. He was rested for the 4-1 home win over Port Vale three days
later and on the following day the club announced that he had signed a new four year contract which
would see him through to the end of the 2020-21 season. Two days later, on 12th August, he was
leading his team to a 0-0 home draw with Preston North End. He was due to lead his team three
days later in another 0-0 home draw with Fulham, but had to withdraw, due to injury, just prior to
kick-off but he was back to lead his team to a 2-0 win at the Stadium of Light over Sunderland on
19th August 2017. He went on to start thirty League games in the 2017-18 season, all as captain,
as he remained the club captain and made a substitute appearance in the F.A. Cup and League
Cup. He added one more goal to his League tally as scored the winner in the home game with
Brentford on 24th February 2018