Phil O'Donnell

Motherwell

O'Donnell was born on 25 March 1972 in Bellshill, North Lanarkshire, a few miles away from Motherwell's Fir Park ground. O'Donnell began his career with his local team, making his first team debut in the 1990–91 season against St Mirren and soon became a regular first team player. He won a Scottish Cup winner's medal after scoring with a diving header to put Motherwell 2–1 up in a 4–3 victory over Dundee United in the final that year. Ally McCoist commentating on the match describing him as being "brave as a lion". That result earned Motherwell entry to European competition for the first time and O'Donnell became the club's youngest player in Europe, playing a tie against Polish side GKS Katowice. He won the PFA Scotland Young Player of the Year award in 1992 and 1994 and earned one cap for the Scotland national football team, playing for 15 minutes as a substitute against Switzerland on 8 September 1993, replacing David Bowman. This form made him a target for bigger clubs and he moved to Celtic in September 1994; the fee of £1.75m was the highest Motherwell had received for a player, a record that lasted until the same club signed David Turnbull in 2020.

Celtic

O'Donnell scored two goals in his debut for Celtic against Partick Thistle and went on to win another Scottish Cup in 1995. He also earned his sole league winner's medal with the club in 1998, but injuries proved to be a major concern and his appearances for the club were limited. In 1999…

Club

International

Source:

Motherwell

Scottish Cup: 1990–91 Celtic

Scottish Cup: 1994–95; runner-up: 1998–99 Scottish Premier Division: 1997–98 Individual

PFA Scotland Young Player of the Year: 1991–92, 1993–94