Steven Thompson (Scottish footballer)

Football player infobox
playername = Steven Thompson


fullname = Steven Thompson
height = height|ft=6|in=2
nickname = Thommo
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1978|10|14|df=y
cityofbirth = Paisley
countryofbirth = Scotland
currentclub = Burnley
clubnumber = 30
position = Striker
youthyears =
youthclubs =
years = 1996–2003
2003–2006
2006–2008
2008–
clubs = Dundee United
Rangers
Cardiff City
Burnley
caps(goals) = 133 (18)
062 (17)
097 (16)
006 0(0)
nationalyears =
2002–2004
nationalteam = Scotland U21
Scotland
nationalcaps(goals) = 012 0(4)
016 0(3)
pcupdate = 18:33, 04 October 2008 (UTC)
ntupdate =

Steven Thompson (born October 14, 1978 in Paisley, Scotland) is a professional football player who currently plays for Burnley. He plays as a striker and due to his large frame and prowess in the air is often used as a target man.

Club career

cotland

He started his career at Dundee United in 1996 and made his début as a substitute in a league match against Hearts in 1997. By season 1998-1999, he had become a regular in the Dundee United team and been capped for Scotland at under-21 level. Thompson went on to win his first full Scotland cap against France in March 2002 and by October had begun talks on a new contract, [cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/d/dundee_utd/2351823.stm|title=Thompson talks begin|date=2002-10-22|publisher=BBC Sport|accessdate=2008-06-27] insisting a week later they were "going well". [cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/d/dundee_utd/2368173.stm|title=Thompson cheer for United|date=2002-10-28|publisher=BBC Sport|accessdate=2008-06-27] Amidst speculation that Rangers were interested in signing Thompson, talks resumed in mid-November, [cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/d/dundee_utd/2451289.stm|title=Thompson talks get priority|date=2002-11-12|publisher=BBC Sport|accessdate=2008-06-27] only for the move to Rangers' all but confirmed before the end of the month. [cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/d/dundee_utd/2507077.stm|title=Thomson set for Rangers|date=2002-11-23|publisher=BBC Sport|accessdate=2008-06-27] On Boxing Day, Thompson moved to Rangers for £200,000 with Billy Dodds having returned to Tannadice twenty-four hours earlier. [cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/scot_prem/2617037.stm|title=Rangers get Thompson|date=2002-12-26|publisher=BBC Sport|accessdate=2008-06-27] Thompson scored on his debut in the 3-1 win over Dundee [cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/scot_prem/2617033.stm|title=Thompson seals Dundee's fate|date=2003-01-02|publisher=BBC Sport|accessdate=2008-06-27] but only scored one more goal all season.

After suffering knee ligament damage in September 2003, [cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/r/rangers/3133910.stm|title=Thompson blow for Rangers|date=2003-09-29|publisher=BBC Sport|accessdate=2008-06-27] Thompson missed most of the season, returning in March and scoring six goals in the remaining matches. Thompson played in the majority of matches the following season and despite having played in nearly every match of 2005-06 by the end of December, Thompson was allowed to move to Cardiff City for a fee of £250,000 in January 2006. [cite news|url=http://newswww.bbc.net.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/r/rangers/4590238.stm|publisher=BBC Sport|title=Cardiff sign up Rangers' Thompson|date=2006-01-10] .

Cardiff

During his first year at Ninian Park he was a regular first team member and spent the year forming a partnership with fellow striker Michael Chopra. He played a total of 45 games in both league and cup competitions during his first year but only managed to find the net 6 times. Thompson was transfer listed in the summer of 2007 due to his inability to score goals consistently at Championship level but a bizarre injury prevented him from leaving the club. Thompson was on holiday in the U.S. when he fell off a banana boat, being towed behind another boat, which caused him to sustain a groin injury that required surgery. [ [http://www.teamtalk.com/football/story/0,16368,1789_2709834,00.html "Thompson close to Cardiff return"] Teamtalk Retrived September 30 2007] [ [http://icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/footballnation/football-news/2007/06/30/thommo-injury-setback-91466-19383805/ "Thommo injury setback"] South Wales Echo Retrieved on 25 November, 2007] He returned from the injury on 15 September where he came off the bench to grab a late equaliser in a league match against Plymouth Argyle and continued to progress making his first start for Cardiff in five months in November. However despite his increasing form he was not been formally taken off the transfer list and attracted interest from Scottish Premier League side Aberdeen. [ [http://www.thisisaberdeen.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=148766&command=displayContent&sourceNode=148590&contentPK=19019103&pNodeId=148360 "Ex-Ger Thompson linked with Dons"] ThisisAberdeen.co.uk Retrieved on 25 November, 2007]

