Florent Malouda facts for kids
Malouda with France at UEFA Euro 2012
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Florent Johan Malouda | |||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 13 June 1980 | |||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Cayenne, French Guiana, France | |||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.81 m | |||||||||||||||
| Playing position | Left winger | |||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||
| AJ Saint-Georges | ||||||||||||||||
| USL Montjoly | ||||||||||||||||
| Rémire | ||||||||||||||||
| 1995–1996 | Châteauroux | |||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† | |||||||||||||
| 1996–2000 | Châteauroux | 59 | (5) | |||||||||||||
| 2000–2003 | Guingamp | 82 | (15) | |||||||||||||
| 2003–2007 | Lyon | 138 | (25) | |||||||||||||
| 2007–2013 | Chelsea | 149 | (35) | |||||||||||||
| 2013–2014 | Trabzonspor | 19 | (5) | |||||||||||||
| 2014–2015 | Metz | 28 | (3) | |||||||||||||
| 2015–2017 | Delhi Dynamos | 32 | (3) | |||||||||||||
| 2016 | → Wadi Degla (loan) | 16 | (3) | |||||||||||||
| 2018 | FC Differdange 03 | 8 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| Total | 539 | (94) | ||||||||||||||
| National team | ||||||||||||||||
| 2004–2012 | France | 80 | (9) | |||||||||||||
| 2017 | French Guiana | 4 | (0) | |||||||||||||
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Honours
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Florent Johan Malouda (born 13 June 1980) is a French football coach and former professional player. He played as a left winger. Malouda was born in French Guiana. He played for both the French national team and the French Guiana team.
Malouda spent most of his playing career with two big clubs: Lyon in France and Chelsea in England. With Lyon, he won the Ligue 1 title four times in a row. With Chelsea, he won the UEFA Champions League in 2012. He also won many other awards and trophies.
Malouda played for the France national football team 80 times between 2004 and 2012. He played in two FIFA World Cups and two European Championships. He was part of the French team that reached the 2006 World Cup final. In 2017, he also played for his home region, French Guiana.
Contents
Playing Career: Club Highlights
Starting Out at Châteauroux
Florent Malouda was born in Cayenne, French Guiana. Football scouts from the French club Châteauroux noticed his talent. He moved to Paris to join the club. It was tough living far from his family in French Guiana. But Malouda managed to continue his studies and play professional football. He played 57 games for Châteauroux. He made his first team debut at just 16 years old in Ligue 2.
Shining at Guingamp
After Châteauroux couldn't get into Ligue 1, Malouda was signed by Guingamp. This was a top-division team. At Guingamp, he really showed off his skills in French football. His coach, Guy Lacombe, helped him a lot. Malouda also played well with Didier Drogba. They would later play together again at Chelsea.
Success with Lyon
Malouda's great performances caught the eye of Lyon. Lyon had just won their second straight league title in the 2002–03 season. They decided to sign Malouda. Lyon had an amazing team with players like Juninho and Michael Essien. Malouda became a key player on the left side of their attack. He worked well with all of Lyon's strikers. His strong play for Lyon helped him get called up to the France national team.
Some of Malouda's best moments at Lyon include a fantastic game against Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League. He was named the best player of that match. In the 2006–07 season, he scored ten goals. This helped Lyon win their sixth league title in a row. That same season, he was named the best player in Ligue 1. He beat out other great players for the award. After this successful season, Malouda wanted to leave Lyon. Big clubs like Chelsea, Liverpool, and Real Madrid were interested in him.
Joining Chelsea
On 8 July 2007, Lyon's president said they had accepted an offer from Chelsea for Malouda. The transfer fee was reportedly around £13 million. Malouda went to London for a medical check-up and to talk about his contract. He officially signed a three-year deal with Chelsea. He was given the number 15 shirt. Chelsea's manager, José Mourinho, said Malouda was an experienced player. He believed Malouda could handle the fast pace of English football.
First Season: 2007–08
Malouda played his first game for Chelsea on 5 August 2007. It was against Manchester United in the 2007 FA Community Shield. The game ended in a 1–1 draw, and Chelsea lost on penalties. But Malouda scored a goal and played very well. On 12 August, he started against Birmingham City. He scored Chelsea's second goal in a 3–2 win. This win helped Chelsea break a record for unbeaten home games.
