Steven Fletcher (footballer)
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Steven Kenneth Fletcher (born 26 March 1987) is a professional
footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...
who plays as a striker for
Scottish Premiership The Scottish Premiership, known as the cinch Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is the top division of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL), the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottish ...
club
Dundee United Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the city of Dundee. The club name is usually abbreviated to Dundee United. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1 ...
. Fletcher began his club career with Hibernian, playing in 156
Scottish Premier League The Scottish Premier League (SPL) was the top level league competition for professional football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football' ...
games and scoring 43 goals. English club
Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Bru ...
paid a club record transfer fee of £3 million to sign Fletcher in June 2009. He was their top goalscorer in the 2009–10 season with eight league goals, but the club were relegated from the
Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
. Fletcher was transferred soon afterwards to
Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club's ...
, who also paid a club record fee, of £6.5 million, for his services. He scored 24 goals in 68 appearances for Wolves, but the club were relegated from the Premier League in 2012. Fletcher was then transferred to
Sunderland Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
for £12 million. He played 108 matches and scored 23 goals for them, also spending half a season on loan at French club
Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...
in 2016. He then joined
Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot of ...
. Fletcher spent four seasons at Hillsborough scoring 38 goals. After two seasons with
Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...
, Fletcher signed for Dundee United in July 2022. Fletcher played for the Scotland under-19 team that finished runners up to
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...
in the 2006 European Championship. He has since represented
Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
at full international level, and in 2015 became the first player since 1969 to score a hat-trick for Scotland.


Early life

Fletcher, who was born in
Shrewsbury Shrewsbury ( , also ) is a market town, civil parish, and the county town of Shropshire, England, on the River Severn, north-west of London; at the 2021 census, it had a population of 76,782. The town's name can be pronounced as either 'Sh ...
, Shropshire, spent much of his early years living on
British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
bases in England and Germany where his Liverpudlian
soldier A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a conscripted or volunteer enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, or an officer. Etymology The word ''soldier'' derives from the Middle English word , from Old French ...
father, Kenny Fletcher was based. His father died from cancer aged 37 when Fletcher was aged only 10, prompting his Scottish mother, Mary, to relocate him and his younger sister Bree to
Hamilton, South Lanarkshire Hamilton ( sco, Hamiltoun; gd, Baile Hamaltan ) is a large town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. It serves as the main administrative centre of the South Lanarkshire council area. It sits south-east of Glasgow, south-west of Edinburgh and nort ...
to be closer to her family. Hibernian youth coach John Park, also from Hamilton, spotted his footballing talent and the youngster joined the
Leith Leith (; gd, Lìte) is a port area in the north of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith. In 2021, it was ranked by '' Time Out'' as one of the top five neighbourhoods to live in the world. The earliest ...
club's youth network aged 13. He was selected for the
Lanarkshire Lanarkshire, also called the County of Lanark ( gd, Siorrachd Lannraig; sco, Lanrikshire), is a historic county, lieutenancy area and registration county in the central Lowlands of Scotland. Lanarkshire is the most populous county in Scotlan ...
Schools XI in 2002 while a pupil at
Earnock High School Earnock High School in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire served students in and around the Earnock area from 1957 to 2007. The school was closed in June 2007 and merged with Blantyre High to form Calderside Academy. A housing development, ''Earnock Glen' ...
.