During November and the beginning of December Thompson was first choice striker for the Bluebirds and normally lined up alongside Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink in the squad and he found the net three times during this period, against Hull City, Colchester United and Blackpool. After these matches Thompson held an interview with Scottish newspaper The Herald in which he claimed that manager Dave Jones had made him a scapegoat for Cardiff's failure to reach the play-offs the previous year. During the interview he also revealed that he and Jones rarely speak to each other anymore after he was placed on the transfer list. [ [http://icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/footballnation/cardiff-city-fc/2007/12/16/thompson-boss-made-me-a-scapegoat-91466-20255155/ "Thompson: Boss made me a scapegoat"] Wales On Sunday Retrieved on 17 December, 2007] A day later on 15 December he was sent off in a derby match against Bristol City after a foul on Bristol goalkeeper Adriano Basso by referee Uriah Rennie, who was heavily criticised by Dave Jones for his handling of the game. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/c/cardiff_city/7146963.stm "Jones in dismay at referee Rennie"] BBC Sport Retrieved on 17 December, 2007] The club appealed against the three-match ban handed out but the appeal was rejected and he sat out the matches against Sheffield United, Watford and Preston North End.

On 14 January Cardiff manager Dave Jones revealed that the club had received two offers from another Football League Championship club but they had been turned down. [ [http://icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/footballnation/cardiff-city-fc/2008/01/14/bluebird-rivals-in-bid-for-thommo-91466-20347812/ "Bluebirds rivals in bid for Thommo"] South Wales Echo Retrieved on 14 January, 2008] During the second half of the season, Thompson played a large part in the sides efforts as, alongside Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, he was the clubs only recognised striker fit at the time. He played in 5 of Cardiff's 6 matches, including the final, on their way to the FA Cup final before losing 1-0 to Portsmouth.

At the start of the 2008-09 season, the final season of his contract at the club, he again found himself pushed down the pecking order by the arrival of new strikers, this time being Ross McCormack, Jay Bothroyd, but with Bothroyd short of match fitness, and Thompson having enjoyed a fruitful pre-season, he was given a starting place on the opening day of the season against Southampton, finding the net during a 2-1 win.

Burnley

On 1 September 2008, after spending over a year on the transfer list at Cardiff, he signed for Burnley on a two year deal linking up with manager Owen Coyle again, during Coyle's time at Dundee United Thompson used to clean his football boots. [ [http://www.walesonline.co.uk/footballnation/cardiff-city-fc/2008/09/02/scottish-link-with-coyle-the-key-to-thommo-s-move-91466-21655733/ "Scottish link key to Thommo's move"] South Wales Echo Retrieved on 2 September, 2008] He made his Burnley debut on 13 September against Nottingham Forest.

International career

Thompson has so far won sixteen caps for the Scotland national football team but due to his struggles at Cardiff and players such as Kris Boyd, Kenny Miller and Lee McCulloch consistently playing well in higher divisions there have been few spaces in the squad in which to win and he has therefore found himself a long way down the order. He made his début for the national side in March 2002 and got his first start a month later, [cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/scotland/1936434.stm|title=Vogts voices approval|date=2004-04-17|publisher=BBC Sport|accessdate=2008-06-27] scoring his first goal in May 2002. [cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/scotland/2002159.stm|title=Scots stroll to victory|date=2002-05-23|publisher=BBC Sport|accessdate=2008-06-27] Thompson also won caps at under-21 level for Scotland.

cotland goals

Club stats

As of 1 September, 2008

Personal life

Thompson is an accomplished musician and in May 2008 he penned a song for Cardiff's FA Cup Final appearance. [ [http://icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/footballnation/cardiff-city-fc/2008/05/06/city-s-thommo-adds-his-voice-to-do-the-ayatollah-91466-20867656/ "City's Thommo adds his voice to Do The Ayatollah!"] South Wales Echo Retrieved on 10 May, 2008] His dad Graham is also a musician and plays in a Glasgow pub band called Dr.Cook and the Boners. [ [http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/sport.cfm?id=1191602004 Stephen Halliday: "Crisis torn Scotland place faith in Thompson"] , The Scotsman, 13th October 2004]

Honours

Rangers

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Cardiff City

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References

External links

*soccerbase|id=11113|name=Steven Thompson