Rio Mavuba
 Mavuba before a game with Lille | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Rio Antonio Zoba Mavuba | ||
| Date of birth | 8 March 1984 | ||
| Place of birth | Born at sea[1] | ||
| Height | 1.72 m (5 ft 7 1⁄2 in) | ||
| Playing position | Midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Lille | ||
| Number | 24 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2002–2003 | Bordeaux | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2003–2007 | Bordeaux | 127 | (1) |
| 2007–2008 | Villarreal | 5 | (0) |
| 2008 | → Lille (loan) | 17 | (1) |
| 2008– | Lille | 185 | (3) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2004–2006 | France U21 | 20 | (1) |
| 2004– | France | 9 | (0) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 22 December 2013. † Appearances (Goals). | |||
Rio Antonio Zoba Mavuba (born 8 March 1984) is a French footballer who plays for Lille OSC as a midfielder.
He played most of his professional career with Bordeaux and Lille, winning the 2011 national championship with the latter.
Early years
Mavuba's father was Mafuila Mavuba, a footballer who appeared at the 1974 FIFA World Cup with Zaire, while his mother was an Angolan national. He was born on board a boat in international waters during the period of the Angolan Civil War, and later stated that his birth certificate did not have a nationality on it, reading only "born at sea";[1] he received French nationality in September 2004.
Mavuba's mother died when he was two, and his father 12 years later. He threw himself into football to help deal with his grief.[1]
Club career
Mavuba played youth football with FC Girondins de Bordeaux. He made his Ligue 1 debut on 10 January in a 2–1 away win against Montpellier HSC and, under recently appointed manager Michel Pavon, became an immediate first-choice, never appearing in less that 32 league matches from the 2004–05 season until the end of his spell.
On 3 July 2007 Mavuba signed a five-year deal with Villarreal CF worth €7 million, as the Spanish side had lost Alessio Tacchinardi who returned to Juventus F.C. following a loan.[2][3] He found it hard to break into the first team,[4] only totalling 219 minutes in La Liga, and in late January 2008 joined Lille OSC on loan until the end of the campaign.[5]
The transfer was made subsequently permanent in the 2008 summer, with the player penning a four-year contract for a reported fee of €7 million. He appeared in 46 matches between the league and the Coupe de France in his third year, helping Les Dogues win both competitions, the former after a 57-year wait.
Mavuba suffered a knee injury midway through the 2012–13 season, being sidelined for more than three months.[6] On 22 December 2013 the team captain scored his first goal of the new campaign, helping to a 2–2 draw at Paris Saint Germain F.C. and being involved in a scuffle with Zlatan Ibrahimović, with both players being booked late into the first half.[7][8]
International career
In 2004 Mavuba was asked to play for the DR Congo national team, but he turned it down. From the 2004 Toulon Tournament to the 2006 UEFA European Championship, he acted as captain to the French under-21s.[9]
Mavuba won his first cap for the senior side on 18 August 2004, in a 1–1 friendly draw with Bosnia and Herzegovina in Rennes.
Honours
- Bordeaux
- Lille
- Ligue 1: 2010–11
- Coupe de France: 2010–11
- Trophée des Champions: Runner-up 2011
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 James Copnall (14 October 2004). "Mavuba: born without a nation". BBC Sport. Retrieved 6 January 2008.
- ↑ "El Villarreal ficha a Rio Mavuba por siete millones de euros" [Villarreal signs Rio Mavuba for seven million euros] (in Spanish). 20 Minutos. 3 July 2007. Retrieved 26 December 2013.
- ↑ "Mavuba, al Villarreal" [Mavuba, to Villarreal] (in Spanish). UEFA.com. 4 July 2007. Retrieved 26 December 2013.
- ↑ "Mavuba tampoco juega en la UEFA" [Mavuba also does not play in UEFA] (in Spanish). Marca. 26 October 2007. Retrieved 26 December 2013.
- ↑ "Mavuba rebondit à Lille" [Mavuba rebounds to Lille] (in French). Le Figaro. 21 January 2008. Retrieved 26 December 2013.
- ↑ "Mavuba, et maintenant?" [Mavuba, and now?] (in French). Le Figaro. 3 May 2013. Retrieved 26 December 2013.
- ↑ "Lille hold PSG". ESPN FC. 22 December 2013. Retrieved 26 December 2013.
- ↑ "PSG-LOSC (2–2): Mavuba sur Ibrahimovic: "Il fait 2 mètres, on lui touche la tête et il tombe..."" [PSG-LOSC (2–2): Mavuba on Ibrahimovic: "He's 2 metres tall, you touch him on the head and he falls..."] (in French). Eurosport. 22 December 2013. Retrieved 26 December 2013.
- ↑ "France flurry flattens Germany". UEFA.com. 25 May 2006. Retrieved 26 December 2013.
External links
- L'Équipe stats (French)
- Antonio Mavuba French league stats at LFP.fr (French)
- Rio Mavuba at National-Football-Teams.com
- Rio Mavuba at ESPN FC
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