Club career


Hibernian

Fletcher made his debut for Hibs on 10 April 2004, replacing
Garry O'Connor Garry Lawrence John O'Connor (born 7 May 1983) is a Scottish former professional footballer. He played for Hibernian, Peterhead, Lokomotiv Moscow, Barnsley, Tom Tomsk, Birmingham City, Greenock Morton and represented Scotland. O'Connor began ...
for the final eight minutes in a 3–0
Scottish Premier League The Scottish Premier League (SPL) was the top level league competition for professional football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football' ...
win over
Kilmarnock Kilmarnock (, sco, Kilmaurnock; gd, Cill Mheàrnaig (IPA: ʰʲɪʎˈveaːɾnəkʲ, "Marnock's church") is a large town and former burgh in East Ayrshire, Scotland and is the administrative centre of East Ayrshire, East Ayrshire Council. ...
at
Easter Road Easter Road is a football stadium located in the Leith area of Edinburgh, Scotland, which is the home ground of Scottish Premiership club Hibernian (Hibs). The stadium currently has an all-seated capacity of , which makes it the fifth-larges ...
. He totalled five appearances that season, making his first start on 15 May in the final fixture, a 4–1 loss at
Livingston Livingston may refer to: Businesses * Livingston Energy Flight, an Italian airline (2003–2010) * Livingston Compagnia Aerea, an Italian airline (2011–2014), also known as Livingston Airline * Livingston International, a North American custom ...
. He became a first team regular in the 2004–05 season, playing 26 times and scoring five goals. His first goal came on 16 October, set up by O'Connor to conclude a 2–0 home win over
Dundee United Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the city of Dundee. The club name is usually abbreviated to Dundee United. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1 ...
. On 19 March, as a 61st-minute substitute for
Scott Brown Scott Brown may refer to: Sportsmen *Scott Brown (American football), American college football coach of Kentucky State * Scott Brown (baseball) (born 1956), former Major League Baseball pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds *Scott Brown (footballer, bor ...
, he scored twice in a 4–1 win at
Dunfermline Athletic Dunfermline Athletic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the city of Dunfermline, Fife. Founded in 1885, the club currently play in Scottish League One after being relegated from the 2021–22 Scottish Championship. Dunfermline ...
, also assisting one of
Derek Riordan Derek George Riordan (born 16 January 1983) is a Scottish professional footballer who plays as a striker. He has been capped three times by the Scotland national team. Riordan started his career with Hibernian in 2001 and had a brief spell o ...
's brace. In the 2005–06 season, Fletcher scored 10 goals in just 1,966 minutes on the pitch, which approximated to a goal every other game. He took on a more prominent role in the 2006–07 season after Hibs had sold star strikers O'Connor and
Derek Riordan Derek George Riordan (born 16 January 1983) is a Scottish professional footballer who plays as a striker. He has been capped three times by the Scotland national team. Riordan started his career with Hibernian in 2001 and had a brief spell o ...
. Fletcher scored in Hibernian's 5–0
Intertoto Cup The UEFA Intertoto Cup (from la, Inter, 'between' + german: toto, 'betting pool'),Most precisely, from (football pool); cf. often abbreviated and more known in the German-speaking world as UI Cup and originally called the International Foot ...
win over
Dinaburg Daugavpils (; russian: Двинск; ltg, Daugpiļs ; german: Dünaburg, ; pl, Dyneburg; see other names) is a state city in south-eastern Latvia, located on the banks of the Daugava River, from which the city gets its name. The parts of the c ...
and played regularly during the league season. The highlight of the season for Fletcher and Hibs was when he scored two goals in the 5–1 win over
Kilmarnock Kilmarnock (, sco, Kilmaurnock; gd, Cill Mheàrnaig (IPA: ʰʲɪʎˈveaːɾnəkʲ, "Marnock's church") is a large town and former burgh in East Ayrshire, Scotland and is the administrative centre of East Ayrshire, East Ayrshire Council. ...
in the 2007 League Cup Final. Fletcher became Hibs' main striker during the 2007–08 season. He scored his first professional
hat-trick A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wic ...
in a 4–2 win over Gretna and won the Scottish Football Writers' Young Player of the Year Award.Fletcher is writers' young pick
BBC Sport, 7 May 2008
Fletcher was touted for a move to
Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...
due to Madrid's scouts watching him. In November 2008 it was reported that
Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...
was interested in signing Fletcher and the '' Daily Record'' reported on 1 January 2009 that
Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...
were "preparing" a £2.5 million offer. Towards the end of the January transfer window, Hibs rejected an approach from
Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language * Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Fo ...
. Fletcher then publicly pleaded for Hibs to agree a deal with Celtic, arguing "for the development of my career it is time to move to a bigger club", but Hibs refused to sell him. Fletcher finished the season by being voted the Scottish Football Writers Young Player of the Season again.


