Patrick Vieira
Full name:
Patrick Vieira
Born:
Dakar, Senegal, 23 June 1976
Position:
Defensive midfielder
Height/weight:
193 cm/83 kg
Joined Arsenal:
14 August 1996 (£4,000,000)
Clubs:
Cannes (1993–96)
AC Milan (1996)
Arsenal (1996–2005)
Juventus (2005–2006)
Internazionale (2006–)
First Arsenal appearance:
Premier League vs Sheffield Wednesday, 16 September 1996 (4–1)
Last Arsenal appearance:
FA Cup vs Manchester United, 21 May 2005 (0–0, 5–4 on penalties)
International matches:
95 caps (6 goals) for France (as of 19 August 2006)
International debut:
26 February 1997 against Netherlands (2–1)
| |
League |
FA Cup |
FL Cup |
Ch.Shld |
Europe |
Total |
| Season |
App |
Gls |
App |
Gls |
App |
Gls |
App |
Gls |
App |
Gls |
App |
Gls |
| 1996–97 |
30+1 |
2 |
3 |
- |
3 |
- |
- |
- |
1 |
- |
37+1 |
2 |
| 1997–98 |
31+2 |
2 |
8+1 |
- |
2 |
- |
- |
- |
2 |
- |
43+3 |
2 |
| 1998–99 |
34 |
3 |
4 |
- |
- |
- |
1 |
- |
3 |
- |
42 |
3 |
| 1999–00 |
29+1 |
2 |
2 |
- |
- |
- |
1 |
- |
14 |
- |
46+1 |
2 |
| 2000–01 |
28+2 |
6 |
5+1 |
1 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
12 |
- |
45+3 |
7 |
| 2001–02 |
35+1 |
2 |
7 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
11 |
1 |
53+1 |
3 |
| 2002–03 |
24 |
3 |
5 |
- |
- |
- |
1 |
- |
12 |
1 |
42 |
4 |
| 2003–04 |
29 |
3 |
5 |
- |
2 |
- |
1 |
- |
6+1 |
- |
43+1 |
3 |
| 2004–05 |
32 |
6 |
6 |
1 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
6 |
- |
44 |
7 |
| Total |
271+7 |
29 |
45+2 |
2 |
7 |
- |
4 |
- |
67+1 |
2 |
394+10 |
33 |
My comments
Patrick Vieira was given the captaincy at Arsenal following the retirement of Tony Adams
after the 2001/02 season. Despite failing to succeed at AC Milan, Arsenal's new manager
Arsène Wenger insisted to buy the young French midfielder in 1996. Since then,
Vieira has developed into one of the best defensive midfielders in Europe. With his tough
tackling in midfield, he does not seem to be very popular with the English referees, and
he has received a number of red cards during his time at Highbury. But of course that's
not Paddy's fault – we all know how bad the English referees can be, especially when
Arsenal are playing. Though his disciplinary record has in fact improved, and nowadays he
does not get booked as often as before. Vieira is not only important to Arsenal; he is
also a key player in the French national team, having won both the World Cup in France
1998 and the European Championships in Holland/Belgium 2000.
