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Murdo Davidson MacLeod[2] (born 24 September 1958 in Glasgow) is a Scottish former professional football player and manager. MacLeod, who played as a midfielder, made 20 appearances for Scotland and played in the 1990 World Cup Finals. He had a successful club career, mainly with Dumbarton, Celtic, Borussia Dortmund and Hibernian. He then became a manager during the mid-1990s, serving both Dumbarton and Partick Thistle. MacLeod then returned to Celtic as assistant manager, enjoying a successful season in tandem with Wim Jansen. Since leaving Celtic as a result of Jansen's departure from Celtic Park in 1998, MacLeod has worked as a football pundit for newspapers, radio and television.
 |
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Murdo Davidson MacLeod | ||
| Date of birth | 24 September 1958 | ||
| Place of birth | Glasgow, Scotland | ||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Glasgow Amateurs | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1975–1978 | Dumbarton | 90 | (9) |
| 1978–1987 | Celtic | 281 | (55) |
| 1987–1990 | Borussia Dortmund | 103 | (4) |
| 1990–1993 | Hibernian | 78 | (2) |
| 1993–1995 | Dumbarton | 66 | (1) |
| 1995–1997 | Partick Thistle | 1 | (0) |
| Total | 619 | (71) | |
| International career | |||
| 1978 | Scottish League XI | 1 | (0) |
| 1985–1991 | Scotland | 20 | (1) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1993–1995 | Dumbarton | ||
| 1995–1997 | Partick Thistle | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
MacLeod made his name with Dumbarton in the mid-1970s. He earned selection by the Scottish League in 1978, playing in a 1–1 draw against the Italian League.[3] MacLeod moved to Celtic later that year for a £100,000 transfer fee.[4] During his nine years at Celtic Park, MacLeod won four league titles, two Scottish Cups and one League Cup. MacLeod scored a goal that helped Celtic win the league championship in 1979, in a decisive match against Rangers. In 2000, Celtic supporters voted that it was the greatest ever goal scored in an Old Firm derby game.
MacLeod rejected a contract offer from Celtic in May 1987[5] and moved to German club Borussia Dortmund a month later.[6] MacLeod played in 103 Bundesliga games during four years at the Westfalenstadion. He won the German Cup and Super Cup in 1989.[7][8] He returned to Scotland with Hibernian, where he captained the club to a victory in the 1991 Scottish League Cup Final.
MacLeod had to wait until late in his career before becoming a Scotland regular. He made his debut appearance as a substitute against England in the 1985 Rous Cup.[9] He made his first starting appearance for Scotland in October 1986, aged 28.[9] MacLeod went on to win a total of 20 caps, playing in the 1990 FIFA World Cup tournament.[10]
After a successful playing career, he returned to Dumbarton as player-coach. He guided the club to promotion from the Second Division with a last day win over Stirling Albion in 1995. In the summer of 1995, MacLeod left the Sons to manage Premier Division club Partick Thistle. MacLeod's tenure at Firhill was unsuccessful, as the club were relegated at the end of the 1995–96 season. He re-joined Celtic as assistant coach under Wim Jansen, where he helped the club win a league and Scottish League Cup double in 1997–98, their only season in charge.[11]
MacLeod has written for the Daily Record and commentated on football for BBC Scotland and BBC Radio Scotland.[11] MacLeod has also worked as a Scottish football analyst on Newstalk radio in Ireland. In 2012, he starred on the CBeebies show "My Story" with his grandsons, Murdo Jr. and Ross.[10]
MacLeod was admitted to Golden Jubilee Hospital in Clydebank during January 2010 to have a heart operation.[11]
MacLeod endorsed the Conservative Party in the 2010 General Election, campaigning for their candidate in the Argyll & Bute constituency.[12] During the 2014 Scottish independence referendum he was a supporter of the Better Together campaign against Scottish independence.[13]
Player
Celtic
- Scottish Premier Division (4): 1978–79, 1980–81, 1981–82, 1985–86
- Scottish Cup (2): 1979–80, 1984–85
- Scottish League Cup (1): 1982–83
Borussia Dortmund
Hibernian
- Scottish League Cup (1): 1991–92
Scotland
Manager
Dumbarton
- Scottish Second Division promotion : 1994–95
- Stirlingshire Cup: 1993–94
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