James Joseph Bailey (born 18 September 1988) is an English footballer who most recently played for Yeovil Town.
"[6] An impressive pre-season saw Bailey return to the side for the opening fixture of the 2008–09 season, where he started in his now familiar midfield role, as Crewe lost 2–1 to Brighton & Hove Albion.
[7] Although the season was a disappointing one for Crewe, who were relegated to League Two, it was a personal success for Bailey, as he kept his place in the side with a number of mature performances in central midfield alongside Michael O'Connor[4] and earned a new and improved contract until 2011,[8] as he recorded 31 league and cup appearances throughout the campaign, with only injury preventing him appearing in more after he was ruled out for much of the season from January onwards.
[19] Bailey formally completed his move to Derby County on 19 May 2010 for an undisclosed fee and took the number 16 shirt, signing a three-year contract.
[2][20] On this signing, Derby manager Nigel Clough said, "James is a determined midfielder who has been impressive every time we have watched him and we're delighted he has… joined us.
"[2][21] He was placed straight into the first team during the club's 2010–11 pre-season fixtures, as a holding midfielder alongside Robbie Savage in a 4–2–3–1 formation, scoring in a 3–3 draw at AFC Bournemouth.
[24] His first goal came in a 2–2 draw with Queens Park Rangers in a performance which earned him a place in the Championship Team of the Week for 31 August 2010.
[25][26] Bailey was ever-present in the first 18 games of Derby's 2010–11 campaign, playing every minute of every match and kept two consecutive clean sheets on two separate occasions.
[30] However, during a match against Portsmouth on 5 February 2011, Bailey suffered a groin injury, resulting in him being substituted in the 58th minute and was sidelined for a month.
[36] It wasn't until on 26 November 2011 when Bailey returned to the starting line–up against West Ham United and played the whole game, as the club lost 3–1.
[37] He then started in the midfield position for the next two months before struggling to break into the first team, after losing his place to Jeff Hendrick.
[45] Bailey said he was unclear about if he would rejoin the Sky Blues in the January transfer window, stating the Derby and Coventry were in talks over his future.
[49] However, Bailey was unable to find a club in the summer transfer window and in late August he was ruled out for six weeks with a torn knee ligament.
[57] Bailey made his Barnsley debut, playing as a right-midfield position, in a 1–0 loss against Crawley Town in the opening game of the season.
[68] He then played in the first leg of the Canadian Championship Preliminary Round against FC Edmonton and set up the club's first goal of the game, in a 3–0 win.
"[73] On 3 February 2017, Bailey returned to English football to sign for League Two club Carlisle United on a short-term contract until the end of the season.
[75] In a match against Cambridge United on 11 March 2017, Bailey received a straight red card in the 90th minute for "an off the ball incident", as the club lost 3–0.
[77] Despite this, Bailey continued to remain involved in the first team for the club and helped Carlisle reach the League Two play-off semi-finals.
"[85] In a follow–up match against Accrington Stanley, Bailey made amends for the club's performances and set up a goal for Olufela Olomola, who scored twice, in a 3–2 win.
[87] Since making his debut for the club, Bailey quickly became a first team regular for Yeovil Town, playing in the midfield position.
[91] On 1 February 2019, Bailey had his contract with Yeovil terminated by mutual consent on medical grounds having struggled to recover from a serious knee injury.