Marouane Fellaini

Marouane Fellaini

Fellaini with Belgium before a match against the United States on 29 May 2013
Personal information
Full nameMarouane Fellaini-Bakkioui[1]
Date of birth22 November 1987[1]
Place of birthEtterbeek, Brussels, Belgium
Height1.94 m (6 ft 4 in)[2]
Playing positionMidfielder
Club information
Current team
Manchester United
Number31
Youth career
1994–1997Anderlecht
1997–2000Mons
2000–2002R. Francs Borains
2002–2004Sporting Charleroi
2004–2006Standard Liège
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps†(Gls)†
2006–2008Standard Liège64(9)
2008–2013Everton141(25)
2013–Manchester United39(5)
National team‡
2004–2005Belgium U183(0)
2006Belgium U196(1)
2006–2007Belgium U217(0)
2007–Belgium62(12)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 05:30, 27 April 2015 (UTC).

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 31 March 2015

Marouane Fellaini-Bakkioui (pronounced [mɑrwan fɛlajni]; born 22 November 1987), known as Marouane Fellaini, is a Belgian footballer who plays for English club Manchester United and the Belgium national team.

Born in Etterbeek to Moroccan parents, Fellaini played youth football for Anderlecht, R.A.E.C. Mons, Royal Francs Borains and Charleroi S.C. before joining Standard Liège. After winning the Belgian First Division and the Ebony Shoe as a Liège player, he moved to England to join Everton. At Everton, he was the club's Young Player of the Season for 2008–09, when the club were losing finalists in the FA Cup.

After five years at Everton, he transferred to Manchester United in a deal worth £27.5 million in September 2013.[3]

Club career

Early career

Born in Etterbeek, Brussels, Fellaini began playing football at the age of 8 for Anderlecht. Fellaini's first love was track, with the 10,000 metres being his preferred event.[4] As a child he would run to school while his classmates used to make their daily journey by bus or car.[5] However, Fellaini's father Abdellatif, who was a professional footballer himself, guided his son towards football.[4] In his first season at Anderlecht's Academy, he scored 26 goals and in his second he scored 37. He was at Anderlecht's academy until the age of 10 when he joined Mons, due to his father getting a new job in the city.[4] Three years later, he joined R. Francs Borains before leaving the club when he signed for Sporting Charleroi. At the age of 17, he signed his first permanent contract with Standard Liège. Between 2006 and 2008, he made 84 appearances for the club, scoring 11 times.[6] He is known for his heading ability and stamina, which made him one of the best box-to-box midfielders in the Belgian First Division and resulted in him winning the Ebony Shoe in 2008,[7] an award given to the best player of the season of African descent.

Everton

After rejecting the advances of Manchester United[8] and following reported interest from Aston Villa,[9] Real Madrid, Tottenham Hotspur and Bayern Munich,[10] Fellaini signed for Everton in September 2008 on a five-year deal from Standard Liège for an initial transfer fee of £15 million (at the time a record for a Belgian player and club record for Everton).[11] He made his Everton debut in a 3–2 away victory at Stoke City on 14 September 2008,[12] and scored his first goal for the team against Newcastle United in a 2–2 home draw on 5 October 2008.[13] Fellaini went on to score 9 goals in his first season. During his debut season he was booked 10 times in his first 17 games and avoided a lengthy suspension by attending a personal hearing with England's chief referee, Keith Hackett, where he vowed to improve his behaviour. He kept his promise as he only picked up 3 further bookings in 16 games following the meeting, although his total was still more than any other Premier League player.[4] At the end of the 2008–09 season Fellaini was named Everton's Young Player of the Season.[14]

Fellaini in his final appearance for Everton against Cardiff City on 31 August 2013

In his time in England he has become well known for his large afro hairstyle, becoming a fan favourite with Everton fans regularly sporting Afro wigs as a homage to Fellaini.[4] Fellaini was deployed as a second striker during the 2008–09 season, when Everton had all of their forwards out injured, usually playing behind another midfielder being used as an attacker, Tim Cahill.[15] Later Fellaini reverted to play in his least favourite defensive midfield area. His performances in late 2009 and early 2010 became so impressive that David Moyes labelled him "as good as anyone in the league", and he re-iterated this after Fellaini won Man of the Match against Manchester City on 16 January.[16][17] Fellaini was stretchered off in the 34th minute of the Merseyside derby on 6 February after a two-footed tackle by Sotirios Kyrgiakos, ruling him out for the rest of the 2009–10 season. Sotirios Kyrgiakos was then sent off as a result of Fellaini's injury.[16]

