Mike Louis Penders (born 31 July 2005) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Premier League club Chelsea and the Belgium national team.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Mike Louis Penders[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 31 July 2005 | ||
| Place of birth | Maasmechelen, Belgium | ||
| Height | 2.00 m (6 ft 7 in)[2] | ||
| Position | Goalkeeper | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Chelsea | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2010–2016 | Boorsem Sport | ||
| 2016–2018 | Bregel Sport | ||
| 2018–2022 | Genk | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2022–2024 | Jong Genk | 39 | (0) |
| 2024–2025 | Genk | 21 | (0) |
| 2025– | Chelsea | 0 | (0) |
| 2025–2026 | → Strasbourg (loan) | 33 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2021 | Belgium U17 | 2 | (0) |
| 2022–2023 | Belgium U18 | 2 | (0) |
| 2023–2024 | Belgium U19 | 7 | (0) |
| 2025– | Belgium U21 | 4 | (0) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 23:02, 17 May 2026 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 13:24, 30 March 2026 (UTC) | |||
Club career
editGenk
editPenders is a youth product of Boorsem Sport and Bregel Sport, before moving to the academy of Genk in 2018.[3]
On 30 April 2021, he signed his first contract with Genk.[4] On 25 May 2022, he extended his contract until 2025.[5]
In the 2022–23 season, he was promoted to their reserve team Jong Genk.[2] He made his debut in a 4–1 victory against Lierse.[6][7]
On 23 August 2023, he again extended his contract until 2028.[8] He was made captain of Jong Genk in the 2023–24 season[7]
Following the departure of Maarten Vandevoordt and injury to Hendrik Van Crombrugge, Penders made his senior debut with the Genk first team in a 0–0 Belgian Pro League tie with Standard Liège on 28 July 2024.[9] At 18 years and 363 days, he was the third youngest goalkeeper to debut in the history of the league.[10]
In January 2025, Genk coach Thorsten Fink announced that Penders would be the team's starting goalkeeper for the remainder of the 2024–25 season.[11] He ended the season having played 21 league matches, including all ten matches in the Championship play-offs.[12]
Chelsea
editOn 27 August 2024, it was announced that Penders would join Premier League club Chelsea in the summer of 2025.[7][13]
In June 2025, Penders was named in Chelsea's squad for the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup in the United States.[14] He was an unused substitute in the final on 13 July 2025.[15]
Loan to Strasbourg
editOn 28 July 2025, Penders joined Ligue 1 club Strasbourg on a season-long loan deal.[16]
He made his debut for Strasbourg in their opening Ligue 1 fixture on 17 August, keeping a clean sheet against Metz.[17] He was ever present in Strasbourg's runs to the semi-finals of both the Coupe de France[18] and UEFA Conference League.[19]
International career
editPenders is a youth international for Belgium, having represented the nation at under-17, under-18, under-19 and under-21 level.
In 2023, he was called up to the Belgium U19s where he acted as captain during the 2024 UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualification campaign.[20]
In 2025, Penders played four matches during qualification for the 2027 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.[21]
In August 2025, he received his first call up to the senior Belgium national football team.[22] On 18 November, he was an unused substitute in a 7–0 win over Liechtenstein in a 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier.[23]
On 15 May 2026, he was named in Belgium's squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.[24]
Career statistics
edit- As of match played 17 May 2026[25]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Jong Genk | 2021–22 | Challenger Pro League | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | ||||
| 2022–23 | Challenger Pro League | 9 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 9 | 0 | |||||
| 2023–24 | Challenger Pro League | 25 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 25 | 0 | |||||
| 2024–25 | Challenger Pro League | 5 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 5 | 0 | |||||
| Total | 39 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 39 | 0 | ||||||
| Genk | 2024–25 | Belgian Pro League | 21 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | 25 | 0 | |||
| Chelsea | 2024–25 | Premier League | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||
| Strasbourg (loan) | 2025–26 | Ligue 1 | 33 | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | 12[b] | 0 | — | 50 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 93 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 114 | 0 | ||
- ↑ Includes Belgian Cup, Coupe de France
- ↑ Appearances in UEFA Conference League
Honours
editChelsea
References
edit- ↑ "Squad List: FIFA Club World Cup 2025: Chelsea FC (ENG)" (PDF). FIFA. 15 June 2025. p. 12. Retrieved 15 June 2025.
