Scotland Euros hero signs two-year deal with Scottish Premiership club

STUART KETTLEWELL says he’s delighted to get key defender Stephen O’Donnell tied up on a new two-year deal.

He said: “It’s another player signed up early which is something I’ve been wanting to do.

“Stephen is an excellent professional and a great role model for the young players.

“In my time here, he’s been tremendous. Last season he was asked to play in a number of positions but applied himself impeccably.”

The defender – nicknamed SOD – said: “Motherwell means a lot to me and I’m delighted to extend my contract.

“I live locally and I’m very proud to represent a club that is a pillar in the community.

“I’ve loved my time here and didn’t want it to end. I’ll continue to give my all for the badge.”

O’Donnell follows midfielder Sam Nicholson, who agreed a permanent Fir Park deal last week.

Meanwhile, Kettlewell admits he will be working to improve his side’s defensive weaknesses in the summer.

Well were third top scorers in the league with 56 goals, but they conceded 59 which is one of the reasons they finished down in ninth place.

Kettlewell said: “I take a lot of satisfaction from finishing top scorers after Rangers and Celtic. But football works in a circle where it’s not just about the goals you score, it’s about the ones you concede as well.

“I talk about the marginal gains that will help us become a better team and improve our league position and help with cup runs.

“It’s not me blaming people, but we have scored enough goals. What we have to do now is not concede as many as we have.

“We’ve spent a lot of time trying to rectify that, and make sure when we are dominating games that counter-attacks and set-plays don’t hurt us.

“A number of times we have changed our set-up from set-plays to try to find a solution where it’s not an issue.

“If you look at the goals we have  conceded from corners, free-kicks and  second-phase long throws, then it’s not been good enough.

“All these things come into the mix — how do we score as many goals next season? There has to be a formula for that as well. But the very foundation is built on what you do at the back end of the pitch.”

Kettlewell, 39, admits the squad he inherited when he took over in February 2023 led him to focus on their attacking instincts first.

He added: “When I came in as interim boss I possibly started from the front to the back. But we’ve had a situation where there have been a lot of injuries across the backline and we’ve been chopping and changing at times.

“Shane Blaney, Dan Casey, Calum Butcher and Paul McGinn were all out at different times. We had to change our wing-backs at times.

“The vision for me is getting a settled backline to try and give us a bit of a foundation. Then from there it’s a balancing act to make sure we don’t concede, but we score enough as well.

“I’ve seen us going all out to stop conceding goals and then we don’t carry a threat, and vice versa.”

O’Donnell is the first guest on SunSport’s brand new podcast Scotland’s Euro Stories with Superscoreboard.

Hosted by Steven Mill and Roger Hannah, you can watch the series now on SunSport’s YouTube channel.

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