Fellaini suffered an ankle injury in an FA Cup replay victory against Chelsea in February 2011 and although he was able to play in a 2–0 win against Sunderland a week later, the injury caused him to miss the remainder of the 2010–11 season.[18] He did not play a competitive match until August 2011, when he appeared as a substitute in a 1–0 loss to Queens Park Rangers at Goodison Park and played the full match in the very next fixture, as Everton beat Sheffield United 3–1 in the League Cup.[19] In November 2011 he signed a new five-year contract with the club.[20] He finished the season having won the most tackles, aerial duels and made more passes than anyone else at the club. He won the second highest number of tackles in the league and won possession of the ball 190 times, the most out of any player.[21]

In the opening game of the 2012–13 Premier League season against Manchester United, Fellaini received plaudits for his outstanding performance, as he scored the only goal in a 1–0 victory.[22] He continued the season in great form with goals against Arsenal, Manchester City, Sunderland and Fulham amongst others. Fellaini was subsequently awarded Premier League Player of the Month for November 2012.

Fellaini was banned for three matches by the Football Association on 17 December 2012 after headbutting Ryan Shawcross during a game against Stoke City, an incident missed by the match officials at the time.[23] The same month he was ranked as number 60 in The 100 best footballers in the world by The Guardian.[24][25]

Manchester United

2013–14

On 2 September 2013, Fellaini signed a five-year contract, reuniting with former manager David Moyes at Manchester United in a £27.5 million, last-second, deadline day deal.[3] He made his debut for the club on 14 September, in a 2–0 home win against Crystal Palace, coming on as a 62nd-minute substitute for Anderson.[26] He made his full debut on 17 September, starting in a 4–2 win against Bayer Leverkusen in the UEFA Champions League.[27]

On 5 November 2013, Fellaini received his first red card for Manchester United in a match against Real Sociedad in the group stage of the Champions League.[28]

In April 2014, Fellaini was named as one of the "10 worst buys of the Premier League season" by The Daily Telegraph.[29] He made only fifteen league starts throughout the season, in contrast to thirty one starts he made in the previous season while at Everton.[1]

2014–15

In his first pre-season game of 2014–15, Fellaini came off the substitutes bench to score his first Manchester United goal in injury time, giving the club a 2–1 win over Valencia in Louis van Gaal's first game at Old Trafford as manager.

On 20 October 2014, he scored his first competitive goal for Manchester United in 2–2 draw in the Premier League against West Bromwich Albion two minutes after coming on as a half time substitute.[30] He was given his first start of the season by Van Gaal in the following match against Chelsea, and helped United earn a point against the league leaders. Fellaini covered 12.17 kilometres in the match, the most by any United player, and made 70 high-intensity runs, more than anyone else on the pitch. He was also effective in shutting down Cesc Fàbregas, who completed only three passes in the first 20 minutes and just 11 in the whole first half. This was remarkable given Fàbregas has played more passes than anybody else in the Premier League. During second half stoppage time, he contributed to United's goal when his header was saved by Thibaut Courtois and ultimately rebounded in by Robin van Persie.[31]

On 2 December, Fellaini scored his first competitive home goal for Manchester United in a 2–1 defeat of Stoke City.[32] His third goal of the season came in a 2–0 away win at Queens Park Rangers on 17 January 2015.[33] On 15 March 2015, he scored his fourth goal of the season and assisted the second goal for Michael Carrick in a home game against Tottenham in which United won 3–0 and he was voted Man of the Match.[34] On 12 April, he scored the second goal for Manchester United in a 4–2 win in the Manchester derby.[35]

International career

Fellaini with Belgium in 2013

Fellaini was eligible to play for either Belgium or Morocco. He chose to represent Belgium, from youth level upwards. He represented the under-23 team at the 2008 Olympics, when they finished in fourth place, losing to Brazil in the third-place play-off.

His senior team debut was made in February 2007, and his first goal for the senior team came in a 2–1 defeat against Portugal a UEFA Euro 2008 qualification match.

