Martin Paterson

Martin Andrew Paterson (born 10 May 1987) is a former professional footballer who is the head coach of club Burton Albion.

Born in Stoke-on-Trent, he played as a forward he began his career with Stoke City, making his senior debut in April 2005.

He made his first team debut for Stoke as a late substitute for Chris Greenacre in a 2–0 win over Plymouth Argyle in a Championship game at the Britannia Stadium on 16 April 2005.

He failed to win a regular first team place however, and had a loan spell at Grimsby Town in the 2006–07 season, before he was allowed to join Scunthorpe United in July 2007.

His first start came in a 0–0 draw with Leeds United at Elland Road on 25 March 2006.

He had dyed his hair red and white before the game, but was sent home to have it cut by manager Tony Pulis.

He scored his first goal for the club on 12 September 2006, in a 1–1 draw with Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough Stadium.

Nine weeks later he joined League Two side Grimsby Town on an initial one-month loan, along with Stoke teammate Anthony Pulis.

He scored four goals in his first three appearances for the "Mariners".

The loan was extended into a third month, and after scoring a total of six goals in his 15 games for Grimsby, manager Alan Buckley said that "for supporters to sing 'why don't you sign him', we've got to get real... there was never any possibility of us making anything permanent for a player like Martin."

Wrexham tried to acquire the striker on loan, but he instead remained at Stoke.

He played three further games for the "Potters" towards the end of the 2006–07 season, before departing in the summer.

He scored 13 goals in the Championship in the 2007–08 season, and was signed by Burnley for a £1 million fee in June 2008.

He won 23 caps for Northern Ireland in a seven-year international career from 2007 to 2014, scoring three international goals.

After retiring as a player, he moved into coaching with Tampa Bay Rowdies, Fort Lauderdale, Inter Miami, Barnsley, Swansea City, before becoming the head coach at Burton Albion in January 2024.

Born in Tunstall, Staffordshire, Paterson failed a trial at nearby Port Vale at the age of nine as the club felt he was too small, but was instead accepted into the Stoke City academy.

Manager Tony Pulis said that "it was the right decision to let him go – in the summer of 2007 – because there was no way he was going to play in front of Ricardo Fuller".

In July 2007, Paterson was signed by Scunthorpe United manager Nigel Adkins for a fee set by a tribunal.

He enjoyed an excellent start to the 2007–08 season, scoring four goals in his first five games.

He ended the campaign with 14 goals in 42 appearances, but the "Iron" were relegated out of the Championship and he left the club in acrimonious circumstances, accusing Scunthorpe of having gone back on their word after they rejected his written transfer request.

He scored 19 goals in 57 appearances in the 2008–09 campaign, helping the club to win promotion into the Premier League via the play-offs.

In June 2008, Paterson agreed a four-year contract with Burnley after being signed by manager Owen Coyle for a £1 million fee, which would rise to £1.3 million depending on appearances; the deal included a 20% sell on fee for Scunthorpe.

He scored 19 goals in 57 appearances in the 2008–09 season, finishing as the club's top-scorer, as the "Clarets" reached the semi-finals of the League Cup and won promotion into the Premier League via the play-offs.

He played the full 90 minutes at Wembley Stadium as Burnley beat Sheffield United 1–0 in the play-off final.

Burnley were relegated at the end of the 2009–10 season, and he went on to join Huddersfield Town on a free transfer in June 2013.

He had loan spells at Bristol City, Fleetwood Town, and MLS club Orlando City.

He tore his medial knee ligament in September 2009 and was kept him out of action for three months as he was forced to undergo surgery to correct the problem.

He returned to fitness, and scored his first Premier League goal on 21 February in a 5–2 defeat to Aston Villa at Villa Park.

Six days later he made his first league start since his return from injury, and scored Burnley's consolation goal in a 2–1 defeat to Portsmouth at Turf Moor after lobbing England international goalkeeper David James.

He scored in a 4–1 victory over Hull City at the KC Stadium on 10 April, and scored his fourth and final goal of the campaign in a 4–2 home win over Tottenham Hotspur on 9 May.

Burnley were relegated at the end of the 2009–10 season, along with Hull City and Portsmouth, after finishing five points short of safety.

Paterson signed a new three-year contract in June 2010, with manager Brian Laws stating that "it is a reward for the season he had. Even though he was injured for a good part, Martin certainly made an impact".

It took until 6 November for him to register his first goals of the season, scoring twice in a 2–2 draw with Norwich City at Carrow Road.

He then picked up a thigh injury later in the month which kept him out over Christmas, and the injury re-occurred in February to rule him out for the rest of the season.

In August 2011, it was reported that Burnley rejected an offer of £2.5 million from Portsmouth for Paterson.

He was again plagued by injury during the 2011–12 campaign, with a thigh problem picked up in August keeping him out until December and then a pulled hamstring picked up January keeping him out until the middle of February.

He was released by Huddersfield and then had a brief spell with Orlando City, before he spent the 2015–16 season with Blackpool.

He joined Port Vale for a four-month spell in August 2016, before returning to America to play for the Tampa Bay Rowdies in March 2017.

He moved to India in January 2018 to sign for ATK.

Throughout his 14-year professional career he scored 78 goals in 339 league and cup appearances.