| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Declan Patrick Gallagher[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1991-02-13)13 February 1991 (age 34) | ||
| Place of birth | Rutherglen, Scotland | ||
| Position | Centre-back | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Hamilton Academical | |||
| Celtic | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2010–2011 | Celtic | 0 | (0) |
| 2010–2011 | →Stranraer (loan) | 26 | (3) |
| 2011–2012 | Clyde | 25 | (2) |
| 2012–2014 | Dundee | 60 | (4) |
| 2014–2016 | Livingston | 51 | (2) |
| 2017–2019 | Livingston | 84 | (3) |
| 2019–2021 | Motherwell | 59 | (3) |
| 2021–2022 | Aberdeen | 23 | (0) |
| 2022–2023 | St Mirren | 27 | (2) |
| 2023–2025 | Dundee United | 60 | (1) |
| 2025– | Ross County | ||
| International career‡ | |||
| 2019–2021 | Scotland | 9 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 01:45, 1 June 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 11:07, 7 January 2023 (UTC) | |||
Declan Patrick Gallagher (born 13 February 1991) is a Scottishfootballer who plays as a centre back forRoss County.
Gallagher started his career atCeltic but never made a first team appearance, however he was involved in theirScottish Youth Cup win in 2010.[2] He was then sent out on loan toStranraer to gain some first team experience. Despite impressing while on loan, he was released and was signed byClyde before moving on to joinDundee. After experiencing a relegation followed by a promotion in two seasons atDens Park, he joinedLivingston in 2014.
In 2016, Gallagher was imprisoned for more than a year for assault which took place three years earlier. Gallagher returned to Livingston after his release from jail, and he played regularly during their consecutive promotions to the top division between 2017 and 2018. After moving toMotherwell in summer of 2019, he made his Scotland debut in November of that year. Gallagher helped Scotland qualify forUEFA Euro 2020 and was selected for their tournament squad. After spells withAberdeen andSt Mirren, Gallagher joined Dundee United in July 2023.
Born inRutherglen and raised inBlantyre,[3] Gallagher (who also spent time in the setup atHamilton Academical)[4] signed forCeltic at a young age and played for theunder-19s. He became a regular in the team and played the full 90 minutes in a 2–0 victory overRangers in the 2010Scottish Youth Cup final.[2] While at Celtic, Gallagher says he trained with the first team, which"helps [my] match sharpness".[5]
He went out on loan toStranraer in2010–11.[6] Gallagher made his senior debut in a 9–0 win overSt Cuthbert in theScottish Cup and scored his first senior goal two weeks later as Stranraer beatQueen's Park 3–1. On 20 November 2010, he scored his second goal in five matches to help Stranraer beatGirvan 4–2 in the Scottish Cup.[7] Gallagher scored his final goal for Stranraer in a 3–2 loss toMontrose on 16 April 2011 and played his final game for the club as they defeated Clyde 3–0. Stranraer finished fifth, just missing out on a play-off place.[8]
Despite impressing while on loan, Gallagher was told he was not needed by Celtic, putting a number of clubs on alert. According to his teammateNicky Riley, Gallagher left the Glasgow club "for the sake of his career".[9] After being released, he went on trial withPartick Thistle.[10]
On 9 August 2011, Gallagher signed forClyde.[11] He made his debut for theBully Wee againstAnnan Athletic in a 2–2 draw and thereafter became a key player for the club. He scored his first goal for Clyde as they hammeredEast Stirlingshire 7–1 atBroadwood.[12] On 21 April 2012, he scored a last minute equaliser againstPeterhead. During the 2011–12 season, Gallagher missed ten games due to injury.[13] At the end of the season, he had made 26 appearances and scored twice for Clyde.
On 1 June 2012, Gallagher signed for an undisclosed fee for newly promotedScottish Premier League (SPL) clubDundee, along withCarl Finnigan, afterRangers were removed from the league's membership, creating a space in the SPL.[14] One of his new teammates was former Celtic youth colleague Nicky Riley.[15] When joining Dundee, Gallagher stated that he never thought he was going to play in the top flight and the experience of playing in the SPL was "brilliant".[16]
He made his debut in aLeague Cup 0–0 draw againstPeterhead (Dundee won on penalties);[17] he also played in the next round of the tournament, a defeat toQueens Park atHampden. Gallagher became a regular in the first team and was paired in the centre of defence withKyle Benedictus by managerBarry Smith.[18] In a match againstHearts on 2 November 2012, Gallagher made an impressive display during the match and was praised by the manager and teammate Riley.[9][19] Gallagher played against his former club Celtic on 26 December 2012 as Dundee lost 2–0.[20] Inthe last 16 of the Scottish Cup, Gallagher scored his first goal for the club in a 5–1 win overGreenock Morton.[21] However, he was unable to prevent the club's relegation to theScottish Championship.