Fellaini made seven appearances in Belgium's 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign, scoring once, as the Red Devils reached the finals for the first time since 2002.

On 4 June 2014, Fellaini was selected as part of Belgium's 23-man squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.[36] On 17 June, in Belgium's opening match against Algeria, Fellaini came on as a second-half substitute and scored the Red Devils' equalising goal in a 2–1 win.[37] He was then named in the starting line-up for the second match against Russia on 22 June[38] and went on to play every minute of les Diables Rouges' run to the quarter-finals, where they were defeated 1–0 by Argentina in Brasília.[39]

During qualification for UEFA Euro 2016, Fellaini scored two goals in Belgium's 5–0 defeat of Cyprus[40] and the winner in a 1–0 away victory in Israel.[41]

Personal life

Fellaini was born to Moroccan parents from Tangier and brought up in Brussels.[42] His father, Abdellatif, was a former goalkeeper for Raja Casablanca and Hassania Agadir who signed for Racing Mechelen but was unable to play as his former Moroccan club refused to release his paperwork. Instead of returning home, he opted to become a bus driver for STIB.[43] He would later take early retirement to oversee his son's career.[5] Fellaini is a Muslim.[44]

Career statistics

Club

As of 6 April 2015.[45]
Club performance League Cup League Cup Continental Total
ClubSeason AppsGoals AppsGoals AppsGoals AppsGoals AppsGoals
Standard Liège[46] 2006–07 30371—30404
2007–08 31651—30397
2008–09 3000—2050
Total 649122—808411
Everton 2008–09 3084110—359
2009–10 232202071343
2010–11 2013121—253
2011–12 3436131—435
2012–13 31114110—3612
2013–14 300011—41
Total 141251941037117733
Manchester United[47] 2013–14 160000050210
2014–15 2154100—256
Total 375410050456
Career total 2423935710320130750

International

Belgium[48]
YearAppsGoals
200781
200861
200971
201051
201161
201260
201392
201492
201523
Total6012