Malouda scored his first Champions League goal for Chelsea against Schalke 04. He scored his second league goal against Newcastle United on 5 May 2008. He finished his first season in England with two goals and one assist in the league.
Building Up: 2008–09
Malouda scored his first two goals of the Luiz Felipe Scolari era against Bordeaux. This was in the Champions League group stages on 16 September 2008. Both games ended in 4–0 wins for Chelsea. His first league goal was in a 5–0 win against Middlesbrough. He scored an important second goal in a 2–0 win against Newcastle. He then scored the tying goal against Arsenal in the FA Cup semi-final. Chelsea won that game 2–1.
In a Champions League semi-final against Barcelona, Malouda was denied a possible penalty. He scored the fourth goal in a famous 4–1 win over Arsenal. This was Arsenal's biggest home league defeat in 38 years. This game was his 50th Premier League match for Chelsea. In the 2009 FA Cup Final against Everton, Malouda helped Chelsea win 2–1. He set up Didier Drogba's goal. His strong play led to interest from clubs like Barcelona and Milan. But on 23 June 2009, Malouda signed a new four-year contract with Chelsea.
Top Scorer: 2009–10
When Carlo Ancelotti became manager in the 2009–10 season, Malouda played a more central role. On 12 September 2009, he scored the winning goal in the 94th minute against Stoke City. This gave Chelsea all three points. On 3 November 2009, Malouda played his 100th game for Chelsea. This was a Champions League match against Atlético Madrid. On 26 December 2009, Malouda received his first red card of the season. This happened in a league game against Birmingham City.
In a match against West Ham United, Malouda was named Man of the Match. He made 16 crosses, leading to two assists, and scored one goal himself. Malouda scored two goals against Portsmouth on 24 March. Chelsea won that match 5–0. On 27 March, he scored two more goals against Aston Villa in a huge 7–1 win for Chelsea.
In a very important game against title rivals Manchester United, Malouda played a key role. He set up the first goal for Joe Cole. Chelsea won the game 2–1. Malouda was named the Premier League Player of the Month for March 2010. He scored Chelsea's second goal in a 3–0 win over Aston Villa in the FA Cup semi-final. Malouda scored 12 goals and had 8 assists in the league that season. Overall, he had 15 goals and 15 assists in all competitions.
Consistent Performer: 2010–11
Malouda started the 2010–11 Premier League season strong. He scored Chelsea's first goal of the season against West Bromwich Albion. Chelsea won that game 6–0. He scored his third goal in another 6–0 win against Wigan Athletic. Malouda scored his fourth goal against Stoke City in a 2–0 win. He continued his great form against Blackpool, scoring two more goals. This brought his total to six goals in just five games.
On 24 January 2011, Malouda scored in a 4–0 win against Bolton Wanderers. On 20 April 2011, he scored two goals against Birmingham City in a 3–1 win. By May 2011, he had scored 41 goals in 179 matches for Chelsea. Malouda was Chelsea's top league goal scorer in the 2010–11 Premier League season, with 13 goals.
Winning the Champions League: 2011–12
In the summer of 2011, there were rumors that Juventus wanted to sign Malouda. But Malouda said he wanted to stay at Chelsea.
He scored in Chelsea's 5–1 win over Tottenham Hotspur in the FA Cup semi-finals. Malouda came on as a substitute in Chelsea's 2–1 win over Liverpool in the FA Cup final. He earned his third FA Cup winner's medal. He also played in the Champions League final against Bayern Munich. He came on as a substitute in the second half. Chelsea won the game 4–3 on penalties. This made Chelsea the first London club to win the Champions League trophy. After a season where he wasn't always in the starting team, Malouda promised to work hard for the club and fans.
Leaving Chelsea: 2012–13
Malouda missed some of Chelsea's pre-season games in 2012. He was given extra rest after playing for France in UEFA Euro 2012. Malouda decided to leave Chelsea after not playing much in his final season. On 30 June 2013, Chelsea officially released him.
