Carl Medjani

Carl Medjani
Personal information
Full name Carl Medjani
Date of birth (1985-05-15) 15 May 1985
Place of birth Lyon, France
Height 1.84 m (6 ft 1⁄2 in)
Playing position Defensive midfielder / Centre back
Club information
Current team
 Leganés
Number 12
Youth career
2000–2003 Saint-Étienne
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2003–2006 Liverpool 0 (0)
2004–2005 → Lorient (loan) 25 (0)
2005–2006 → Metz (loan) 23 (0)
2006–2007 Lorient 9 (0)
2007–2013 Ajaccio 184 (8)
2013–2014 Monaco 15 (0)
2013 → Olympiacos (loan) 8 (0)
2014 → Valenciennes (loan) 16 (1)
2014–2015 Trabzonspor 38 (8)
2016 Levante 14 (1)
2016– Leganés 0 (0)
National team‡
2001–2002 France U16 16 (0)
2002–2003 France U17 10 (0)
2003–2004 France U18 8 (0)
2004–2006 France U21 5 (1)
2010– Algeria 54 (3)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 25 July 2016.

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 11 October 2014

Carl Medjani (Arabic: كارل مجاني‎‎; born 15 May 1985) is an Algerian professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder or central defender for Spanish club CD Leganés and the Algeria national team, for which he is currently captain.

Club career

Liverpool

After spending his youth development years at Saint-Étienne he was signed by Liverpool's manager Gérard Houllier in August 2003.[1] Liverpool beat off stiff competition from Premiership rivals Arsenal, Manchester United and German giants Bayern Munich to secure his services.[2] In an interview with L'Equipe, Medjani revealed he left Saint-Étienne because he was willing to stay if given an opportunity with the first team but his request was turned down by Manager Frédéric Antonetti.[3]

Medjani then struggled to break in Liverpool first team so he was sent on loan to Lorient for the whole 2004–05 season by new Liverpool manager Rafael Benítez, where he made twenty five appearance.[4] Despite impressing in the Toulon under-20 tournament in summer 2005,[5] Benítez deemed it necessary for him to gain more experience and so he spent 2005–06 on loan at Metz.[6][7]

Lorient

At the start of the 2006–07 season, he rejoined Lorient, this time on a permanent basis.[8]

Ajaccio

In the 2007–08 season, Medjani moved down to Ligue 2 joining Ajaccio for the remainder of the season.[9]

The 2008–09 season earned Medjani a permanent move with the club on a three-year deal.[10] Medjani soon made an immediate impact when he scored his first goal in the second round of Coupe de la Ligue during Ajaccio's 4–2 loss against Montpellier. On 20 February 2009, Medjani came on as a substitute in the second half and 18 minutes to the game, Medjani was sent off, along with Brahim Ferradj in the same minute, as Ajaccio drew 1–1 with Brest.[11] Medjani scored his first league goal of the season during Ajaccio's 3–1 defeat to Strasbourg.[12]

Following the 2009–10 season and the World Cup, Medjani was linked with Ligue 2 side Nantes.[13] Ajaccio finished as runners-up in Ligue 2 resulting in their promotion to Ligue 1. Medjani signed a two-year contract extension until 2013.[14] In the 2011–12 season, Medjani continued to be in the first team, either playing in centre back and defensive midfield. Medjani scored his first goal in a 3–1 loss against Paris Saint-Germain on 16 October 2011.[15] On 10 December 2012, Medjani made a mistake in the final minutes, allowing Daniel Niculae to score in a 2–2 draw against Nancy, in a match which could have ended Ajaccio thirteen games without winning.[16] In April, Medjani scored his second goal of the season, in a 1–1 draw against Saint-Étienne.[17]

Ahead of the 2012–13 season, Medjani expressed his desire to leave the club.[18] In December, Medjani started to wear the captain's armband.[19]

AS Monaco

In January 2013, just prior to the closing of the transfer window, Medjani joined Monaco on a three and a half year contract from Ajaccio.[20]

Following Monaco promotion, Medjani was told by Manager Claudio Ranieri that his first team would be limited following the club's spending spree.[21]

Loan spells

In July 2013, Medjani was sent out on loan to Olympiacos from Monaco until 1 January 2014, with the option of a permanent move.[22] After six months with few appearances at Olympiacos, he returned to his parent club.[23]

Upon his return to France, Monaco then loaned him out to Valenciennes till the end of 2013/14 season.[24]

Following his loan spell at Valenciennes, Medjani’s time at Monaco came to an end despite having two years of his contract left.[25]

Trabzonspor

After leaving Monaco, Medjani was linked with a move to Trabzonspor and Cagliari Calcio[26] before joining Trabzobspor on a three-year contract.[27] He scored his first goal for the club in the play-off round of the Europa League as Trabzonspor beat Rostov 2–0 in the first leg.[28]

Levante / Leganés

On 30 January 2016 La Liga side Levante UD have signed Medjani until the end of the season, with an option to extend the contract for another season.[29] On 25 July, after suffering relegation, he signed a one-year contract with CD Leganés also in the main category.[30]

International career

Medjani has an Algerian father and a French mother, and was eligible for both national teams. Medjani captained the France U21 team in the 2006 Toulon tournament.[5][31] However, being of Algerian origin, he made the switch to represent Algeria in international competitions[31] and was called up by Rabah Saâdane to the Algerian preliminary squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.[32]

