Gael Clichy profile
Name
Gael Clichy
Born
July 26, 1985
Toulouse, France
Position
Defender
Squad Number
22
Previous Club(s)
AS Cannes
Joined Arsenal
August 04, 2003
Arsenal Debut
Rotherham United (h)
Carling Cup
October 28, 2003
Drew 1-1 (Won on pen
First Arsenal Goal
Stoke City (a)
Premier League
November 01, 2008
Lost 2-1
Gael Clichy is quite simply one of the finest left-backs in Europe.
The Frenchman had barely played for Cannes before he was spotted by Arsène Wenger’s scouting network in 2003. He shadowed Ashley Cole for a couple of seasons and became the youngest player to win a Premier League medal in 2004 at the age of 18.
Injuries hampered his progress for a while – he sustained an identical injury to Cole when the England man’s absence looked like giving Gael his chance – but his patience was eventually rewarded when Cole left for Chelsea in the summer of 2006.
Now Gael is one of the mainstays of Wenger’s side. Fleet of foot, quick of brain and blessed with a great engine, the 24-year-old is a consistent, tenacious performer in defence. He loves to get forward too and finally broke his Arsenal duck last season with a goal at Stoke.
Gael achieved another notable first last term – he made his senior debut for France in a World Cup qualifier against Serbia in Paris.
The left-back missed the business end of the 2008/09 campaign through injury and he will look to make amends this season. With Kolo Toure gone, he is the most senior member of the ‘Invincibles’ squad still at Arsenal.
MY YEAR
October
Gael played four times for the Gunners in October. He missed the 3-1 home win over Birmingham after picking up an ankle injury while on international duty and also sat out the Carling Cup win over Liverpool as Arsène Wenger gave some of the Club's younger players an opportunity. The 3-0 win over Spurs marked Gael's 200th appearance for the Club.
September
Gael played in each of Arsenal's games in September with the exception of the Carling Cup clash with West Brom, helping the side win four of those matches and keep clean sheets against Fulham, Wigan and Olympiacos.
August
Gael Clichy started four of Arsenal's matches in August and claimed an assist in the Champions League Play-Off first leg against Celtic at Parkhead. It was Clichy's dangerous cross that Gary Caldwell turned into his own net to give Arsenal their second away goal of the night.
22. Gael Clichy - Full Arsenal Record
| Prem Lge | Europe | FA Cup | Lge Cup | C. Shield | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Ap | Gl | Ap | Gl | Ap | Gl | Ap | Gl | Ap | Gl | Ap | Gl |
| 2003-2004 | 7+5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1+3 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14+8 | 0 |
| 2004-2005 | 7+8 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 14+10 | 0 |
| 2005-2006 | 5+2 | 0 | 2+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7+4 | 0 |
| 2006-2007 | 26+1 | 0 | 5+1 | 0 | 3+2 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35+5 | 0 |
| 2007-2008 | 37+1 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 48+1 | 0 |
| 2008-2009 | 30+1 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 40+1 | 1 |
| 2009-2010 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 0 |
| Totals | 120+18 | 1 | 34+4 | 0 | 10+5 | 0 | 7+1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 171+29 | 1 |
Key:
- Prem Lge = Barclays Premier League
- C. Shield = Community Shield
- Europe = UEFA Champions League
- Ap = Appearances
- FA Cup = FA Cup sponsored by E-on
- Gl = Goals Scored
- Lge Cup = Carling Cup
Gael Clichy - News
-
Thu, Nov 19, 2009
Clichy - I considered playing for England -
Wed, Nov 4, 2009
Wenger - The story behind Clichy's injury -
Tue, Nov 3, 2009
Clichy sidelined with surprise back injury -
Fri, Oct 30, 2009
TV Online: Clichy - Last of the Invincibles -
Mon, Oct 26, 2009
Clichy - We don’t care what other teams do -
Wed, Oct 21, 2009
Clichy - There are a lot of positives from AZ -
Sun, Oct 4, 2009
Clichy - Gallas has shown he's a great player -
Thu, Oct 1, 2009
Clichy - Wenger among Europe's best managers -
Wed, Sep 9, 2009
Fantasy Battles: Clichy picks his winners -
Thu, Aug 6, 2009
TV Online exclusive: Clichy - My Top Three
