Lee McCulloch

Lee McCulloch
McCulloch playing for Rangers in 2010
Personal information
Full name Lee Henry McCulloch[1]
Date of birth (1978-05-14) 14 May 1978 (age 46)[1]
Place of birth Bellshill, Scotland
Height 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)[2]
Position(s) Centre-back, midfielder, winger, striker[1]
Youth career
Jerviston Boys Club[3]
1991–1993 Rangers SABC[4]
1993–1994 Motherwell
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1994–2001 Motherwell 124 (21)
1994 → Cumbernauld United (loan)
1995 → Carluke Rovers (loan)
2001–2007 Wigan Athletic 224 (44)
2007–2015 Rangers 209 (52)
2015–2016 Kilmarnock 1 (0)
Total 558 (117)
International career
2003 Scotland B 1 (0)
2004–2010 Scotland 18 (1)
Managerial career
2016 Kilmarnock (caretaker)
2017 Kilmarnock
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Lee Henry McCulloch (born 14 May 1978) is a Scottish professional football coach and former player who most recently served as assistant manager of Scottish Premiership club Heart of Midlothian.

McCulloch was capped on eighteen occasions by the Scotland national football team. At club level, he played for Motherwell, Wigan Athletic, Rangers and Kilmarnock. Towards the end of his playing career, McCulloch was appointed a coach at Kilmarnock. He was appointed interim manager in January 2016[5] and February 2017.[6] He was appointed manager on a permanent basis in June 2017, but left in September 2017.

He is a prime example of a utility player in football, having played in multiple outfield positions, from centre-back, defensive midfielder and striker at Rangers to attacking midfielder and winger at Wigan.

In January 2019, McCulloch joined Dundee United as strikers' coach, before being promoted to assistant coach in August 2019. In August 2020, he joined Heart of Midlothian as assistant manager, a position he held until April 2023.

Club career

[edit]

Motherwell

[edit]

McCulloch started his career as a forward at hometown club Motherwell,[7] graduating from their youth system having previously played at Rangers SABC (a boys' team affiliated to Rangers) alongside Barry Ferguson. Upon recovering from a broken ankle suffered during a loan spell with Carluke Rovers,[3] McCulloch had an early experience of European football in the 1995–96 UEFA Cup[7] under manager Alex McLeish, and went on to score 27 goals in 147 appearances for the Steelmen after making his debut against Raith Rovers on 24 August 1996.[8] He scored his first and second goals in a league match against Hibernian on 31 January 1998.[9]

After netting 12 and nine goals in consecutive seasons for Motherwell, along with some impressive performances, other clubs began to take notice of the young striker.

Wigan Athletic

[edit]

McCulloch signed for Wigan Athletic in March 2001 for £700,000,[10] (a then club signing record) on the same day as Motherwell teammate Steve McMillan.[10] Wigan at this point were plying their trade in the third tier of English football, but were strongly ambitious, and saw the young Scotsmen as part of their long-term plans. McCulloch made his debut against Swindon Town on 3 March 2001[11] and scored his first goal for the club four weeks later, in a 2–1 win away to Wycombe Wanderers.[12]

During his English league career, McCulloch found himself increasingly operating in a left midfield role, and this is the position he mainly played in during Wigan's first season in the Premier League in 2005–06. He weighed in with five league goals in thirty appearances, helping Wigan to a 10th-place finish, and appeared as a substitute in the 2006 League Cup final.[13]

In January 2007, McCulloch was the subject of a £750,000 bid by Rangers. It was turned down by Wigan and labelled "derisory" by manager Paul Jewell.[14] In May 2007, McCulloch told BBC Sport that he would relish the opportunity to play for Rangers, and the new manager at Wigan Athletic Chris Hutchings advised him that he may leave to move back to Scotland.[15] On 23 June, Rangers had a bid of £1.5m rejected with Wigan said to want £2.5m for McCulloch, who had scored 46 goals in 241 matches for them.

