Tony Capaldi facts for kids
Capaldi in 2013
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Anthony Charles Capaldi | ||
| Date of birth | 12 August 1981 | ||
| Place of birth | Porsgrunn, Norway | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||
| Playing position | Left back, Left winger | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1998–1999 | Birmingham City | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1999–2003 | Birmingham City | 0 | (0) |
| 2001–2002 | → Hereford United (loan) | 12 | (0) |
| 2003–2007 | Plymouth Argyle | 141 | (12) |
| 2007–2010 | Cardiff City | 62 | (0) |
| 2009–2010 | → Leeds United (loan) | 3 | (0) |
| 2010–2011 | Morecambe | 18 | (0) |
| 2011–2013 | Oxford United | 30 | (0) |
| 2013–2014 | Tamworth | 24 | (0) |
| 2014 | Barwell | 11 | (0) |
| 2014–2017 | Rushall Olympic | 5 | (0) |
| National team | |||
| 1999–2000 | Northern Ireland U18 | 4 | (1) |
| 2001–2003 | Northern Ireland U21 | 14 | (0) |
| 2004–2007 | Northern Ireland | 22 | (0) |
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Anthony Charles Capaldi, born on August 12, 1981, is a former professional footballer. He played in almost 250 games in the Football League. Capaldi also played for the Northern Ireland national team.
He was born in Porsgrunn, Norway. Capaldi played 22 international games, known as caps, for Northern Ireland. Most of these were while he was playing for Plymouth Argyle. This made him the player with the most international caps from that club. He played for several teams in the Football League, including Plymouth Argyle, Cardiff City, Leeds United, Morecambe, and Oxford United. Capaldi could play as a left back (defender) or a left-sided midfielder.
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Tony Capaldi's Club Career
Capaldi started his football journey at Birmingham City. He trained there as a young player. While at Birmingham, he spent some time on loan at Hereford United. He later joined Plymouth Argyle in 2003. He never played a first-team game for Birmingham City.
In the 2004–05 season, Capaldi broke his leg during a game. This meant he couldn't play for a long time. However, in December 2004, he signed a new contract with Plymouth that lasted until June 2007.
Playing for Cardiff City
Capaldi decided not to sign a new contract with Plymouth. On May 25, 2007, he joined Cardiff City on a three-year deal. He moved there for free because his contract with Plymouth had ended. This is known as a Bosman free transfer.
He started as the main left back for Cardiff. But he found it hard to play well all the time. So, he was replaced by another player, Chris Gunter. After Gunter was sold, Capaldi returned to the team. He started to play better and became more comfortable. He even played in all six of Cardiff's matches when they reached the 2008 FA Cup Final.
At the start of the 2008–09 season, Capaldi had a knee problem. He missed the first two weeks of the season. He came back on August 26 in a League Cup game against Milton Keynes Dons. But his knee problem returned. Capaldi was out for over three months because of this injury. He finally returned as a substitute in an FA Cup game against Arsenal on January 25. He only played in five games for Cardiff that season.
On August 18, 2009, Capaldi was sent off (given a red card) in a game against his old club, Plymouth Argyle. Cardiff won the game 3–1. Capaldi later played in a 3–2 loss against Swansea City. He played as a left midfielder in that game. However, because he wasn't playing much, Capaldi thought he might need to find another club.
Loan to Leeds United
On November 26, 2009, Capaldi joined League One leaders Leeds United. This was a loan deal until January 4, 2010. He hoped to join them permanently. He was also allowed to play for Leeds in the FA Cup.
Capaldi's friends, including Cardiff teammate Warren Feeney, told him to join Leeds. He played his first game for Leeds in a 1–1 FA Cup draw against Kettering Town. Then he made his league debut against Oldham Athletic. After playing against Huddersfield Town, Capaldi said he really wanted to stay at Leeds for good.
Capaldi was not in the starting team for the replay against Kettering. But another player, Aidy White, got injured during the game. So, Capaldi came on to replace him. He started the next game, a 0–0 draw with Brentford. However, when Andy Hughes returned from injury, Capaldi was not in the team for four games. He was an unused substitute for his last loan game, a 1–0 FA Cup win against Manchester United.
Back to Cardiff City
Capaldi went back to Cardiff on January 5, 2010. Leeds decided not to keep him. He played in nine more games for Cardiff during the rest of that season. He was then released by the club at the end of the year.
Later Years in Football
After leaving Cardiff, Capaldi tried out for several clubs. These included Plymouth Argyle, Crystal Palace, and Heart of Midlothian. On September 16, 2010, he signed a short-term deal with Morecambe. There, he reunited with his former Northern Ireland manager, Sammy McIlroy.
In early 2011, Capaldi had a trial with Scottish Premier League club Aberdeen. He played in two friendly matches for them. In June 2011, Capaldi joined Oxford United and signed a two-year contract. He was injured for almost the entire 2011–12 season. He finally played his first game for Oxford in a 3–0 loss to Port Vale on the last day of the season.
Oxford released Capaldi when his contract ended in 2013. He had played 39 games for the club. That summer, he tried out for Tamworth and signed with them in August. They were starting their new season in the Conference Premier.
Tony Capaldi's International Career
Tony Capaldi was born in Norway and grew up in Birmingham, England. His father was Scottish. But Capaldi chose to play for Northern Ireland. He could do this because his grandmother was born in Limavady, Northern Ireland.
Capaldi played for Northern Ireland 22 times at the senior level. His first game was in March 2004, a 1–0 win against Estonia. He also played in their famous 1–0 victory over England in September 2005. Capaldi broke a 78-year-old record for international appearances by a Plymouth Argyle player. He earned his 21st cap in a friendly game against Wales.
Tony Capaldi's Personal Life
Capaldi was born in Porsgrunn, Norway. This was because his Scottish father, John Capaldi, was playing football for the local team Pors Grenland at the time. His father also played for Aston Villa and Motherwell. He also managed Bolehall Swifts for a while.
