Josh Dasilva


Pelenda Joshua Tunga Dasilva is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Brentford. He is a product of the Arsenal academy and has been capped by England at youth level.

Club career

Arsenal

Dasilva began his career with Arsenal and joined the club's Hale End academy at the age of eight. He progressed through the ranks and moved from left wing to forward, before settling into a box-to-box midfield role. After scoring 28 goals during the first year of his scholarship, he signed his first professional contract in August 2015 and was an unused substitute for the first team on two occasions during the 2016–17 season. Dasilva was an unused substitute on seven occasions during the first half of the 2017–18 season and made three appearances, all in EFL Cup matches. Despite progressing into the U23 team, Dasilva turned down a new contract during the 2018 off-season and was released on 30 June 2018.

Brentford

On 21 August 2018, Dasilva joined Championship club Brentford on a four-year contract, with the option of an further year, on a free transfer. After overcoming some fitness issues, he made his debut as a substitute for Josh McEachran late in a 2–0 win over Millwall on 3 November 2018. Either side of the New Year, Dasilva made sporadic substitute appearances in league matches and made two FA Cup starts, before breaking into the starting lineup in March 2019. On 19 April 2019, he scored the first senior goal of his career in the return match versus Millwall, with "an unstoppable curling effort into the top corner from 30 yards", which saved a 1–1 draw. Dasilva finished the 2018–19 season with 21 appearances and one goal.
After beginning the 2019–20 season in a substitute role, Dasilva broke into the starting lineup in early October 2019 and came into form, scoring six goals in a 10-match spell, which included the first hat-trick of his career in a 7–0 win over Luton Town on 30 November. His November 2019 performances saw him nominated for the EFL Championship Player of the Month award.

International career

Dasilva was a part of the England U19 squad which won the 2017 UEFA European U19 Championship and made three appearances in the tournament. He appeared in each match of the U20 team's 2017–18 Under 20 Elite League campaign and was a late inclusion in the squad for the 2019 Toulon Tournament. In February 2020, Dasilva stated that he would be open to playing for Angola.

Personal life

Dasilva is of Angolan descent. He attended Beal High School.

Career statistics

Honours

;England U19