Trevor Steven

Lore & Background

Steven began his career with Burnley upon leaving school in summer 1980, making his debut as a substitute on 14 April 1981. He helped Burnley win promotion to the Second Division as Third Division champions in 1981–82. Everton boss Howard Kendall signed him for £300,000 in summer 1983. Steven made his Everton debut at the start of the 1983–84 season and played in the 1984 FA Cup Final, a 2–0 win over Watford, earning an FA Cup medal. The following season, he formed a strong right-flank partnership with full back Gary Stevens, helping Everton win the First Division title and the European Cup Winners' Cup, in which he scored the second goal in the 3–1 final win over Rapid Vienna. He left Everton in the 1989 close season for Rangers in a £1.5 million deal. At Rangers, he won league titles and the Scottish League Cup. In August 1991, he moved to Marseille for £5.5 million, winning the French league title. He returned to Rangers four days after reportedly agreeing to sign for Leeds United in July 1992, for a fee of £2.2 million. His second spell at Rangers was undermined by injuries, but he was part of five more league title wins before retiring in 1997. He earned his first England cap in February 1985 and was selected for the 1986 World Cup squad.

In Their Own Story

The February evening at Goodison was bitter, the kind of cold that seeps through the oldest boots and settles in the joints. The floodlights hummed their low electric note over the wet grass, and the Kop was a solid block of blue and white, breath visible in the air. Steven dropped the ball for the free kick, twenty-five yards out, slightly left of centre. He took three steps back, lined his shoulder, and the crowd held its collective breath. He struck it — not with the thunder of a long-range cannon, but with a weighted, curling touch that arced just over the wall and dipped into the top corner. For a split second the net rippled, and then the noise hit like a physical wave, a wall of sound that shook the terracing. He didn't celebrate wildly. He simply turned, jogged back to midfield, and waited for the next throw-in. That was Trevor Steven. The goal belonged to everyone; the next run was his to take.

Reader's Guide

Trevor Steven is a right-sided midfielder. He played for Burnley (1980–1983), Everton (1983–1989), Rangers (1989–1991), Marseille (1991–1992), and Rangers again (1992–1997). He won the FA Cup with Everton in 1984, the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1985, multiple Scottish league titles with Rangers, and the French league title with Marseille. He earned 36 caps for England and scored goals in international friendlies against the Republic of Ireland, the USA, and Egypt.

Did You Know?

• Steven scored a crucial goal in the 1985 European Cup Winners' Cup semi-final against Bayern Munich.
• He was part of Rangers' '9-in-a-row' Scottish league title run.
• His transfer to Marseille in 1991 was for £5.5 million, then the joint-highest fee involving a British player.
• He works as a presenter for RTÉ Sport in Ireland.