- 1 2 "Wie is Mike Penders, de 18-jarige talentvolle doelman van KRC Genk die titularis is in 1B?". Voetbalflitsen.be - het leukste en opvallendste voetbalnieuws!. 22 August 2023.
- ↑ "Mike Penders verlengt contract tot 2028". KRC Genk (in Flemish). 26 August 2023. Retrieved 5 June 2025.
- ↑ "KRC Genk legt drie jonge talenten vast tot 2024". HBVL (in Flemish). 30 April 2021. Retrieved 5 June 2025.
- ↑ "KRC Genk verlengt contract van jonge doelman Mike Penders (16)". HBVL (in Flemish). 25 May 2022. Retrieved 5 June 2025.
- ↑ "Met lef én een killer instinct: Jong Genk wint eerste profmatch met 4-1 van Lierse Kempenzonen". HBVL (in Flemish). 14 August 2022. Retrieved 5 June 2025.
- 1 2 3 "Official: Mike Penders makes top transfer to Chelsea FC". 27 August 2024. Retrieved 5 June 2025.
- ↑ "KRC Genk verlengt contract van doelman Mike Penders tot 2028 (Jupiler Pro League) | Het Belang van Limburg". 27 August 2023.
- ↑ "Penders (18) onder de lat bij Genk: Courtois is hier eveneens jong begonnen". VoetbalPrimeur.be (in Flemish). 26 July 2024. Retrieved 5 June 2025.
- ↑ Geukens, Marnik (29 July 2024). "Chelsea zet zijn zinnen op 18-jarige Belgische doelman Mike Penders (KRC Genk)". Het Nieuwsblad (in Flemish). Retrieved 5 June 2025.
- ↑ "Fink hakt knoop door: doelman Mike Penders krijgt ook in competitie de voorkeur op Van Crombrugge". HBVL (in Flemish). 17 January 2025. Retrieved 16 May 2026.
- ↑ "Mike Penders Career Stats - Belgian Pro League". ESPN. Retrieved 16 May 2026.
- ↑ "Mike Penders to join Chelsea". Chelsea F.C. 27 July 2024. Retrieved 5 June 2025.
- ↑ "FIFA Club World Cup 2025: Full squad list of all teams and players". Al Jazeera. 13 June 2025. Retrieved 16 May 2026.
- ↑ "Chelsea 3-0 PSG". ESPN. 13 June 2025. Retrieved 16 May 2026.
- ↑ "Mike Penders joins Strasbourg on loan". www.chelseafc.com. 28 July 2025. Retrieved 28 July 2025.
- ↑ "RC Strasbourg Kicks Off Ligue 1 With a Win Against FC Metz Thanks to a Stunning Goal From Joaquín Panichelli". beIN Sports. 17 August 2025. Retrieved 16 May 2026.
- ↑ "Strasbourg 0-2 Nice". Ouest France. 22 April 2026. Retrieved 16 May 2026.
- ↑ "Mike Penders n'a pas suffi : Strasbourg éliminé aux portes de la finale de Conference League par le Rayo Vallecano". RTBF (in French). 7 May 2026. Retrieved 16 May 2026.
- ↑ "Mike Penders en Josue Kongolo (KRC Genk) naar eliteronde EK 2024 | Het Belang van Limburg". 21 November 2023.
- ↑ "Mike Penders". UEFA. Retrieved 16 May 2026.
- ↑ "Penders, Seys en Vanhoutte zijn er voor het eerst bij, terwijl Batshuayi zijn rentree viert bij de Rode Duivels: dit is de 25-koppige selectie van Rudi Garcia". Nieuwsblad (in Dutch). 29 August 2025. Retrieved 16 May 2026.
- ↑ "Belgium 7-0 Liechtenstein". The Guardian. 18 November 2025. Retrieved 16 May 2026.
- ↑ "https://www.fifa.com/en/tournaments/mens/worldcup/canadamexicousa2026/articles/belgium-squad-garcia-lukaku-named". FIFA. 15 May 2026. Retrieved 16 May 2026.
{{cite web}}: External link in|title= - ↑ Mike Penders at Soccerway
- ↑ Begley, Emlyn (13 July 2025). "Chelsea 3–0 PSG". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 July 2025.
External links
edit- Mike Penders at Soccerway
- RBFA Profile