Two and a half years ago, Miguel Freckleton was turning out for a non-league club in the seventh tier of English football. Today, the Bristol-born defender is preparing for Champions League football with Austrian champions LASK — with trips to face Liverpool at Anfield and Real Madrid at the Bernabeu on the horizon.

"It's been crazy. It's so hard to put into words," the 23-year-old tells BBC Sport.

A difficult start in the game

Freckleton's path to the top was far from straightforward. He left Bristol Rovers at 14 after an agent promised to land him a deal at Wolverhampton Wanderers or Stoke City, attracted by interest from several clubs and a £50,000 compensation fee attached to his name. That move never materialised — a bout of illness during trial sessions at Wolves left him without a club and, as he puts it, "kind of left with nothing."

He spent time at the Bristol Inner City Academy and later at South Gloucestershire and Stroud College, where Antoine Semenyo — now at Manchester City — was also a student. He picked up his first senior minutes for local non-league side Mangotsfield United, then competing in the seventh tier.

"Even at that age, he was one of the tallest players, the quickest," recalls Matt Curry, who coached Freckleton at the Bristol Inner City Academy and is now assistant manager at Mangotsfield. "I certainly thought he would go on to have a career in the game."

Four loans and a league title

Freckleton re-entered professional football in December 2021 when he signed for Sheffield United. Three and a half years at Bramall Lane brought four loan spells rather than a first-team breakthrough. He spent time at Wealdstone, Yeovil Town, and Chesterfield in the National League — the last of those ending with a title win in 2024 — before a full season at Swindon Town gave him his first taste of EFL football.

One particularly painful moment came when a loan at Wealdstone was cut short for him to return to Sheffield United ahead of an FA Cup fifth-round tie against Tottenham Hotspur. "My papers didn't come through. I was very annoyed. I was doing so well. But that's football," he says.

"I'm always grateful for these loans, even if they're bad or good. I would not say a bad word about any of the clubs because they've helped me in my career."

Scotland, a cup, and toppling Celtic

When Sheffield United appointed Ruben Selles as manager in June 2025, Freckleton was told he had no future at the club. He sought the fastest way out. League One interest emerged, but St Mirren manager Stephen Robinson convinced him to head to Scotland instead.

His very first match at St Mirren was away to Celtic — a 1-0 defeat in front of 65,000 supporters. "It was just a crazy experience," Freckleton recalls. "I need to be a part of this."

He became a part of something special. St Mirren reached the Scottish Cup semi-finals and won the Scottish League Cup, beating Celtic 3-1 in the final last December. "Winning the trophy was definitely the best feeling I've had on the pitch," Freckleton says. "We really were underdogs. To come out on top against Celtic in a final was just so surreal."

Living the Champions League dream

That winning feeling against Celtic carried into his new chapter with LASK. Freckleton joined the Austrian club in July 2025 and, just weeks later, came on as a substitute during extra-time as LASK produced a historic comeback — overturning a 4-0 aggregate deficit against Celtic to qualify for the Champions League for the first time in their history.

The draw then handed LASK fixtures against some of Europe's biggest clubs. "The first draw was Real Madrid and then we got drawn as the first team against them," Freckleton says. "I was just like, 'that's completed now. If I can go to the Bernabeu, wow'."

LASK have already faced AEK Athens, Liverpool, and Sporting in the league phase, with Bodo/Glimt, Fenerbahce, Porto, and Real Madrid still to come. Freckleton has been an unused substitute in three of those matches and is targeting a start against Slovan Bratislava.

Representing Jamaica

Freckleton's remarkable year extended beyond club football. The left-footed defender, who is half Jamaican through his father, earned his first three caps for Jamaica during the September and October international break. He made his debut as a substitute against Honduras before starting and providing an assist in subsequent wins over El Salvador and Honduras — his first visit to Jamaica in a decade.

"I was raring to just show the country — my country — my ability," he explains. "I wanted to just help my country win, because I realised how important football was and how different it is when you play for your country compared to club."