Personal life

While growing up, Medjani revered boxer Muhammad Ali.[33]

References

  1. ↑ "Reds sign French starlet". Sky. 8 August 2003. Archived from the original on 10 February 2014. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  2. ↑ "Reds pip Bayern, Arsenal, Juve & Utd to 5th summer signing". Liverpool Official Website. 8 August 2003. Archived from the original on 10 February 2014. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  3. ↑ "Medjani has grown" [Medjani a bien grandi] (in French). L'Equipe. 4 March 2011. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  4. ↑ "Medjani leaves on loan". Liverpool Official Website. 6 August 2004. Archived from the original on 4 July 2015. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  5. 1 2 "Medjani leads France to the final". Liverpool Official Website. 9 June 2005. Archived from the original on 19 December 2014. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  6. ↑ "Medjani wants Rafa chat". Sky Sports. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  7. ↑ "Defender leaves on loan". Liverpool Official Website. 8 August 2005. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  8. ↑ "FRENCH DEFENDER LEAVES ANFIELD". Liverpool Official Website. 12 August 2006. Archived from the original on 9 February 2014. Retrieved 9 February 2014.
  9. ↑ "News from Tuesday" [Foot Transferts Les infos de mardi] (in French). L'Equipe. 18 July 2007. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  10. ↑ "Football (transfer) – Carl Medjani signed for three years in AC Ajaccio" [Football (transfert) – Carl Medjani a signé pour trois ans à l'AC Ajaccio] (in French). ALTA Frequenza. 26 June 2008. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  11. ↑ "Sessegnon takes 3 matches" [Sessegnon prend 3 matches] (in French). Le Figaro. 26 February 2009. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  12. ↑ "Strasbourg and Metz before" [Foot Ligue 2 30e j. Strasbourg et Metz devant] (in French). L'Equipe. 5 April 2009. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  13. ↑ "Medjani "interested in Nantes"" [Medjani intéressé par Nantes] (in French). L'Equipe. 18 July 2010. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  14. ↑ "Medjani remains to Ajaccio" [Medjani reste à Ajaccio] (in French). Le Figaro. 17 June 2011. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  15. ↑ "Gameiro: "Finishing top scorer"" [Gameiro : Finir meilleur buteur] (in French). L'Equipe. 16 October 2011. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  16. ↑ "Carl Medjani disappointed" [Carl Medjani déçu] (in French). Le Figaro. 11 December 2012. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  17. ↑ "Ajaccio: Medjani followed by Montpellier Lorient and other ..." [Ajaccio : Medjani suivi par Montpellier, Lorient et d’autres..] (in French). Foot Mercato. 9 April 2012. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  18. ↑ "Ajaccio: Medjani wants to leave!" [Ajaccio : Medjani veut partir!] (in French). Foot Mercato. 24 June 2012. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  19. ↑ "Medjani and the captaincy" [Medjani et le capitanat] (in French). Le Figaro. 5 December 2012. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  20. ↑ Toufik O. (January 30, 2013). "Carl Medjani à l'AS Monaco, Orsoni confirme" (in French). DZFoot. Archived from the original on February 1, 2013. Retrieved February 1, 2013.
  21. ↑ "Medjani: "Enough armed"" [Foot Ligue des Champions Olympiakos Medjani : Suffisamment armés] (in French). L'Equipe. 17 September 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  22. ↑ "Medjani Olympiakos (official)" [Foot Transferts Medjani à l'Olympiakos (off.)] (in French). L'Equipe. 25 July 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  23. ↑ "Transfers: Carl Medjani considering a departure from Olympiacos" [Transferts : Carl Medjani envisage un départ de l'Olympiacos] (in French). DZFoot. 26 November 2012. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  24. ↑ "Transfers: Carl Medjani officially loaned to Valenciennes" [Transferts: Carl Medjani officiellement prêté à Valenciennes] (in French). DZFoot. 3 January 2014. Archived from the original on 6 February 2014. Retrieved 9 February 2014.
  25. ↑ "Medjani (Monaco) est libre" (in French). L'Equipe. 31 July 2014. Retrieved 23 August 2014.
  26. ↑ "Cagliari and Trabzonspor in negotiations for Carl Medjani". Get Football News France. 6 August 2014. Retrieved 23 August 2014.
  27. ↑ "Carl Medjani and Kevin Constant join Trabzonspor". BBC Sport. 8 August 2014. Retrieved 23 August 2014.
  28. ↑ "Trabzonspor 2 – 0 Rostov: Cardozo scores on his debut". Turkish Football.com. 21 August 2014. Retrieved 28 August 2014.
  29. ↑ "Algeria defender Carl Medjani joins Levante". BBC Sport. 30 January 2016. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
  30. ↑ "Medjani apuntala con experiencia y jerarquía la defensa del Leganés" [Medjani bolsters with experience and hierarchy the defence of Leganés] (in Spanish). CD Leganés. 25 July 2016. Retrieved 26 July 2016.
  31. 1 2 "Carl Medjani". Sky Sports. 2 June 2010. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  32. ↑ "National Team: The 25 players who will go to Switzerland" [Equipe Nationale : Les 25 joueurs qui iront en Suisse] (in French). DZFoot. 5 May 2010. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  33. ↑ "CARL MEDJANI, SELF-PORTRAIT". AS Monaco Official Website. 9 April 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
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