A French center back brought up in the Toulouse young teams, he soon moved to Auxerre where he was born to high class football. Played for 5 years in the Auxerre first team before he moved to Roma in 2004.
An incredibly keen sense of positioning, along with an enormous heart and stamina are the main aspects of this classy defender’s game, proving to be one of the best in the game at this point.
His first years in Rome were a bit controversial, since his move from Auxerre was considered illegal by UEFA and he was suspended from competition and Roma was fined. He only fully regained his place in the squad halfway through the 2005/06 season, and has been a key player from then on.
His career in the French national team hasn’t been as good as it could have been, but pundits claim that it’s mainly because of an overall lack of class and vision by French national managers than from any sort of lack of ability from the player.
Photo @ Official AS Roma Website