Burnley

On 26 June 2009,
Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Bru ...
offered £2.75 million for Fletcher. A few days later, Hibs accepted an offer of £3 million plus incentives based on appearances for Burnley. Fletcher completed the move when he agreed a four-year contract with the
Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...
club, who paid a club record transfer fee to obtain his services. After the move was completed, former Hibs striker Keith Wright questioned whether Fletcher was ready to play in the
Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
. His first competitive goals for Burnley came when he scored a brace in a 2–1
League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...
win at
Hartlepool United Hartlepool United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Hartlepool, County Durham, England. The team competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. They were founded in 1908 as Hartle ...
on 25 August. He scored his first goal in the Premier League on 3 October, against
Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. Since 2011, the first te ...
. Fletcher was Burnley's top goalscorer during the 2009–10 season, but the club were relegated from the Premier League. He was named Burnley Players' Player of the year for the season.


Wolverhampton Wanderers

After Burnley were relegated to the
Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...
, Fletcher signed a four-year contract, with the option of a fifth year, with Premier League side
Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club's ...
on 3 June 2010. He was transferred for around £6.5 million, which matched the Wolves club record. Fletcher scored on his debut for Wolves, winning 2–1 against
Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...
on the opening day of the season at Molineux. He scored five goals in five league games for the club near the end of the season, including two against
West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pla ...
at Molineux in the
Black Country derby The Black Country derby is the local derby between English football teams West Bromwich Albion and Wolverhampton Wanderers, apart in the Black Country of the West Midlands. The most successful side in the Black Country derby is West Bromwich Al ...
, earning his side a 3–1 win over their local rivals and getting them out of the bottom three. Fletcher began the
2011–12 Premier League The 2011–12 Premier League (known as the Barclays Premier League for sponsorship reasons) was the 20th season of the Premier League since its establishment in 1992. The season began on 13 August 2011 and ended on 13 May 2012 with Manchester Ci ...
with a headed goal in the opening day victory against Blackburn. Despite Fletcher scoring 12 goals during the league season, Wolves were relegated from the Premier League. Fletcher submitted a transfer request on 8 August 2012, after media reports linked Sunderland with the player.


