 Alexander in 2023 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Graham Alexander[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1971-10-10)10 October 1971 (age 54)[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Coventry,[1] England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[2] | ||
| Position(s) | |||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Bradford City (manager) | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1988–1990 | Scunthorpe United | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1988–1995 | Scunthorpe United | 159 | (18) |
| 1995–1999 | Luton Town | 150 | (15) |
| 1999–2007 | Preston North End | 352 | (52) |
| 2007–2011 | Burnley | 154 | (20) |
| 2011–2012 | Preston North End | 18 | (2) |
| Total | 833 | (107) | |
| International career | |||
| 2002–2009 | Scotland | 40 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2011–2012 | Preston North End (caretaker) | ||
| 2012–2015 | Fleetwood Town | ||
| 2016–2018 | Scunthorpe United | ||
| 2018–2020 | Salford City | ||
| 2021–2022 | Motherwell | ||
| 2023 | Milton Keynes Dons | ||
| 2023– | Bradford City | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Graham Alexander (born 10 October 1971) is a professionalfootball coach and formerplayer who managesEFL League One clubBradford City. In a lengthy playing career, Alexander representedScunthorpe United,Luton Town,Preston North End andBurnley. He also made 40 international appearances forScotland.
For most of his career, Alexander played as a specialist atright-back, but was also deployed indefensive midfield[3] early on in his career withScunthorpe and later with Burnley. He is the fourth oldest player to score inPremier League history.[4] He was also apenalty kick specialist. On 16 April 2011, in Burnley's win overSwansea City in a Championship match, Alexander became only the second outfield player inEnglish football history to have made1,000 professional appearances, afterTony Ford.[5] He is third on thelist of footballers in England by number of league appearances.
Alexander was appointed manager ofFleetwood Town in December 2012. He won the 2013–14 League Two play-offs and promotion to League One, but was dismissed by Fleetwood in September 2015. He then managedScunthorpe United for two years before being appointed manager of newly promotedNational League clubSalford City on 14 May 2018. Alexander guided Salford to promotion in his first season, but was dismissed in October 2020. He then had 18 months as manager of Scottish clubMotherwell. He had a brief spell as manager ofMilton Keynes Dons before being appointed manager of Bradford City in November 2023.
Alexander began his career in the late 1980s as ayouth player withScunthorpe United. He made his first-team debut on 27 April 1991, coming on as a substitute forMark Hine, and signed his first professional contract the same year. In1991–92, he established himself as a member of Scunthorpe's first team, usually playing at right half.
Alexander made over 200 appearances at Scunthorpe before moving toLuton Town for a transfer fee of £100,000.[6][7] He went on to make a similar number of appearances with Luton in his four years with the club.
In 1999 two clubs were vying for his signature;Burnley andPreston North End. Both clubs made offers for the player but Alexander opted for a move to Preston.[8] He became a first team regular atDeepdale, eventually club captain and an established set-piece taker, particularly inpenalties.[9] Alexander stayed remarkably fit during his career, rarely suffering a major injury. However, during the2000–01 season, he missed several weeks of the season after breaking hisrib in an away match againstWolverhampton Wanderers.[10] During his eight years at Preston, Alexander made exactly 400 appearances for the club, with his 400th and final match coming againstColchester United on 25 August 2007.[11] He was also in the PFA's Championship Team of the Season for2004–05[9]
During the summer of 2007 a number of clubs were linked with him includingCrystal Palace who had a £50,000 bid turned down by Preston, who said: "He is club captain and a vital member of this squad and certainly not a player we will allow to leave."[12]
On 29 August 2007, he made a surprise move to local rivalsBurnley almost nine years after they had originally tried to sign him. The reasons cited for his departure were that Preston would not extend his contract by another year,[13] so when offered a two-year contract by Burnley the player accepted and made a £200,000 move toTurf Moor.[14] Preston chairmanDerek Shaw did not want to lose the player and said:
We don't particularly want to sell Graham but he has the comfort of a two-year contract at Burnley whereas he only has one year here at Deepdale. We quite possibly would have renewed Graham's contract, he's a fit man.[14][15]
The £200,000 transfer money was made up of £100,000 payable in 2007 and the final £100,000 payable in the summer of 2008.[3]
In Burnley's promotion season in 2008–09 Alexander at the age of 37 played in all 61 league and cup games ending with the 1–0 play-off final victory over Sheffield United at Wembley which took Burnley back to the top flight of English football for the first time in 33 years.
