Sylvain Wiltord facts for kids
Wiltord training with Rennes in 2008
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| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Sylvain Claude Wiltord | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 10 May 1974 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Neuilly-sur-Marne, France | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.73 m | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing position | Right winger | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| –1988 | Neuilly-sur-Marne | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1988–1991 | Joinville-le-Pont | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1991–1993 | Rennes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1991–1996 | Rennes | 91 | (28) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1996–1997 | Deportivo La Coruña | 0 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1996–1997 | → Rennes (loan) | 35 | (3) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1997–2000 | Bordeaux | 99 | (46) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2000–2004 | Arsenal | 106 | (31) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2004–2007 | Lyon | 82 | (20) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2007–2009 | Rennes | 31 | (6) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2009 | Marseille | 13 | (1) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010 | Metz | 15 | (3) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2011–2012 | Nantes | 33 | (8) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 505 | (146) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National team | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1999–2006 | France | 92 | (26) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Honours
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Sylvain Claude Wiltord (born May 10, 1974) is a French former professional footballer. He mostly played as a right winger. He could also play as a centre-forward, a second striker, or on the left wing.
Wiltord played for Arsenal for four seasons. With them, he won two Premier League titles and two FA Cups. He also won the Ligue 1 title with Bordeaux. He won it three times in a row with Lyon.
Wiltord played for the French national team 92 times and scored 26 goals. He played in the 1996 Olympics, two FIFA World Cups, and two UEFA European Championships. He was part of the team that won Euro 2000. In that final, he scored a goal in the last minute to make the game go to extra time. He also helped France reach the final of the 2006 World Cup.
Contents
Sylvain Wiltord: A Football Journey
Early Career and Rise to Fame
Sylvain Wiltord started his journey in football at Rennes in 1991. He quickly showed his talent. In the 1993–94 season, he scored eight goals in 26 games. This made him a player to watch.
In 1996, Wiltord played very well for France at the 1996 Summer Olympics. After this, a Spanish club, Deportivo de La Coruña, wanted to sign him. He was loaned back to Rennes for one season. Then, in 1997, he moved to Bordeaux in France.
At Bordeaux, he played in almost every game. In the 1998–99 season, he scored 22 goals. This made him the top scorer in the league, and Bordeaux won the Ligue 1 championship.
Playing for Arsenal
In August 2000, Wiltord joined the English club Arsenal. This was a very big transfer at the time. He joined just weeks after scoring a key goal in the Euro 2000 Final. At Arsenal, he sometimes played alongside Thierry Henry. Other times, he played on the wing.
He played his first game for Arsenal in September 2000. His first goal came soon after. A big moment in his first season was scoring three goals in one half against West Ham United. Arsenal reached the 2001 FA Cup Final, but they lost to Liverpool.
Winning Trophies with Arsenal
In the 2001–02 season, Wiltord scored ten goals in the league. Arsenal won the league title that year. He scored important winning goals against Chelsea and Everton. The most famous moment for Wiltord at Arsenal was when he scored the winning goal against Manchester United. This 1–0 win at Old Trafford secured the 2001–02 Premier League title for Arsenal. They also won the FA Cup that year, completing "The Double."
The next season, Arsenal won the FA Cup again. Wiltord played in the final. He was also part of Arsenal's famous "Invincibles" team in the 2003–04 season. This team went the entire league season without losing a single game. Wiltord played 175 games for Arsenal and scored 49 goals in total.
Later Club Career
After leaving Arsenal in 2004, Wiltord joined Lyon in France. He continued to be very successful there. He won three more Ligue 1 titles with Lyon. He also helped them reach the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League twice.
Moving Around France
In 2007, Wiltord returned to his first club, Rennes. He signed a two-year contract. After that, he played for Marseille for a short time in 2009. He then joined FC Metz in 2010.
His last club was Nantes, where he signed in 2011. He played there until he announced his retirement from football in June 2012.
International Career with France
Sylvain Wiltord made his first appearance for the French national team in 1999. He played in a 2–0 win against England. He played for France 92 times and scored 26 goals.
Euro 2000 Hero
His most memorable goal for France was in the UEFA Euro 2000 Final against Italy. In the very last seconds of the game, he scored to make it 1–1. This sent the match into extra-time. France then won the final with a "golden goal" scored by David Trezeguet.
Wiltord also played in the 2002 FIFA World Cup. However, France had a tough tournament and did not win any games. He also played in UEFA Euro 2004. France was surprisingly knocked out by Greece in the quarter-finals.
World Cup Finalist
In 2006, Wiltord was part of the French team that reached the final of the 2006 FIFA World Cup. They played against Italy. The game ended 1–1. In the penalty shootout, Wiltord scored France's first penalty. However, France lost the shootout 5–3.
Wiltord is one of France's top goal scorers. He scored 26 goals for his country.
Personal Life
Sylvain Wiltord was born in Neuilly-sur-Marne, near Paris. His parents moved to France from Martinique. He grew up with seven brothers and sisters. When he was 14, he lived with his older sister and helped care for his young niece.
In 2015, he took part in a TV reality show called Dropped. In this show, sports stars were dropped into wild places. After he left the show, a helicopter crash happened. Ten people died, including three of his fellow contestants. Wiltord shared his sadness about the accident on social media.
Media Appearances
Wiltord was sponsored by the sports company Nike. He appeared in some of their commercials. One famous commercial was called "Secret Tournament" for the 2002 World Cup. In it, he played football with many other famous players like Thierry Henry and Ronaldo.
Honours
Bordeaux
- Division 1: 1998–99
Arsenal
- Premier League: 2001–02, 2003–04
- FA Cup: 2001–02, 2002–03
- FA Community Shield: 2002
Lyon
- Ligue 1: 2004–05, 2005–06, 2006–07
France
- UEFA European Championship: 2000
- FIFA Confederations Cup: 2001, 2003
- FIFA World Cup runner-up: 2006
Individual
- French Footballer of the Year: 1999
- Premier League Player of the Month: August 2002
- UNFP Ligue 1 Team of the Year: 2004–05, 2005–06
See also
In Spanish: Sylvain Wiltord para niños