Sunderland

On 22 August 2012, Wolves accepted an offer from
Sunderland Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
of £12 million. Fletcher signed a four-year contract with Sunderland. He made his first appearance for Sunderland in a 2–0 win against
Football League Two The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football Lea ...
club
Morecambe Morecambe ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the City of Lancaster district in Lancashire, England. It is in Morecambe Bay on the Irish Sea. Name The first use of the name was by John Whitaker in his ''History of Manchester'' (1771), w ...
in the
Football League Cup The EFL Cup (referred to historically, and colloquially, as the League Cup), currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout competition and major trophy in men's domestic football in England. Organised by the ...
. Fletcher then scored his first two goals in his
Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
debut for Sunderland, a 2–2 draw at
Swansea City Swansea City Association Football Club (; cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Cymdeithas Dinas Abertawe) is a professional football club based in Swansea, Wales that plays in the Championship, the second tier of English football. Swansea have played their ho ...
. He also scored once in each of his next three league matches, against
Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
,
West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...
and
Wigan Athletic Wigan Athletic Football Club () is an English professional association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1932, ...
. He won the
Premier League Player of the Month The Premier League Player of the Month is an association football award that recognises the best adjudged Premier League player each month of the season. The winner is chosen by a combination of an online public vote, which contributes to 10 ...
award for September. After a run of games without a win, an injury sustained playing for Scotland in March 2013 ruled Fletcher out for the rest of the 2012–13 season. Fletcher was handed the number 9 shirt for the 2013–14 season, and returned to the bench for a 4–2 League Cup win against
Milton Keynes Dons Milton Keynes Dons Football Club (), usually abbreviated to MK Dons, is a professional association football club based in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the third tier of the English football league system. The ...
. Upon his Premier League return after a sustained period of time out injured, he came off the bench to score in the 3–1 defeat against
Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building * ...
on 31 August. On 27 September, Fletcher was ruled out for "four to six" weeks, with a shoulder injury; the result of a heavy fall during the previous week's match against West Brom. Fletcher scored his second goal of the season on 27 October 2013, netting the first in a 2–1 win against local rivals Newcastle United. It was also Sunderland's first win of the season. On 28 December 2013, Fletcher scored his third goal of the season, in a 2–2 draw against
Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Caerdydd) is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1899 as R ...
. He did not score again in the 2013–14 season, during which Sunderland reached the League Cup final and produced a late run of form to avoid relegation. On 4 October 2014, Fletcher netted twice and assisted
Connor Wickham Connor Neil Ralph Wickham (born 31 March 1993) is an English professional footballer who plays as forward. He is currently a free agent. He has previously represented Ipswich Town, Sunderland, Sheffield Wednesday, Leeds United, Crystal Palace ...
in a 3–1 win against
Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...
. Fletcher was at the double again almost a month later, when he netted twice against
Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building * ...
at
Selhurst Park Selhurst Park is a football stadium in Selhurst in the London Borough of Croydon which is the home ground of Premier League side Crystal Palace. The stadium was designed by Archibald Leitch and opened in 1924. It has hosted international footba ...
. His fifth goal of the season came on the last day of the season, on 24 May 2015, where he scored a header to open the scoring in a 1–3 defeat away to
Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
. On 25 October 2015, Fletcher scored the third and final goal of the match in the
Tyne–Wear derby The Tyne–Wear derby, also known as the North East derby, is a local derby between the association football clubs Sunderland A.F.C., Sunderland and Newcastle United F.C., Newcastle United. The derby is an inter-city rivalry in North East Englan ...
against arch-rivals
Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...
in a 3–0 win.


Marseille (loan)

On 1 February 2016, Fletcher joined
Ligue 1 Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...
side
Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...
on loan until the end of the season. He made his debut for the club six days later, coming on as a second-half substitute for
Michy Batshuayi Michy Batshuayi-Atunga (born 2 October 1993) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Süper Lig club Fenerbahçe and the Belgium national team. Batshuayi began his professional career at Standard Liège in 2011, scorin ...
in a 2–1 loss to rivals
Paris Saint-Germain Paris Saint-Germain Football Club (), commonly referred to as Paris Saint-Germain, Paris, Paris SG or simply PSG is a professional football club based in Paris, France. They compete in Ligue 1, the top division of French football. As Fr ...
in ''Le Classique'' at the
Stade Vélodrome The Stade Vélodrome (; oc, Estadi Velodròm, ), known as the Orange Vélodrome for sponsorship reasons, is a multi-purpose stadium in Marseille, France. It is home to the Olympique de Marseille football club of Ligue 1 since it opened in 1937, ...
. On 11 February, Fletcher made his full debut in a 2–0
Coupe de France The Coupe de France, formerly known as the Coupe Charles Simon, is the premier knockout cup competition in French football organized by the French Football Federation (FFF). It was first held in 1917 and is open to all amateur and profession ...
win at fourth-tier amateur side
Trélissac Trélissac (; oc, Trelhissac) is a commune in the Dordogne department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France. Population See also *Communes of the Dordogne department The following is a list of the 503 communes of the Dordogne depart ...
, setting up
Romain Alessandrini Romain Alessandrini (born 3 April 1989) is a French footballer who plays as a winger for Chinese Super League club Shenzhen. Club career Alessandrini spent six years of his youth career at Marseille. In 2005, he moved to Gueugnon making his de ...
for the first goal before netting himself in the 87th minute. Fletcher scored his first league goal for ''l'OM'' on 6 March, equalising in a 1–1 home draw against
Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Par ...
, and added his only other strike for them on 14 May to do the same away to
Troyes Troyes () is a commune and the capital of the department of Aube in the Grand Est region of north-central France. It is located on the Seine river about south-east of Paris. Troyes is situated within the Champagne wine region and is near to ...
in the last game of the season, also winning a penalty that he took himself and was saved by
Matthieu Dreyer Matthieu Dreyer (born 20 March 1989) is a French professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Saint-Étienne. Club career Dreyer began his career in Alsace playing for local club AS Ernolsheim/Bruche. In 2003, he moved to the fa ...
. A week later he started in the
2016 Coupe de France Final The 2016 Coupe de France Final decided the winner of the 2015–16 Coupe de France, the 99th season of France's all-main-divisions football cup. It took place on 21 May at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, Paris. In the final, Olympique ...
at the
Stade de France The Stade de France (, ) is the national stadium of France, located just north of Paris in the commune of Saint-Denis. Its seating capacity of 80,698 makes it the sixth-largest stadium in Europe. The stadium is used by the France national foot ...
, a 4–2 loss to PSG.