Rangers

[edit]

On 11 July 2007, Rangers signed McCulloch on a four-year deal with a transfer fee of £2.25m.[16] McCulloch started his Rangers career with a goal on his debut in a 2–0 victory over FK Zeta on 31 July 2007.[17] On 2 October 2007 in the 2007–08 UEFA Champions League, he scored the first goal, a header from a corner by DaMarcus Beasley in Rangers' 3–0 victory at the Stade de Gerland against Lyon.[18]

On 23 December in a match with Aberdeen, McCulloch was sent off after 37 minutes after jumping at Aberdeen's Scott Severin as a mass brawl started, after Aberdeen's Chris Clark had scythed down Rangers defender Alan Hutton. McCulloch was the only player to be dismissed in the heated match. Later that season McCulloch played in the 2008 UEFA Cup Final, the 2008 Scottish League Cup Final and the 2008 Scottish Cup Final. Rangers lost the UEFA Cup Final[19] but won a domestic cup double.

In his second season at Ibrox, McCulloch was again plagued with injuries. However, he did also manage to play for the club at central defence and as a defensive midfielder. In the first game of the 2009–10 season McCulloch scored a long range goal against Falkirk in a 4–1 win. The following match he scored his second goal of the season against Hearts: a header from a free kick that equalised for Rangers before Kris Boyd scored the winner in the 89th minute. On 3 January 2010 in the second Old Firm game of the season, McCulloch scored a header from a corner to tie the game 1–1. This was McCulloch's first ever Old Firm goal. McCulloch became a regular in central midfield as of 2009–10 season.

On 12 August 2010, Rangers announced that McCulloch had signed a two-year contract extension, keeping him at the club until 2013.[20] His first game of the 2010–11 season came against St. Johnstone in which he set up the winner. McCulloch then went on to feature 27 times until it was revealed, after limping off against Hearts, he would require surgery to cure a cyst on his knee joint.[21] McCulloch's versatility saw him play in attack, midfield and defence, and he hit a particularly good vein of form as a powerful striker as Rangers threadbare squad put together a decent run of results following the club's entry into administration. His commitment to the cause was never under question, and he made it clear from the outset that no matter what happened to the club, he would be staying at Ibrox. The business and assets of Rangers, including player registrations, were purchased by a brand new company led by Charles Green.[22] While many players opted out of joining the new company, McCulloch was one of the few senior players who accepted the transfer.[22] Rangers entered the Scottish Football League Third Division, the fourth tier of the Scottish football league system. He scored in extra time to give Rangers a 2–1 victory against Brechin City in the Scottish Challenge Cup on 29 July 2012. McCulloch was given the captaincy on 1 September 2012 after the departure of Carlos Bocanegra to Racing Santander on a season-long loan[23] and on 31 October, he signed a contract extension with Rangers committing him until 2015.[24]

On 12 March 2014, McCulloch scored a hat trick against Airdrieonians in a 3–0 win that clinched the League One championship.[25] McCulloch was inducted into the Rangers Hall of Fame in March 2014, along with former Rangers players Nacho Novo and Fernando Ricksen.[26] His first goal this season was in the Scottish Challenge Cup against Clyde that they won 8–1 and during this game he scored twice. His first league goal was in a 4–1 victory over Dumbarton, while first booking was in the Scottish Challenge Cup against Alloa Athletic. In December 2014, McCulloch was appointed player/coach for the Rangers first team after manager Ally McCoist was placed on gardening leave.[27] In a 2–2 draw against Falkirk near the end of the season, McCulloch was jeered by some of the Rangers support after he had made an error leading to a goal for Falkirk.[28] In July 2015, McCulloch left Rangers at the end of his contract. McCulloch said after leaving Rangers that the 2014–15 season had been his worst in football, with the team failing to gain promotion and off-field issues affecting performances.[29] He also said that he had wanted to comment publicly on the club's problems, but was ordered not to by the club hierarchy.[29]

Kilmarnock

[edit]

McCulloch signed for Kilmarnock as a player/coach in July 2015.[30] He said after joining Kilmarnock that although he had registered as a player, he did not expect to play many games for the club and that his main responsibility would be to develop younger players.[29] He made one appearance in total that season, starting in a league match against Ross County, being replaced after forty-one minutes.[31]

International career

[edit]