In his second campaign at Dundee, Gallagher scored his first league goal in a 4–3 loss againstQueen of the South in the opening matchday.[22] Two weeks later, on 30 August 2013, he scored again, in a 3–0 win overLivingston.[23] He scored two goals in two matches as Dundee beatHamilton Academical 3–0 in late November[24] and Morton 2–1 in early December.[25]
Like his first season, Gallagher continuously remained as a first pick in defence. However, in January 2014, contract talks broke down between the club and the player's agent.[26] As a result, Gallagher was linked a move away from Dundee, "as Scottish Premiership and English League One clubs have been monitoring his situation".[27] He rejected offers of a new contract from Dundee,[28] and despite achieving the feat of playing every minute for the club during the league season as Dundee won promotion back to theScottish Premiership,[29][30] he was among four players to leave the club at the end of the 2013–14 season.[31]
Gallagher signed forLivingston in July 2014.[32] He scored on his league debut for theLions in a 2–1 away defeat toHibernian,[33] and was in the side which won the2015 Scottish Challenge Cup Final, beatingAlloa Athletic.[34]
Gallagher and a co-accused were convicted in June 2015[35] of an assault at a hotel inBlantyre, South Lanarkshire on the evening of a wedding anniversary party in April 2013. In an attack described by the Sheriff as "brutal", Gallagher struck his victim to the head with a baseball bat or similar implement causing a fractured skull, and was sentenced to three years in prison.[36][37][38][39] Gallagher and his co-accused appealed their sentences and were released on bail the following month, and he was re-signed by Livingston pending its outcome.[35] He went on to make 30 appearances in all competitions during the2015–16 season up to February 2016,[39] when the appeal was dismissed and he was ordered back to prison.[37]
After training withRaith Rovers during day release fromHMP Castle Huntly,[39][40][38] in January 2017 Gallagher was released from prison, initially with an electronic monitoring tag.[40] He was immediately signed once again by Livingston[39][41] and went on to make 15 league appearances, scoring twice including in his return game,[40] asLivi were promoted back as winners of2016–17 Scottish League One.[42]
Gallagher was a regular for Livingston as they finished runners-up in the2017–18 Scottish Championship, and played in all four matches as the club subsequently defeatedDundee United and Partick Thistle inthe play-offs to achieve a second consecutive promotion.[43]
On 4 August 2018, in his first Premiership match for five years, Gallagher conceded a penalty against his old employers Celtic, who beat Livingston 3–1.[44] TheLions had better fortunes against the other half of theOld Firm two months later, defeatingRangers 1–0.[45][46]
On 11 April 2019,Motherwell announced that Gallagher had signed a pre-contract agreement to join the club in the summer.[47] On 26 December 2019, Gallagher scored a winning goal in the last minute of a league fixture away to Ross County.[48]
Ahead of the2020–21 season, Gallagher was named as Motherwell's new club captain following the departure ofPeter Hartley.[49]
In May 2021,Aberdeen signed Gallagher on a two-year contract, taking effect when his contract with Motherwell expired.[50][3]
In June 2022,St Mirren signed Gallagher on a two-year contract, after his contract at Aberdeen was terminated.[51]
Gallagher moved toDundee United in July 2023 for an undisclosed transfer fee.[52]
On 6 October 2019, Gallagher was called into theScotland squad for the first time, ahead of theEuro 2020 qualifiers againstRussia andSan Marino.[53][54] He did not play in those matches, but made his international debut the following month in a 2–1 win inCyprus.[55][56] Gallagher played in the play-off win againstSerbia that secured qualification forUEFA Euro 2020, the first time Scotland had qualified for a major tournament since the1998 World Cup.[57] He was selected in the squad for the finals, but did not make an appearance.[3][58]
| Club | Season | League | Scottish Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Celtic | 2010–11[60] | Scottish Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Stranraer (loan) | 2010–11[60][61] | Scottish Third Division | 26 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 4 |
| Clyde | 2011–12[62] | Scottish Third Division | 25 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 2 |
| Dundee | 2012–13[63] | Scottish Premier League | 24 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 1 |
| 2013–14[64] | Scottish Championship | 36 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3[a] | 0 | 42 | 4 | |
| Total | 60 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 69 | 5 | ||
| Livingston | 2014–15[65] | Scottish Championship | 28 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3[a] | 0 | 33 | 1 |
| 2015–16[66] | Scottish Championship | 23 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2[a] | 0 | 30 | 2 | |
| 2016–17[67] | Scottish League One | 15 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 2 | |
| 2017–18[68] | Scottish Championship | 31 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 5[a][b] | 0 | 43 | 0 | |
| 2018–19[69] | Scottish Premiership | 38 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 1 | |
| Total | 135 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 15 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 166 | 6 | ||
| Motherwell | 2019–20[70] | Scottish Premiership | 30 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 2 |
| 2020–21[71] | Scottish Premiership | 29 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3[c] | 0 | 36 | 1 | |
| Total | 59 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 72 | 3 | ||
| Aberdeen | 2021–22[72] | Scottish Premiership | 23 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5[d] | 0 | 31 | 0 |
| Career total | 328 | 17 | 21 | 2 | 25 | 1 | 21 | 0 | 395 | 20 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scotland | 2019 | 2 | 0 |
| 2020 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2021 | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 9 | 0 | |
Celtic U19
Dundee
Livingston
Dundee United
Scotland
 | ||