Sheffield Wednesday

Following his release from Sunderland, Fletcher joined
Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot of ...
on a free transfer on 1 July 2016, signing a four-year contract. He made his
EFL Championship The English Football League Championship (often referred to as the Championship for short or the Sky Bet Championship for sponsorship purposes) is the highest division of the English Football League (EFL) and second-highest overall in the E ...
debut on 7 August, starting in a 1–0 home victory against Aston Villa, in which he was substituted in the first half due to a head injury from a collision with
Tommy Elphick Tommy Elphick (born 7 September 1987) is an English former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Defender (association football)#Centre-back, centre-back and currently an assistant coach at former club, AFC Bournemouth. ...
. On 10 September, he scored his first goal for the Owls to open a 2–1 win over Wigan at Hillsborough. On 20 January 2017, substitute Fletcher was one of three players sent off in a 2–1 loss at
Brighton & Hove Albion Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club (), commonly referred to simply as Brighton, is an English professional football club based in the city of Brighton and Hove. They compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league ...
, for headbutting Dale Stephens. He was punished with a three-match suspension. He scored both goals on 4 April as Wednesday won at neighbours
Rotherham United Rotherham United Football Club, nicknamed The Millers, is a professional football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The club's colours were initially yellow and black, but changed to red and white around 1 ...
, his first strikes since the previous December. Wednesday made the play-offs and Fletcher scored the goal that gave them the lead in the semi-final against fellow
Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...
team
Huddersfield Town Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The team have played home games at the Kirklees Stadium since moving from Leeds Road in 1994. The ...
, but was substituted before they lost on penalties. On 24 June 2020, it was announced that he had declined a new contract and would be leaving the club on the 30 June.


Stoke City

On 14 August 2020, it was announced that Fletcher had signed a contract with
Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...
joining ex Sheffield Wednesday team mate Morgan Fox. He scored his first goal for Stoke in a 2–0 win against
Luton Town Luton Town Football Club () is a professional association football club based in the town of Luton, Bedfordshire, England, that competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1885, it is nicknam ...
on 17 October 2020. Fletcher struggled with injury problems in
2020–21 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen b ...
which prevented him from completing matches. Fletcher scored nine goals in 42 appearances as Stoke finished in 14th position. In the 2021–22 season Fletcher was mainly used as a substitute by Michael O'Neill. Fletcher made 40 appearances, scoring three goals which came in back to back games against
Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the North West England, northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the Borough of Blackpool, borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, betw ...
and
Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Caerdydd) is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1899 as R ...
. Fletcher was released by Stoke at the end of the season.


Dundee United

Fletcher signed for
Dundee United Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the city of Dundee. The club name is usually abbreviated to Dundee United. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1 ...
on a two-year contract in July 2022.