McCulloch earned his first international call-up to the Scotland national side in 2004, under the then manager Berti Vogts, and made his debut as a late substitute in a 1–1 draw with Moldova,[32] a match which transpired to be Vogts' last match as manager. After the appointment of Walter Smith in 2004, he featured in the squad intermittently. He was involved in Smith's first three matches as manager against Italy, Moldova and Belarus and was included in the Kirin Cup matches against Bulgaria and Japan. He played in Scotland's famous 1–0 win over France in October 2006[33] and then in the equally famous reverse fixture, which Scotland also won 1–0.[34]

He scored his first international goal in Scotland's Euro 2008 qualifying win over Ukraine.[35] It was the second goal in a 3–1 victory at Hampden Park in October 2007. McCulloch retired from international football on 8 September 2008 as he wanted to concentrate on his club commitments.[36] McCulloch was recalled to the national team following the appointment of Craig Levein and he made his first appearance since 2008 in a qualifier against Lithuania in September 2010.[37]

Coaching career

[edit]

Kilmarnock

[edit]

McCulloch was appointed Kilmarnock manager on an interim basis after Gary Locke resigned on 30 January 2016,[5] managing two matches; a goalless draw with his former side Rangers in the Scottish Cup,[38] and a 2–0 win over Motherwell in the league.[39] He returned to his coaching duties after Lee Clark was appointed on a permanent basis in February 2016.[40]

McCulloch and Peter Leven were put in temporary charge of the first team in February 2017, when Clark left Kilmarnock to manage Bury.[6] He continued in interim charge until the end of the 2016–17 season, as Kilmarnock finished eighth in the Premiership. McCulloch was appointed Kilmarnock manager on a permanent basis on 5 June 2017.[41] After the team failed to win any of their first eight league matches in 2017–18, McCulloch left Kilmarnock on 1 October 2017.[42]

Post-Kilmarnock

[edit]

McCulloch was appointed assistant manager of Polish club Lechia Gdańsk in January 2018.[43] He became assistant to Adam Owen, who had been a fitness coach at Rangers while McCulloch played for them.[43] He left his position with Lechia Gdańsk after the sacking of Owen seven weeks later.[44]

In January 2019, he was appointed strikers' coach at Dundee United under the management of Robbie Neilson,[45] before being promoted to joint assistant head coach alongside Gordon Forrest in June 2019.[46] In August 2020, after Neilson's appointment as manager, he was appointed assistant manager at Heart of Midlothian.[47] McCulloch left Hearts in April 2023, following the departure of Robbie Neilson.[48]

Career statistics

[edit]

Club

[edit]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup League cup Other[a] Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Motherwell 1995–96 Scottish Premier Division 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 3 0
1996–97 Scottish Premier Division 15 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 18 0
1997–98 Scottish Premier Division 24 2 4 0 2 0 0 0 30 2
1998–99 Scottish Premier League 27 3 3 1 2 0 0 0 32 4
1999–2000 Scottish Premier League 30 9 4 2 1 1 0 0 35 12
2000–01 Scottish Premier League 26 7 1 1 2 1 0 0 29 9
Total 124 21 15 4 7 2 1 0 147 27
Wigan Athletic 2000–01 English Second Division 10 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 11 3
2001–02 English Second Division 34 6 1 0 0 0 1 0 36 6
2002–03 English Second Division 38 6 1 0 2 0 0 0 41 6
2003–04 English First Division 41 6 1 0 3 1 0 0 45 7
2004–05 English Championship 42 14 0 0 1 0 0 0 43 14
2005–06 English Premier League 30 5 1 0 4 0 0 0 35 5
2006–07 English Premier League 29 4 1 1 0 0 0 0 30 5
Total 224 44 5 1 10 1 2 0 241 46
Rangers 2007–08 Scottish Premier League 22 3 6 2 3 0 15 2 46 7
2008–09 Scottish Premier League 12 0 4 0 2 0 2 0 20 0
2009–10 Scottish Premier League 34 5 4 0 3 1 6 1 47 7
2010–11 Scottish Premier League 21 0 1 0 3 1 5 0 30 1
2011–12 Scottish Premier League 26 5 0 0 1 0 3 0 30 5
2012–13 Scottish Third Division 28 17 3 2 4 5 3 2 38 26
2013–14 Scottish League One 34 17 6 0 1 0 5 1 46 18
2014–15 Scottish Championship 32 4 3 0 5 0 6 2 46 6
Total 209 52 27 4 22 7 45 8 303 70
Kilmarnock 2015–16 Scottish Premiership 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
Career total 558 114 47 9 39 10 48 6 692 143