On 29 June 2009, Alexander signed a new one-year contract at Burnley,[16] and on 15 August he became the oldest player to make a Premier League debut. On 19 September, he scored his first Premier League goal, a penalty, in a 3–1 win at home toSunderland.[17] On 31 October 2009, He scored both goals in a 2–0 home win againstHull City.[18] A week later he then scored the first for Burnley, from the spot, atManchester City in a thrilling 3–3 draw.[19] On 16 December, he scored his 100th league goal. He scored an equaliser against Arsenal, sending Gunners 'keeperManuel Almunia the wrong way. On 10 April 2010, Alexander again scored twice against Hull City – both penalties – in a 4–1 win to take his tally for the season to eight, seven of which were penalties. Alexander took penalties in an unusual way, opting to use the outside of his foot rather than the inside. On 6 May 2010, he was named Burnley's Player of the Year for the 2009–10 season.[20]
On 5 August 2010, Burnley's first team manager,Brian Laws, named the 38-year-old as club captain for the 2010–11 season.[21] On Alexander's appointment, Laws said "Graham is the consummate professional who has been instrumental in the success that this club has seen in the past few seasons, so it was an easy choice."[21]
In April 2011, Alexander made his 1,000th senior appearance for club and country in a 2–1 win againstSwansea City as an 87th-minute substitute.[5] OnlyTony Ford has matched this feat as an outfield player.[5] At the end of the season, Alexander looked likely to leaveTurf Moor, as he was linked with managerial jobs withBury andMacclesfield Town, but Burnley bossEddie Howe stated that he was still part of his plans for the following season.[22] On 4 July 2011, Alexander was released by Burnley.[23]
Alexander returned to Preston North End on 3 August 2011, as he signed a one-year contract with the club.[24] He made his debut against Colchester United.
Alexander scored his first goal for Preston in four years with a trademark penalty in a 2–1 home win against Tranmere on 24 September 2011.[25] This was after his first penalty back in a Preston shirt was saved by Exeter'sArtur Krysiak,[26] and before his third was saved byLee Butcher of Leyton Orient.[27] His next penalty came in a penalty shootout against Rochdale in theFootball League Trophy, which was slotted into the top corner after he was brought on as a substitute forConor McLaughlin especially to take a penalty in the shootout.[28] However, he missed his next penalty, again in the Football League Trophy, and again in a penalty shootout, this time against Chesterfield. He was the third Preston player to take a penalty in this shootout, and he blazed it over the bar. Preston's next penalty-taker,Paul Coutts, had his penalty saved, and then when the next penalty was scored by Chesterfield'sAlexandre Mendy, Preston were knocked out of the tournament.[29] Alexander started the next league game against Stevenage but was replaced through injury bySteven Smith after just 3 minutes,[30] after which Alexander did not feature for the Lilywhites for a long time, and there was speculation that he had played his last game for Preston, and in his career.
After the dismissal of Phil Brown a few games down the line, Alexander became joint-caretaker manager, alongside David Unsworth. His first match in joint-charge was an away match against MK Dons, which they won 1–0. Just before what was to be an ordinary match against Wycombe Wanderers, it was announced that Graham Westley would replace them at the helm of Preston, and that Wycombe was to be the last match in charge for the pairing of Alexander and Unsworth. They won the match 3–2.[31]
Playing his final game on 28 April 2012 againstCharlton Athletic, Alexander came on as a substitute forMax Ehmer in the 84th minute. This was supposed to be a cameo appearance to allow the Preston supporters to show their appreciation of his service to the club. However, with Preston losing 1–2 in stoppage time, they were awarded a free-kick 25 yards from Charlton's goal. Alexander stepped up to curl the ball around the wall and inside the near post, scoring with the final kick of his career.[32] His final senior goal helped him to hold the record of "highest-scoring British defender" for almost 12 years before his career tally was surpassed byJames Tavernier in March 2024.[33]
On 20 June 2012, Alexander was appointed Head of Youth Development. ChairmanPeter Ridsdale said: "He's got over 1,000 games under his belt, he's a hero here and what better person to head our youth development."[34]
Born in England to a Scottish father and Irish mother, Alexander was eligible to play forEngland, theRepublic of Ireland orScotland.[35][36] Before his first international call, Alexander said, "To be honest, since I started playing football, I've had two ambitions: to play in the Premier League, and to play for Scotland. I've been brought up supporting Scotland as far back as I can remember."[35] This ambition was fulfilled when he made his Scotland debut on 17 April 2002 in a 2–1 friendly defeat toNigeria atPittodrie Stadium.[37] Alexander was part of the Scotland squad who won the annual JapaneseKirin Cup tournament in 2006, beatingBulgaria 5–1 before drawing 0–0 withJapan.[38] He gained his 25th Scotlandcap in a 1–0 home victory againstFrance.[39] He gained a total of 40 caps for Scotland. Alexander was shown only one yellow card while playing for Scotland, againstNew Zealand in May 2003.