International career

Fletcher was eligible to represent either England, his birthplace and the nation of his father, or Scotland, his mother's home country and his place of residence since the age of 10. Fletcher was the top scorer in the Scotland under-19 team which reached the final of the 2006 European Championship, losing to
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...
. Following the achievements of the under–19 side, Fletcher was named by ''
The Scotsman ''The Scotsman'' is a Scottish compact newspaper and daily news website headquartered in Edinburgh. First established as a radical political paper in 1817, it began daily publication in 1855 and remained a broadsheet until August 2004. Its par ...
'' newspaper as one of the "ten to watch" in
Scottish sport Sport plays a central role in Scottish culture. The temperate, oceanic climate has played a key part in the evolution of sport in Scotland, with all-weather sports like association football and golf dominating the national sporting consciousne ...
during 2007. Fletcher made his debut for Scotland under–21s in the 2004–05 season. Fletcher was named in the
Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
squad for the first time in March 2008, for a
friendly match An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, a scrimmage, a demonstration, a preseason game, a warmup match, or a preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sporting event whose prize money and impact on the player's or ...
against
Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...
. Fletcher started the game and provided the assist for
Kenny Miller Kenneth Miller (born 23 December 1979) is a Scottish professional football coach and former player. Miller, who played as a striker, is one of only five post-war players to have played for both Rangers and Celtic. Miller began his career at ...
to score the equalising goal in a 1–1 draw. He was substituted at half-time due to injury. He was dropped back to the under–21 team in September 2008, but was immediately recalled to the full squad after scoring twice against Slovenia under–21s. Fletcher scored his first full international goal in a 2–1 win against
Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...
on 1 April 2009. After being left out of Euro 2012 qualification matches against
Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
and
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...
, Fletcher publicly criticised head coach
Craig Levein Craig William Levein (born 22 October 1964) is a Scottish professional football manager and former player. He is currently a full-time advisor to the board of directors at Highland Football League club Brechin City. During his playing career ...
. Fletcher was then left out of the next Scotland squad, although Levein claimed that this was because Fletcher had not been playing regularly for his club side. When Levein attempted to select him for the squad in February 2011, Fletcher sent a text message stating that he did not want to join the squad. The dispute continued through the remainder of 2011, as Levein insisted that Fletcher would have to contact him first if he wanted to return to the squad. His club manager,
Mick McCarthy Michael Joseph McCarthy (born 7 February 1959) is a professional football manager, pundit, and former player. He was last in charge of EFL Championship club Cardiff City. McCarthy began his playing career at Barnsley in 1977, and he later had ...
, said in November 2011 that Fletcher wanted to play for Scotland and that the situation should be resolved. Near the end of the 2011–12 season, Levein advised the Scottish media that he would not pick Fletcher again. Following Fletcher's £12 million move to
Sunderland Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
in August 2012, Levein re-iterated that Fletcher would not feature for Scotland again whilst he was manager. Levein also criticised the transfer fee paid by Sunderland as "quite obscene" and claimed that Fletcher had made no effort to rejoin the national squad. The dispute came into further focus after Fletcher performed well for Sunderland and Scotland only scored once in their first two
2014 FIFA World Cup qualification The 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification was a series of tournaments organised by the six FIFA#Structure, FIFA confederations. The 2014 FIFA World Cup featured 32 teams, with one place reserved for the host nation, Brazil national football team, Bra ...
matches. Fletcher stated on his Twitter account that he would be willing to play for Scotland. His agent claimed that Fletcher had made an attempt to reconcile with Levein in September 2011, but nobody had provided details of how they could meet. On 2 October 2012, Fletcher was recalled to the Scotland squad for their World Cup qualifiers with
Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
and
Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
. Fletcher scored a hat-trick for Scotland in a 6–1 European qualifier victory over
Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...
at
Hampden Park Hampden Park (Scottish Gaelic: ''Pàirc Hampden''), often referred to as Hampden, is a football stadium in the Mount Florida area of Glasgow, Scotland. The -capacity venue serves as the national stadium of football in Scotland. It is the no ...
on 29 March 2015, becoming the first player to score three in a match for the country since
Colin Stein Colin Anderson Stein (born 10 May 1947) is a Scottish former footballer, who played for Hibernian, Rangers (two spells), Coventry City and Kilmarnock. Stein was part of the Rangers team that won the 1971–72 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, and he sco ...
scored four against
Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...
in 1969. On 11 October, away to the same opposition with both teams already eliminated, he scored another treble in a 6–0 victory. He became the fifth player to score more than one hat-trick for Scotland, with the others being
RS McColl RS McColl, colloquially known as McColl's, is a Scottish newsagent company named after Robert Smyth McColl, who was a professional footballer. It was founded in 1901 by McColl and his brother Tom. RS McColl is a trading name of McColl's, a s ...
(3), Robert Hamilton (2),
Hughie Gallacher Hugh Kilpatrick Gallacher (2 February 1903 – 11 June 1957) was a Scottish football player in the 1920s and 1930s. In 624 senior games, Gallacher scored 463 goals, playing senior league football for Airdrieonians, Newcastle United, Chelsea, ...
(3) and
Denis Law Denis Law (born 24 February 1940) is a Scottish former footballer who played as a forward. His career as a football player began at Second Division Huddersfield Town in 1956. After four years at Huddersfield, he was signed by Manchester City ...
(3).