International

[edit]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Scotland 2004 1 0
2005 4 0
2006 3 0
2007 7 1
2008 —
2009 —
2010 3 0
Total 18 1
Score and result list Scotland's goal tally first, score column indicates score after McCulloch goal.
International goal scored by Lee McCulloch
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 13 October 2007 Hampden Park, Glasgow, Scotland  Ukraine 2–0 3–1 UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying

Managerial statistics

[edit]
As of match played 30 September 2017
Managerial record by team and tenure
Team Nat From To Record
G W D L GF GA GD Win %
Kilmarnock (interim) Scotland 31 January 2016 15 February 2016 3 1 1 1 3 2 +1 033.33
Kilmarnock Scotland 15 February 2017 1 October 2017 27 7 7 13 29 38 −9 025.93
Total 30 8 8 14 32 40 −8 026.67

Honours

[edit]

Wigan Athletic

Rangers

Scotland

Individual

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c "Lee McCulloch". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 3 January 2020.
  2. ^ "Lee McCulloch: Overview". Premier League. Retrieved 3 January 2020.
  3. ^ a b Mculloch, Lee (2013). Simp-Lee the Best: My Autobiography. Black & White Publishing. ISBN 9781845027612 – via Google Books.
  4. ^ "SABC continue to create stars for the future". Youth Football Scotland. 6 November 2013. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  5. ^ a b "Kilmarnock manager Gary Locke resigns after Hamilton loss". BBC Sport. 30 January 2016. Retrieved 30 January 2016.
  6. ^ a b "Lee Clark: Kilmarnock boss to quit to join Bury". BBC Sport. 15 February 2017. Retrieved 15 February 2017.
  7. ^ a b "Made in Motherwell: Lee McCulloch". Motherwell FC. 24 April 2017. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  8. ^ "Raith 0–3 Motherwell" Soccerbase, 26 April 2008
  9. ^ "Motherwell 6–2 Hibernian" Soccerbase, 26 April 2008
  10. ^ a b "Well duo sign for Wigan". BBC Sport. 2 March 2001.
  11. ^ "Wigan 0–0 Swindon". BBC Sport. 3 March 2001.
  12. ^ "Wycombe 1–2 Wigan". BBC Sport. 31 March 2001.
  13. ^ a b "Carling Cup final clockwatch". BBC Sport. 26 February 2006. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  14. ^ "Wigan snub McCulloch transfer bid". BBC Sport. 17 January 2007.
  15. ^ "McCulloch would Relish Rangers move". BBC Sport. 23 May 2007.
  16. ^ "Rangers seal McCulloch transfer". BBC Sport. 11 July 2007.
  17. ^ "Rangers 2–0 FK Zeta". BBC Sport. 31 July 2007.
  18. ^ "Lyon 0–3 Rangers". BBC Sport. 2 October 2007.
  19. ^ a b "Zenit St Petersburg 2-0 Rangers". BBC Sport. 14 May 2008. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  20. ^ "Lee McCulloch signs Rangers contract extension". BBC Sport. 12 August 2010.
  21. ^ "Lee McCulloch ruled out for remainder of the season". STV Sport. Retrieved 8 February 2011.
  22. ^ a b Halliday, Stephen (27 June 2012). "Rangers newco: Lee Wallace stays but four more head for Ibrox exit". The Scotsman. Johnston Publishing. Retrieved 13 June 2014.
  23. ^ "Lee McCulloch is the ideal choice for skipper". Evening Times. Herald & Times Group. 5 September 2012.
  24. ^ "Rangers: Lee McCulloch signs contract extension until 2015". BBC Sport. 31 October 2012.
  25. ^ "Rangers 3–0 Airdrieonians". BBC Sport. 12 March 2014.
  26. ^ Andrew Dickson (30 March 2014). "Fame Awards For Trio". Rangers FC.
  27. ^ "Coaching Staff Confirmed". Rangers.co.uk. Rangers FC. 23 December 2014. Archived from the original on 26 December 2014.
  28. ^ "Rangers manager Stuart McCall 'sickened' by Lee McCulloch boos". BBC Sport. 25 April 2015. Retrieved 15 July 2015.
