Predominantly a right back, he spent nine seasons as a first-team regular with Leicester[4] before being sold to Sunderland in March 1979 for a fee of £120,000.
Whitworth scored the goal which won the Charity Shield for Leicester in 1971, a year in which the Second Division champions were invited to play the FA Cup runners-up, Liverpool, owing to the European commitments of Arsenal, who had done the Double during the previous season.
[10] Following Don Revie's decision to drop Emlyn Hughes in 1975, Whitworth was given the opportunity to fill the right-back role for the senior England team, which had become something of a problem position.
Whitworth made his debut in a 2–0 friendly win against West Germany on 12 March 1975, and went on to start six of England's next eight games.
Revie gave international debuts to three right backs during 1976, Trevor Cherry, Dave Clement and Phil Neal, and Whitworth was never recalled to the England squad.