Costel Pantilimon facts for kids
Pantilimon with Romania in June 2014
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Costel Fane Pantilimon | ||
| Date of birth | 1 February 1987 | ||
| Place of birth | Bacău, Romania | ||
| Height | 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Goalkeeper | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1993–2003 | Aerostar Bacău | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2003–2006 | Aerostar Bacău | 80 | (0) |
| 2006–2008 | Politehnica II Timișoara | 26 | (0) |
| 2006–2012 | Politehnica Timișoara | 93 | (0) |
| 2011–2012 | → Manchester City (loan) | 0 | (0) |
| 2012–2014 | Manchester City | 7 | (0) |
| 2014–2016 | Sunderland | 45 | (0) |
| 2016–2018 | Watford | 2 | (0) |
| 2017–2018 | → Deportivo La Coruña (loan) | 6 | (0) |
| 2018 | → Nottingham Forest (loan) | 13 | (0) |
| 2018–2020 | Nottingham Forest | 44 | (0) |
| 2020 | → Omonia (loan) | 6 | (0) |
| 2020–2021 | Denizlispor | 15 | (0) |
| Total | 337 | (0) | |
| International career | |||
| 2003–2004 | Romania U17 | 5 | (0) |
| 2005 | Romania U19 | 3 | (0) |
| 2006–2008 | Romania U21 | 12 | (0) |
| 2008–2019 | Romania | 27 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Costel Fane Pantilimon, born on February 1, 1987, is a former professional footballer from Romania. He was a talented goalkeeper who played for many clubs and his national team.
Pantilimon started his career at Politehnica Timișoara. In 2011, he joined Premier League team Manchester City. He was first a backup to Joe Hart. Pantilimon became the main goalkeeper for City in their 2013–14 League Cup win. After that, he moved to Sunderland. He then transferred to Watford in 2016. Later, he played on loan for Deportivo La Coruña and Nottingham Forest. Pantilimon signed a permanent deal with Forest in 2018. He finished his career playing for Omonia and Denizlispor.
Pantilimon also played for the Romanian national team from 2008 to 2017. He played 27 games for his country. He was part of the team for UEFA Euro 2016 but did not play in any matches.
Contents
Club Career Highlights
Starting in Football
Costel Pantilimon was born in Bacău, Romania. He began his football journey at Aerostar Bacău. He gained attention while playing for the Romania national under-19 team. On his 19th birthday, February 1, 2006, he moved to Politehnica Timișoara.
Time at Politehnica Timișoara
At first, Pantilimon was the second-choice goalkeeper for Timișoara. He was behind Marius Popa. In May 2008, the club owner decided to move Popa to the second team. This made Pantilimon the main goalkeeper. He played his first game in the Romanian Liga 1 in March 2007. This match was against Dinamo București.
Pantilimon became team captain for the first time on October 17, 2009. This happened in a game against Ceahlăul. He led the team because the usual captains were not playing.
He was part of the Timișoara team that beat UEFA Cup winners Shakhtar Donetsk. This was during the qualifying rounds for the 2009–10 Champions League. He played every minute of both games.
Playing for Manchester City
On August 11, 2011, Pantilimon joined Manchester City. He came on a one-year loan from Politehnica Timișoara. He was brought in to be a backup for Joe Hart after Shay Given left.
Pantilimon's first game for City was a League Cup win. They played against the previous winners, Birmingham City, on September 21, 2011. He also played against Wolverhampton Wanderers in the same competition. City won that game 5–2. Pantilimon was named Man of the Match in a League Cup quarter-final win against Arsenal. He made two important saves in the first half. He also played in an FA Cup game against Manchester United. He saved a penalty but City lost 3–2.
His loan deal became permanent, and he signed a contract until 2016. During the 2012–13 FA Cup, he kept four clean sheets in a row. He played very well against Chelsea in the semi-final. He only let in one goal in five matches during that cup run. The manager, Roberto Mancini, had promised Pantilimon would play in the final. However, Joe Hart started the final instead, and Manchester City lost 1–0 to Wigan.
Pantilimon started his first game of the 2013–14 season in the Football League Cup. City won 5–0 against Wigan on September 24, 2013. He also played in the next League Cup match against Newcastle United. City won 2–0 and moved to the next round. Three days later, he played his first Premier League game against Norwich City. City won 7–0, and he kept another clean sheet. He also played in a Champions League game against CSKA Moscow, which City won 5–2.
On March 2, 2014, Pantilimon started in the 2014 League Cup Final at Wembley Stadium. Manchester City won 3–1 against Sunderland. Overall, Pantilimon played seven times in the 2013–14 Premier League season. He helped Manchester City win their second league title in three years. He was also the main goalkeeper for their League Cup and FA Cup games.
Moving to Sunderland
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On June 16, 2014, Pantilimon joined Sunderland for free. He played his first game for Sunderland in the League Cup on August 27. He kept a clean sheet in a 3–0 win against Birmingham City. Pantilimon started as a backup to Vito Mannone. But after some difficult games, Pantilimon became the first-choice goalkeeper. He made his Premier League debut for Sunderland in a 3–1 win against Crystal Palace on November 3, 2014. He remained the main keeper for the rest of that season. In the next season, he lost his starting spot and became the third-choice goalkeeper.
Time at Watford
On January 19, 2016, Pantilimon joined Premier League team Watford. He signed a three-and-a-half-year deal. He played his first game for Watford in an FA Cup win against Nottingham Forest on January 30. He kept clean sheets in both of his first two FA Cup games. He made his Premier League debut for Watford on November 6, 2016. This happened after the main goalkeeper, Heurelho Gomes, got injured.
On September 1, 2017, Pantilimon went on loan to La Liga club Deportivo La Coruña in Spain. He stayed there until May 20, 2018. He joined because their main goalkeeper was injured. Pantilimon played his first game for Deportivo on September 16. The next week, he kept his first clean sheet in a 1–0 win.
Playing for Nottingham Forest
On January 31, 2018, Pantilimon returned to England. He signed on loan for EFL Championship team Nottingham Forest. He played his first game for Forest on February 3 against Fulham. He made his home debut the next week against Hull City. In that game, he saved a penalty. He was named in the English Football League's Team of the Week on February 17. This was after he kept a clean sheet even though Forest played with ten men for most of the game.
On July 3, 2018, Pantilimon signed a three-year contract with Forest. On January 30, 2020, he was loaned to Cypriot First Division team Omonia for the rest of the season.
Later Career at Denizlispor
On September 4, 2020, Pantilimon joined Turkish Süper Lig team Denizlispor. This happened after his contract with Nottingham Forest ended. He played 15 games for Denizlispor before retiring.
International Career
Pantilimon played for the Romania under-21 team. He made his debut for the senior Romania national team on November 19, 2008. This was in a friendly game against Georgia. On May 31, 2016, Pantilimon was chosen for the final 23-man squad for UEFA Euro 2016. However, he did not play in any matches during the tournament. The Romanian coach used Ciprian Tătărușanu as the main goalkeeper.
Personal Life
Costel Pantilimon is a hearing child. Both of his parents are deaf. He married Andreea Berbece in 2013.
Honours and Achievements
Pantilimon achieved several successes during his career:
- Politehnica Timișoara
- Cupa României runner-up: 2006–07, 2008–09
- Manchester City
- Premier League: 2013–14
- Football League Cup: 2013–14
- FA Community Shield: 2012
- FA Cup runner-up: 2012–13
See also
In Spanish: Costel Pantilimon para niños
