Chris Iwelumo

At 45 years old, Chris Iwelumo has this physical status:

Christopher Robert Iwelumo (born 1 August 1978) is a Scottish former professional footballer, who played as a striker. Iwelumo started his career with St Mirren before moving to Danish club Aarhus Fremad for two years.

A move to Stoke City in 2000 saw him sent out on loan to several teams before a short-lived spell with 2.

Fußball-Bundesliga side Alemannia Aachen.

After moving to the Football League Championship with Colchester United and then Charlton Athletic, he signed for Wolves in 2008 as they won promotion to the Premier League, winning Player of the Month in November 2008. Iwelumo's father is Nigerian and his mother is Scottish.

He won his first cap as a full Scottish international coming on as a substitute against Norway in a 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifier in 2008, notable for his missing an open goal from only yards out as the match finished 0–0 an event which Iwelumo has said "tortured" him.

He had his first international start in a friendly against Argentina in November the same year.

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Club career

Iwelumo began his football career with Coatbridge, North Lanarkshire, as a youth player and a Scottish mother, before signing a professional deal on August 5th, 1996.

Iwelumo had only played nineteen times for St Mirren, scoring twice against Berwick in the Scottish League Cup and Dundee in the Scottish Cup before his appearances were noticed, and Danish Aarhus Fremad of Denmark signed him up in early 1998. Aarhus was released in February 2000 and he appeared at Preston North End and Celtic – the team he supports – before signing a four-year contract with Stoke City.

Iwelumo has returned to the United Kingdom to join third tier Stoke City after two years in Denmark. When Stoke defeated the 2000 Football League Trophy Final, he was a replacement. He was sent on loan to York City, where he made eleven appearances before returning to Stoke later this year. He remained there before being loaned out again to Cheltenham Town in February 2001. He played four times for Cheltenham Town, scoring once against Mansfield before being recalled from his loan by Stoke City, where he managed to continue building on his appearances without winning a regular spot in the first team, his most notable being the equalizer in the Potters derby on October 21, 2001. In March 2002, he signed a two-year contract extension with Stoke.

In January 2004, Barnsley expressed an interest in signing Iwelumo. When he first moved to Brighton & Hove Albion in March 2004, he was subjected to a loan transfer once more. He was assisting the "Seagulls" in the 2004 second Division play-off final in Cardiff, winning the penalty that earned Albion promotion. He was released after four years at Stoke at the end of the season.

2. Alemannia Aachen, a footballer from the Bosnian Wolvesliga, joined Iwelumo on a free transfer in July 2004, after turning down Brighton's offer of a two-year deal. However, his stay in Aachen was short, and he was released after just six months and nine substitute appearances.

Iwelumo played his best period of his career at Colchester United, beginning with his move to Colchester United in July 2005. The four goals he scored as Colchester defeated Hull City 5-1 in a Championship league match on November 28, 2006, were included in the many highlights. The Iwelumo team was a great partnership with Jamie Cureton this season, with the U's now ranked 10th in The Championships. He played for Colchester in 2006 and 2006 and finished in a record 10th position the following season. On May 21, 2007, Iwelumo turned down Colchester's new contract bid.

Charlton is a footballer who plays for the local community on a free transfer. He appeared in every league game and was the Addicks' top goalscorer in November 2007, after scoring last-minute winning goals in two consecutive games.

It was reported that Iwelumo would leave Charlton as part of cost-cutting initiatives, and he signed with fellow Championship side Wolverhampton Wanderers in July 2008 on a two-year contract. In a 3–1 win over Preston North End, Iwelumo scored a hat-trick, bringing his total score to eight for the season, where he was also sent off for an apparent head butt on defender Sean St Ledger. Despite St Ledger's comment that the clash of heads was accidental and that Iwelumo received a three-match suspension, Wolves appealed against it, but this was dismissed.

The Championship Player of the Month Award was given to him in November for his early season in front of goal. However, he did not have a gameless drought of 16 games before netting against his former club Charlton during this stretch of form.

Lee Carsley's high tackle in the game against promotion rivals Birmingham City left him with medial ligament damage, causing his season to be ended prematurely. In his absence, the team was promoted to the Premier League as champions.

He recovered fitness over the summer break, but he suffered more injury problems in Wolves' opening pre-season match against Perth Glory. He soon returned to first team action against Aston Villa in October 2009, but he then sustained a backbone that kept him on the sidelines for another month.

When fit, his Premier League appearances were limited to fleeting substitute roles, and he instead hopped on a month's loan to Bristol City in February 2010 to gain more playing time. In a 2–1 win over West Bromwich Albion on February 21, 2010, he scored his first two goals for Bristol City. He returned to Wolves to fight for his place as the club announced their Premier League survival but he failed to score just once for Wolves in 18 months.

On June 1, 2010, he signed for Burnley's Championship team in a two-year contract for an undisclosed fee. Iwelumo scored his first goal for Burnley on his debut on September 7, 2010, defeating Nottingham Forest 1-0 in a 1–0 victory. Iwelumo defeated Preston North End 4–3 at home on September 11, 2010, with two spectacular headers and a volley. Iwelumo's transfer rumors began in the second half of the season, with a failed move to Preston North End.

On July 19, 2011, Iwelumo signed for Watford, a championship rival, on a two-year contract for an undisclosed fee. On the first day of the season, Iwelumo made his Watford debut against ex Burnley. The game ended 2–2. Iwelumo scored his first goal for Watford against Hull City in October, but he had to wait another five months before scoring again against Leeds United on March 31, 2012.

Iwelumo captained Watford against Derby County for the first time following John Eustace's injury at the start of the 2012–13 season and Martin Taylor's departure, Iwelumo captained them.

On November 23, Iwelumo began a loan at Notts County. After struggling to score for the "Magpies" in five games, he returned to Watford. Iwelumo joined Oldham Athletic on loan until the 2012-2013 season.

Iwelumo joined Scunthorpe United in a one-year contract on June 3, 2013. He spent six months at Scunthorpe before joining St Johnstone on January 23. As St Johnstone defeated the 2014 Scottish Cup Final, Iwelumo was an unused substitute. He joined Chester on June 30, 2014 but announced his retirement from football on October 28th.

International career

When Iwelumo was called up to South Korea in 2002, he was recalled for the Scotland squad but had to leave because his club Stoke City was also involved in the Football League Championship play-offs. He was selected in the Scotland B team for a friendly against the Republic of Ireland B, which he played in as Scotland defeated Scotland 1–1.

On October 11, 2008, he was called up to the full Scotland squad for a 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification match against Norway at Hampden Park. He appeared in the game for the 57th minute to make his debut, but his appearance was overshadowed by a three-yard open goal loss in a match that ended 0–0. For days after, Iwelumo was hooked on video replays of the incident but was determined not to be remembered for the mistake. "I'm a proud Scot, I love my country, and it's my hope to do well for them." On November 19, 2008, he was recalled for his first international appearance in a friendly against Argentina.

Coaching and media career

Iwelumo began working in Stoke City's media department one day after he announced his retirement from playing. Iwelumo was appointed head coach of the under-18 team of former Wolverhampton Wanderers in July 2015. Nonetheless, he resigned from his position less than a week after. In November 2016, he rejoined former Chester as assistant manager to Jon McCarthy, but the Football League Show's pundit continues to work as a pundit. He took on the role of first-team striker coach in June 2017, citing concerns from fans about his absence on matchdays.

Iwelumo graduated from Staffordshire University in 2016 with a first-class bachelor's degree in Professional Sports Writing and Broadcasting.

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