Later Career: New Adventures
On 17 July 2013, Malouda signed a two-year contract with Süper Lig team Trabzonspor in Turkey. He reportedly earned around €2.5 million per season. On 1 November 2013, he scored two goals against Kayseri Erciyesspor in a 3–1 win.
After leaving Trabzonspor, he returned to France. On 12 September 2014, he signed with Metz in Ligue 1. This was seven years after he had left France.
On 23 August 2015, Malouda joined Indian Super League team Delhi Dynamos. The team was managed by Roberto Carlos. He played in all of the Dynamos' 2015 Indian Super League games. They reached the playoff semi-finals.
On 29 January 2016, Malouda went on a six-month loan to Egyptian Premier League team Wadi Degla. This allowed him to keep playing during the Indian off-season. He played 18 times for them. He helped his new club reach the Egyptian cup quarter-finals. They also finished fifth in the league.
Malouda returned to the Dynamos for the 2016 Indian Super League season. He played most of the season as captain. They reached the playoff semi-finals again. He left the club in July 2017.
On 25 January 2018, Malouda signed with Luxembourg National Division team FC Differdange 03. He was without a club for almost half a year before this. Injuries limited his playing time in Luxembourg. He played five times and helped with three goals. His team finished fifth in the league and reached the semi-finals of the Luxembourg Cup.
International Career: Representing France
Playing for France
Malouda made his first appearance for France on 17 November 2004. This was in a match against Poland. He soon became a regular player for the team. He scored his first goal for France on 31 May 2005 against Hungary.
Malouda played in most of France's qualifying games for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. He was then chosen for the final World Cup squad. He played regularly in the tournament. France reached the final but lost to Italy in a penalty shootout. In that final game, he won a penalty for France, which Zinedine Zidane scored.
On 22 June 2010, during the 2010 World Cup, Malouda scored a goal against host nation South Africa. France lost that game 2–1. It was the only goal France scored in the group stage. They were eliminated from the tournament.
On 3 September 2010, Malouda was made captain for France's first UEFA Euro 2012 qualifier against Belarus. This was because the previous captain was suspended. It was the first game for new coach Laurent Blanc. France lost the game 1–0.
In February 2012, Malouda scored France's second goal in a 2–1 win over Germany. He was included in France's squad for the Euro 2012 tournament. On 31 May, he scored his ninth international goal in a 2–0 friendly win against Serbia.
Playing for French Guiana
After not playing for the French team for five years, Malouda became eligible to play for his home nation, French Guiana. French Guiana is not a FIFA member. In June 2017, he was chosen for the French Guiana squad for the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup. He played his first game for them in a friendly against Barbados. However, he was later ruled ineligible for the Gold Cup. This was because CONCACAF rules for the tournament follow FIFA rules, and Malouda had already played for France in official FIFA matches. Despite this, Malouda played in French Guiana's Gold Cup match against Honduras. This led to the match being forfeited by French Guiana.
Coaching Career
Malouda later became a coach at the Swiss club FC Zurich. However, his contract was ended in April 2019 after less than two months.
Personal Life
Florent Malouda has eight children. His son, Aaron Malouda, is also a professional footballer and plays for Lille OSC.
Honours
Lyon
- Ligue 1: 2003–04, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2006–07
- Trophée des Champions: 2003, 2004, 2005
Chelsea
- Premier League: 2009–10
- FA Cup: 2008–09, 2009–10, 2011–12
- FA Community Shield: 2009
- UEFA Champions League: 2011–12; runner-up: 2007–08
France
- FIFA World Cup runner-up: 2006
Individual Awards
- Ligue 1 Team of the Year: 2004–05, 2005–06, 2006–07
- Ligue 1 Player of the Month: November 2006
- Ligue 1 Player of the Year: 2006–07
- Premier League Player of the Month: March 2010
- Indian Super League Hero of the League: 2016
Images for kids
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Malouda with Chelsea in 2008
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Malouda in action against Spartak Moscow in the Champions League
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Malouda in action against Arsenal's Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
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Malouda (right) playing for France at UEFA Euro 2012.
See also
In Spanish: Florent Malouda para niños