On 6 December 2012, Alexander was appointed as the new manager ofLeague Two clubFleetwood Town.[40] Upon his arrival, Fleetwood were sat in seventh place inthe league, though had recently been eliminated from theFA Cup byAldershot Town.[40]
In hissecond season in charge, Alexander guided Fleetwood to promotion by winning thepromotion play-offs, but was subsequently dismissed in September 2015, following a poor start to their2015–16 campaign inLeague One.[41]
On 22 March 2016, Alexander was appointed as the new manager of League One sideScunthorpe United.[42] In hisfirst full season in charge, Alexander guided the club to qualification for thepromotion play-offs where they suffered a 3–2 aggregate defeat to eventual championsMillwall.[43]
On 24 March 2018, it was confirmed that Alexander had parted ways with Scunthorpe after two years in association with the club; his side had gone eight games without a win, though left the club sat in fifth place.[44]
On 14 May 2018, Alexander was appointed as the new manager of newly promotedNational League clubSalford City, signing onto a four-year contract, following the departures of previous joint-managers Bernard Morley and Anthony Johnson.[45] In hisfirst season in charge, Alexander guided Salford to qualification for thepromotion play-offs,[46] in which they recorded a narrow 4–3penalty success overEastleigh, having drawn the match 1–1, to reachthe final atWembley Stadium, where they were 3–0 victorious overAFC Fylde to reach promotion to League Two.[47]
During his second season in charge, Alexander guided Salford to the final of theEFL Trophy, though the final of the competition (which was initially scheduled to take place on 4 April 2020) was postponed due to theCOVID-19 pandemic, which also resulted in the league season to be postponed.[48] In May 2020, clubs of League Two andLeague One voted to end the season prematurely, with the final standings being decided in a points-per-game format, which resulted in Salford finishing in eleventh place.[49] Alexander was dismissed by the club on 12 October following a 2–2 at home toTranmere Rovers which left the club fifth in the league and unbeaten in the opening five games, withPaul Scholes immediately announced as his replacement.[50]
Salford City co-ownerGary Neville later admitted that the dismissal of Alexander was a mistake, stating: "Graham Alexander should have never left this club last season. I should have never made that decision that I made".[51]
On 7 January 2021, Alexander was announced as the new head coach ofScottish Premiership sideMotherwell, following the departure ofStephen Robinson and replacing interim managerKeith Lasley.[52] His first game in charge of Motherwell was a 1–1 draw againstSt Mirren in Paisley.[53] On 10 January 2022, Alexander extended his contract with the club until 2025.[54] Motherwell managed to finish fifth in the2021–22 Scottish Premiership, despite only winning five games after the winter break.[55] Alexander left the club by mutual consent on 29 July 2022, following their elimination from theEuropa Conference League bySligo Rovers.[55]
On 27 May 2023, Alexander was appointed head coach of recently relegatedEFL League Two clubMilton Keynes Dons.[56] His tenure started well; on 8 September 2023 Alexander was named theEFL League Two Manager of the Month for August 2023 after the club finished the month top of the table with twelve points from their opening five games.[57] However, following a run of eight league games without a win, on 16 October 2023, Milton Keynes Dons dismissed Alexander after just 16 games in charge of the club.[58][59]
On 6 November 2023, Alexander was appointed manager of League Two clubBradford City on a deal until June 2026.[60]
Alexander was named League Two Manager of the Month for February 2025 after thirteen points from six matches sawthe Bantams move into second place.[61]
On May 3 2025, Alexander achieved promotion into League One with Bradford City following a dramatic goal by Antoni Sarcevic in the 96th-minute on the final day of the season.[62]
In July 2025, Graham Alexander and assistant Chris Lucketti signed a three year contract extension, keeping them at the club until the summer of 2028.[63]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Scunthorpe United | 1988–89 | Fourth Division | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1989–90 | Fourth Division | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| 1990–91 | Fourth Division | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| 1991–92 | Fourth Division | 36 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 5[b] | 1 | 47 | 7 | |
