| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Tomáš Řepka | ||
| Date of birth | 2 January 1974 | ||
| Place of birth | Slavičín, Czechoslovakia | ||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Playing position | Centre back | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | unattached | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1979–1989 | Sokol Brumov | ||
| 1989–1991 | TJ Gottwaldov | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1991–1995 | Banik Ostrava | 77 | (3) |
| 1995–1998 | Sparta Prague | 82 | (6) |
| 1998–2001 | Fiorentina | 89 | (0) |
| 2001–2006 | West Ham United | 167 | (0) |
| 2006–2011 | Sparta Prague | 130 | (2) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 1993–2001 | Czech Republic | 45 | (1) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 11 June 2011. † Appearances (Goals). |
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Tomáš Řepka (born 2 January 1974) is a professional Czech football defender, currently without a club, who most recently played for Sparta Prague.
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Řepka started his career at Banik Ostrava, where he played from 1990 to 1995. He then joined Sparta Prague, where he spent almost three years, before moving to Fiorentina in Italy. He joined English Premiership club West Ham United early in Glenn Roeder's tenure as manager, for a club record fee of £5,500,000, in September 2001.[1]
He was sent off on his debut for West Ham for two bookable offences,[2] missed a match through suspension, and was sent off again in the third game he played for the club.[3] He went on to form a central defensive partnership with Christian Dailly before the club's relegation to the Football League Championship, although he gained a reputation for his disciplinary record, and received 10 yellow cards that first season. After relegation at the end of the 2002-03 season, the appointment of Alan Pardew as manager saw Řepka move to right back. In the summer of 2005, after the club had regained their Premiership status, he was re-signed by Pardew on a two-year contract, albeit on reduced terms, but left the club on 23 January 2006 to return to the Czech Republic to be with his family. He played his final game for them on the previous night against Fulham in what was an emotional swansong for the Czech hardman; To chants of "Super Tom" from the West Ham faithful, he left the field in tears.[4]
In 2006 he returned to Sparta Prague and is playing there to date as a backbone of team's defence. In 2009 he won the Personality of the League award at the Czech Footballer of the Year awards.[5]
In December 2011, Řepka left Sparta Prague following a mutually agreed early termination of his contract.[6]
After making his international debut for Czechoslovakia in June 1993 against the Faroe Islands, Řepka played 45 times for the Czech Republic between 1994 and 2001. He missed Euro 1996 because of two match suspension for a red card. However, he played for his country at Euro 2000.
Řepka is notorious for his lack of self-control and disciplinary problems.[7] During his professional career, he has received eighteen[8] red cards (see table below). One scandal included attacking game officials and a TV cameraman in September 2007.[9][10]
| Team | Red cards |
|---|---|
| Baník Ostrava | 1 |
| Sparta Prague | 4 |
| AC Fiorentina | 5 |
| West Ham United | 4 |
| Czech Republic national football team | 2 |
| Czech Republic national football team U-21 | 1 |
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