Personal life

In May 2016, Fletcher was fined for not disclosing that his wife was the driver when his car was caught speeding on the A66 in
Appleby-in-Westmorland Appleby-in-Westmorland is a market town and civil parish in the Eden District of Cumbria, England, with a population of 3,048 at the 2011 Census. Crossed by the River Eden, Appleby was the county town of the historic county of Westmorland. I ...
.
Carlisle Carlisle ( , ; from xcb, Caer Luel) is a city that lies within the Northern England, Northern English county of Cumbria, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, Scottish border at the confluence of the rivers River Eden, Cumbria, Eden, River C ...
magistrates fined him £1,000, in addition to £620 costs and a £100 surcharge, and six points on his driving licence.


Career statistics


Club


International

:''Scores and results list Scotland's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Fletcher goal''.


Honours

Hibernian *
Scottish League Cup The Scottish League Cup (also known as the Viaplay Cup for sponsorship reasons) is a football competition open to all Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) clubs. First held in 1946–47, it is the oldest national League Cup in existen ...
: 2006–07 Sunderland *
Football League Cup The EFL Cup (referred to historically, and colloquially, as the League Cup), currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout competition and major trophy in men's domestic football in England. Organised by the ...
runner-up: 2013–14 Marseille *
Coupe de France The Coupe de France, formerly known as the Coupe Charles Simon, is the premier knockout cup competition in French football organized by the French Football Federation (FFF). It was first held in 1917 and is open to all amateur and profession ...
runner-up: 2015–16 Individual *
SFWA Young Player of the Year The Scottish Football Writers' Association Young Player of the Year (often called the SFWA Young Player of the Year, or simply the Scottish Young Player of the Year) award is given to the footballer in the Scottish football league system, who is se ...
: 2007–08, 2008–09 * Scottish Premier League Young Player of the Month: October 2004, August 2007, February 2008, October 2008, March 2009 *
Premier League Player of the Month The Premier League Player of the Month is an association football award that recognises the best adjudged Premier League player each month of the season. The winner is chosen by a combination of an online public vote, which contributes to 10 ...
: September 2012


See also

*
List of Scotland international footballers born outside Scotland This is a list of players who have played international football for the Scotland national football team and who were born outside Scotland. For the purposes of international football, the global governing body FIFA considers Scotland, England, Wa ...


References


External links

* * *
Steven Fletcher
at London Hearts {{DEFAULTSORT:Fletcher, Steven 1987 births Living people Sportspeople from Shrewsbury Anglo-Scots Association football forwards Scottish footballers Scottish Premier League players Premier League players Hibernian F.C. players Burnley F.C. players Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. players Sunderland A.F.C. players Olympique de Marseille players Sheffield Wednesday F.C. players Stoke City F.C. players Scotland under-21 international footballers Scotland international footballers Scotland B international footballers Scottish expatriate footballers Ligue 1 players Expatriate footballers in France Scottish expatriate sportspeople in France English Football League players Footballers from Hamilton, South Lanarkshire Dundee United F.C. players Scottish Professional Football League players