| 1992–93 | Third Division | 41 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 4[a] | 1 | 51 | 7 | |
| 1993–94 | Third Division | 41 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4[a] | 0 | 51 | 4 | |
| 1994–95 | Third Division | 40 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2[a] | 1 | 48 | 6 | |
| Total | 159 | 18 | 12 | 1 | 12 | 2 | 17 | 3 | 200 | 24 | ||
| Luton Town | 1995–96 | First Division | 37 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2[c] | 0 | 42 | 1 |
| 1996–97[67] | Second Division | 45 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 4[d] | 0 | 59 | 2 | |
| 1997–98[68] | Second Division | 39 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2[a] | 0 | 44 | 8 | |
| 1998–99[69] | Second Division | 29 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 38 | 6 | |
| Total | 150 | 15 | 8 | 0 | 17 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 183 | 17 | ||
| Preston North End | 1998–99[69] | Second Division | 10 | 0 | — | — | 2[e] | 0 | 12 | 0 | ||
| 1999–2000[70] | Second Division | 46 | 6 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 1[a] | 0 | 58 | 10 | |
| 2000–01[71] | First Division | 34 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 3[f] | 0 | 41 | 7 | |
| 2001–02[72] | First Division | 45 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | 50 | 7 | ||
| 2002–03[73] | First Division | 45 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | — | 50 | 12 | ||
| 2003–04[74] | First Division | 45 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 49 | 9 | ||
| 2004–05[75] | Championship | 42 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1[g] | 0 | 47 | 8 | |
| 2005–06[76] | Championship | 40 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2[g] | 0 | 45 | 5 | |
| 2006–07[77] | Championship | 42 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 45 | 6 | ||
| 2007–08[78] | Championship | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | 3 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 352 | 53 | 19 | 5 | 20 | 6 | 9 | 0 | 400 | 64 | ||
| Burnley | 2007–08[78] | Championship | 43 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 45 | 1 | |
| 2008–09[79] | Championship | 46 | 9 | 5 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 3[g] | 1 | 61 | 11 | |
| 2009–10[80] | Premier League | 33 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 35 | 8 | ||
| 2010–11[81] | Championship | 32 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | 36 | 4 | ||
| Total | 154 | 20 | 10 | 3 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 177 | 24 | ||
| Preston North End | 2011–12[82] | League One | 18 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2[a] | 0 | 21 | 2 |
| Career total | 833 | 108 | 49 | 9 | 60 | 10 | 39 | 4 | 981 | 131 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scotland[37] | 2002 | 8 | 0 |
| 2003 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2004 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2005 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2006 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2007 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2008 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2009 | 3 | 0 | |
| Total | 40 | 0 | |
| Team | From | To | Record | Ref. | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | W | D | L | Win % | ||||
| Preston North End (caretaker) | 14 December 2011 | 16 January 2012 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 040.0 | [83] |
| Fleetwood Town | 6 December 2012 | 30 September 2015 | 145 | 56 | 35 | 54 | 038.6 | [83] |
| Scunthorpe United | 22 March 2016 | 24 March 2018 | 113 | 53 | 30 | 30 | 046.9 | [44][83] |
| Salford City | 14 May 2018 | 12 October 2020 | 112 | 54 | 27 | 31 | 048.2 | [83] |
| Motherwell | 7 January 2021 | 29 July 2022 | 69 | 27 | 14 | 28 | 039.1 | [83] |
| Milton Keynes Dons | 27 May 2023 | 16 October 2023 | 16 | 6 | 4 | 6 | 037.5 | [83] |
| Bradford City | 6 November 2023 | Present | 129 | 64 | 28 | 37 | 049.6 | [83] |
| Total | 589 | 261 | 142 | 186 | 044.3 | |||
Preston
Burnley
Individual
Fleetwood Town
Salford City
Bradford City
Individual
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