Honours

Club

Standard Liège
Everton

Individual

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "M. Fellaini". Soccerway. Retrieved 17 December 2013.
  2. ↑ "Marouane Fellaini". premierleague.com. Premier League. Retrieved 9 September 2013.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Manchester United complete £27.5m deal for Everton's Marouane Fellaini". The Guardian. 3 September 2013.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 "How Fellaini became Everton's mane man". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). 28 May 2009. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 King, Dominic (31 May 2012). "Big hair, big man, big heart. Fellaini will be a tall order for England". Daily Mail (London). Retrieved 2 June 2012.
  6. ↑ "Players: Squad Profiles: Marouane Fellaini". evertonfc.com. Everton FC. Retrieved 2 September 2008.
  7. ↑ "Ebbenhouten Schoen voor Marouane Fellaini" (in Dutch). hln.be. 28 April 2008. Retrieved 2 September 2008.
  8. ↑ "Richardson could quit United". Sky Sports (BSkyB). Retrieved 22 May 2009.
  9. ↑ Aston Villa weigh up move for Standard Liege star Marouane Fellaini
  10. ↑ "Premier League – Toffees' Fellaini bid comes unstuck". Eurosport. 25 March 2008. Archived from the original on 13 May 2008.
  11. ↑ Marouane Fellaini signs for Everton Everton FC, 2 September 2008
  12. ↑ Marouane Fellaini career statistics at Soccerbase
  13. ↑ Barder, Russell (5 October 2008). "Everton 2–2 Newcastle". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). Retrieved 30 October 2008.
  14. ↑ King, Dominic (23 May 2009). "Fulham FC v Everton FC: Young gun to marked man for Fellaini". Liverpool Echo. Trinity Mirror. Retrieved 28 May 2009.
  15. ↑ "25 Marouane Fellaini". Everton FC. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 "Is Marouane hair to stay?". The Football Project. 18 November 2011. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
  17. ↑ "Fellaini shows up sorry Robinho". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. 16 January 2010. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
  18. ↑ Hunter, Andy (5 March 2011). "Everton not to blame for Marouane Fellaini injury, says David Moyes". The Guardian (London). Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  19. ↑ "Everton 3–1 Sheffield United: Barkley enjoys crazy Carling Cup debut". Mirror Football. Trinity Mirror. 24 August 2011. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  20. ↑ "Everton midfielder Marouane Fellaini pens long-term contract". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). Retrieved 11 December 2011.
  21. ↑ "Everton 2011/12 – The Good and the Bad". English Premier League Index. Retrieved 31 May 2012.
  22. ↑ "Everton 1–0 Man Utd". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
    "Brilliant Fellaini condemns United to defeat". Eurosport. Yahoo! and Eurosport. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
    McCarra, Kevin (20 August 2012). "Maroaune [sic] Fellaini gives Everton fine victory over Manchester United". The Guardian (London). Retrieved 21 August 2012.
  23. ↑ "Everton's Marouane Fellaini banned for three games by FA". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. 17 December 2012.
  24. ↑ Sedghi, Ami (24 December 2012). "The world's best footballers: the top 100 list". The Guardian (London). Retrieved 23 March 2013.
  25. ↑ Oliver, Christine; Williams, Richard; Taylor, Daniel; Lowe, Sid; Bandini, Paolo; Honigstein, Raphael; Duarte, Fernando; Wilson, Jonathan; Cox, Michael; Lawrence, Amy; Doyle, Paul; Christenson, Marcus (24 December 2012). "The 100 best footballers in the world – interactive". The Guardian (London). Retrieved 23 March 2013.
  26. ↑ Sanghera, Mandeep (14 September 2013). "Man Utd 2–0 Crystal Palace". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). Retrieved 14 September 2013.
  27. ↑ "Man Utd 4–2 Bayer Leverkusen" BBC Sport. 17 September 2013. Retrieved 17 September 2013.
  28. ↑ Herbert, Ian (6 November 2013). "Real Sociedad 0 Manchester United 0 match report: Ashley Young tumbles again but Robin van Persie penalty miss means a blank night for United". The Independent (London).
  29. ↑ "The 10 worst buys of the Premier League season: in pictures". The Daily Telegraph (London). 17 April 2014. Retrieved 22 April 2014.
  30. ↑ "West Brom 2–2 Man Utd". BBC Sport. 20 October 2014. Retrieved 21 October 2014.
  31. ↑ Bate, Adam (27 October 2014). "Marouane Fellaini played an important role in shackling Cesc Fabregas for Manchester United against Chelsea". Sky Sports. Sky Sports. Retrieved 27 October 2014.
  32. ↑ "Man Utd 2-1 Stoke". BBC. 2 December 2014. Retrieved 26 January 2015.
  33. ↑ McNulty, Phil (17 January 2015). "QPR 0–2 Man Utd". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). Retrieved 19 January 2015.
  34. ↑ "Manchester United 3–0 Tottenham Hotspur". BBC Sport. 15 March 2015. Retrieved 17 March 2015.
  35. ↑ "Manchester United 4–2 Manchester City". BBC Sport. 12 April 2015. Retrieved 13 April 2015.
  36. ↑ "Belgium World Cup 2014 squad". Daily Telegraph. 4 June 2014. Retrieved 5 June 2014.
  37. ↑ "Belgium’s Dries Mertens completes fightback against impressive Algeria". The Guardian. 17 June 2014. Retrieved 17 June 2014.
  38. ↑ "Brazil v Russia". BBC. 22 June 2014. Retrieved 22 June 2014.
  39. ↑ "Marouane Fellaini". FIFA. Retrieved 3 April 2015.
  40. ↑ "Belgium 5-0 Cyprus". UEFA. Retrieved 3 April 2015.
  41. ↑ "Israel 0-1 Belgium". UEFA. Retrieved 3 April 2015.
  42. ↑ "Collins' calling – Scotland on Sunday". The Scotsman. Johnston Publishing. Retrieved 16 June 2010.
  43. ↑ Marouane Fellaini prêt pour le top 10 européen? Bladi, 26 March 2008 (French)
  44. ↑ Din, Tusdiq (23 August 2011). "Fasting and football. How do top-flight Muslims cope?". The Independent (London: Independent Print). Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  45. ↑ "Marouane Fellaini". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 30 December 2013.
  46. ↑ "Marouane Fellaini". guardian.touch-line.com. Guardian News and Media. Retrieved 30 December 2013.
  47. ↑ "Marouane Fellaini". StretfordEnd.co.uk. Retrieved 30 December 2013.
  48. ↑ "Marouane Fellaini". national-football-teams.com. Retrieved 30 December 2013.

External links

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