JAKE O’Brien bagged his first goal for Everton on Wednesday evening as he continues to make inroads at the Toffees.
That well-taken header secured a point on their visit to Brentford’s Gtech Stadium in west London.
The 6’5″ centre back started out at Cork City before stints at Crystal Palace, Swindon Town, Belgian outfit RWD Molenbeek and Lyon before joining Everton in summer 2024[/caption]
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His girlfriend Sophie shared in February 2024 that they are expecting their first child[/caption]
The first half of the Cork native’s first season with the Merseysiders had looked like he’d made a real misjudgement in joining after proving himself as a weekly starter in Ligue 1 with Lyon.
But Sean Dyche’s sacking has ushered in an upturn in his fortunes as David Moyes quickly took a liking to him – even deploying the giant defender in the unfamiliar role of right-back.
Here, SunSport delves into his life away from the football pitch:
Girlfriend Sophie Lawlor:
Never mind his recent successes on the pitch, the biggest development in his life thus far in 2025 has been finding out that he’s going to become a father.
Just last week the couple revealed their big news in a heartwarming Instagram video.
It depicted Sophie reacting to the initial positive test before O’Brien entered the room and was himself shown the test.
They then share a hug before the video cuts to her at a doctor’s appointment at which she gets a sonogram.
In a further video, they’ve since revealed that their first-born will be a boy.
Dealing with diabetes
One key moment in his life and career was when he was diagnosed with type-1 diabetes at 16.
On World Diabetes Day in November 2024 he recalled how he was diagnosed with the condition around the time he underwent a growth spurt.
He explained: “I was diagnosed with type-1 diabetes when I was 16. I think there was a few weeks around March time when I was ill.
“I was losing a lot of weight, very tired. I was drinking maybe 8 or 9 litres of water a day. I realised that something wasn’t right.
“I went to the doctors and the guy sent me off to hospital and diagnosed me with it.”
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune condition wherein person’s cannot naturally produce insulin to regular blood sugar levels.
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Jake and Sophie have been an item for quite some time[/caption]
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After he lined out against Kylian Mbappe and PSG in the 2024 French Cup final[/caption]
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On a visit to Paris with their cute dog in tow[/caption]
Type 1 diabetes can be diagnosed at any age. About one third of people diagnosed with type 1 diabetes are over 30.
As opposed to type 2 diabetes, those with type 1 are born with it, with the only form of treatment being insulin injections.
Better off now
The Republic of Ireland international added: “My pancreas, basically, doesn’t work. It doesn’t produce insulin.
“It is a genetic thing, I suppose, but in that sense nobody in my family has ever had it so I was the first one to get it.
“It is not the most positive thing but for me it was positive because when I was diagnosed with it at 16 is when things started to click for me.
“I was getting physically bigger, fitter and I think, since having it, I have progressed through the ranks quicker.”
O’Brien sought to dispel the stigma around type 1 diabetes.
He insisted: “Some people over-complicate it and think, ‘you can’t eat this or you can’t eat that’ but I can eat everything and do everything that everyone else can.
“I think it is just counting the carbohydrates in the food I eat, and based on how much I eat is how much I inject insulin into my body.
“For you it just naturally does it, your body does, but for me I have to calculate it.
“Sometimes it’s not perfect and it is time consuming, sometimes, but it’s something you get used to.”
The 23-year-old pointed to former Real Madrid utility player Nacho as a major mainstream footballer to have come forward as having type 1 diabetes.
In 2016, the Spaniard – who now plays for Al-Qadsiah in Saudi Arabia – revealed he had been diagnosed when he was 12.
And O’Brien hopes that him coming forward will lead to other Premier League players doing the same.