  29. ^ a b c "Kilmarnock: Lee McCulloch leaves 'worst year' at Rangers behind". BBC Sport. 13 July 2015. Retrieved 15 July 2015.
  30. ^ Crawford, Kenny (11 July 2015). "Kilmarnock: Lee McCulloch agrees player-coach role". BBC Sport. Retrieved 15 July 2015.
  31. ^ Barnes, John (22 August 2015). "Kilmarnock 0-4 Ross County". BBC Sport.
  32. ^ "Moldova 1–1 Scotland". BBC Sport. 13 October 2004.
  33. ^ "Scotland 1–0 France". BBC Sport. 7 October 2006. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  34. ^ "France 0–1 Scotland". BBC Sport. 12 September 2007. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  35. ^ "Scotland 3–1 Ukraine". BBC Sport. 13 October 2007. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  36. ^ "Scotland 3–1 Ukraine". BBC Sport. 8 September 2008. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  37. ^ "Lithuania v Scotland Match facts". The Guardian. 3 September 2010. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  38. ^ "Rangers 0–0 Kilmarnock". BBC Sport. 6 February 2016. Retrieved 15 February 2016.
  39. ^ "Motherwell 0–2 Kilmarnock". BBC Sport. 13 February 2016. Retrieved 15 February 2016.
  40. ^ "Lee Clark: Kilmarnock appoint former Blackpool manager". BBC Sport. 15 February 2016. Retrieved 15 February 2016.
  41. ^ "Kilmarnock: Lee McCulloch's first task as manager is to recruit new players". BBC Sport. 5 June 2017. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  42. ^ "Kilmarnock manager Lee McCulloch leaves club by mutual consent". BBC Sport. 1 October 2017. Retrieved 1 October 2017.
  43. ^ a b "Lee McCulloch: Former Kilmarnock manager named Lechia Gdansk assistant". BBC Sport. 15 January 2018. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  44. ^ "Former Rangers captain Lee McCulloch leaves coaching job in Poland after just SEVEN weeks". Daily Record. Media Scotland. 6 March 2018. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  45. ^ "Lee McCulloch: Dundee United hire former Rangers captain as strikers' coach". BBC Sport. 23 January 2018. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
  46. ^ Nicolson, Eric (27 June 2019). "Lee McCulloch gets new role with Dundee United". The Courier. Dundee. Retrieved 5 July 2019.
  47. ^ "First Team Assistant Managers Appointed | Heart of Midlothian Football Club". heartsfc.co.uk. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
  48. ^ "Heart of Midlothian: Steven Naismith is appointed interim boss until end of season". BBC Sport. 10 April 2023. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
  49. ^ Campbell, Andy (24 May 2009). "Dundee United 0-3 Rangers". BBC Sport.
  50. ^ Campbell, Andy (25 April 2010). "Hibernian 0–1 Rangers". BBC Sport.
  51. ^ "The perfect ending for five-star Smith". Belfast Telegraph. 16 May 2011. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  52. ^ Wilson, Richard (12 March 2014). "Rangers 3-0 Airdrieonians". BBC Sport.
  53. ^ "Rangers celebrate Scottish Third Division title win". BBC Sport. 30 March 2013.
  54. ^ Lindsay, Clive (24 May 2008). "Queen of the South 2-3 Rangers". BBC Sport.
  55. ^ Moffat, Colin (30 May 2009). "Rangers 1–0 Falkirk". BBC Sport.
  56. ^ McGuigan, Thomas (16 March 2008). "Dundee Utd 2-2 Rangers". BBC Sport.
  57. ^ Campbell, Andy (21 March 2010). "St Mirren 0-1 Rangers". BBC Sport.
  58. ^ "Celtic 1 Rangers 2". The Telegraph. 20 March 2011. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  59. ^ "Japan 0-0 Scotland". BBC Sport. 13 May 2006.
  1. ^ Europe and Football League play-offs
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