Robert Pirès

Robert Emmanuel Pirès (born October 29 1973 in Reims, France) is a French international football player, of Portuguese and Spanish descent. He plays for Villarreal CF as a midfielder. He normally plays on the left side but can play all across midfield or even as a support striker.

Biography

French League career

Pirès is a graduate of the FC Metz youth academy, making his senior debut in 1993, against Lyon. During his six seasons there, he scored 43 goals in 162 matches, and won the Coupe de la Ligue, prompting a £5 million move to Olympique de Marseille in 1998.

At Marseille, Pirès had a mixed two-year stay. His first season saw him miss the French league title by a point, and his second season saw him suffer a spate of on- and off-field problems, which led him to boycott the club at the season's end. He married his longtime companion, Jessica, after the season's end. They welcomed their first child, a baby girl named Naya on October 8, 2005.

English League Career

He was signed by Arsenal for £6 million in 2000, after stiff competition from Real Madrid, replacing Marc Overmars who had left for FC Barcelona. Initially, his form was indifferent, and some people criticized him after his comments that the English game was too physical. However, he slowly began to regain the form he had shown at Metz, scoring a superb goal against Lazio in the 2000-01 Champions League, and the winner against Tottenham Hotspur in the FA Cup semi-finals; however Arsenal went on to lose the Cup final to Liverpool 2-1.

By 2001-02, Pirès had fully got to grips with the English game and had one of his best seasons. He led the Premiership assist charts and was voted both FWA Footballer of the Year and Arsenal's player of the season, as Arsenal won the league title. This despite not playing the last two months of the season after suffering a cruciate ligament injury in a match against Newcastle United.

After a lengthy layoff, Pirès returned, for the 2002-03 season, scoring the winning goal in the FA Cup final against Southampton. He went on to be a crucial part of Arsenal's quest for the Premiership title in the 2003-04 season, which they achieved, remaining unbeaten and becoming the first English top flight club to do so in 115 years.

Critics have said that his form during the 2004-05 season had been indifferent however, Pirès could still point to the leading goalscorers table, where he finished the third in the Premiership with 14 goals, behind teammate Thierry Henry and Crystal Palace's Andy Johnson. He also picked up a second FA Cup winners' medal after Arsenal beat Manchester United on penalties.

During the 2005-06 season, Pirès wrangled with Arsenal over a new contract, in the hope of a new two-year deal. In keeping with the club's policy regarding players over 30, Pirès was only offered a 12-month extension to his contract, which expired in June 2006. Pires was also the player sacrificed in Arsenal's Champions League final loss againts BarcalonaIn May 2006 he agreed to an offer from Villarreal Pires agrees deal with Villarreal, BBC Sport, 2006-05-25 after a month of speculation, during which time he played against Villareal in the Champions League semi-final.

Pires last game for Arsenal was the 2-1 defeat to Barcelona in the Champions League Final in Paris. Pires was substituted after Jens Lehmann was sent off in the first half.

Spanish League Career

Pires joined Villareal on a free transfer in the Summer of 2006. He agreed a two year contract.

International Career

Pirès was part of France's 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000 winning squads (Pirès laid on the pass for David Trézéguet's winning goal in the final), but had to miss the 2002 World Cup due to the injury he sustained playing for Arsenal. He also played in 1996 Olympic Games and Euro 2004. However, a dispute in late 2004 with French national coach Raymond Domenech put a halt to Pirès' international career. Despite this, he has won 79 caps for his country and scored 14 goals.

Career statistics

Honours

Metz

French League Cup winner - 1995/1996
French League 1 runner up (1) - 1997/1998

Olympique de Marseille

French League 1 runner up (1) - 1998/1999

Arsenal

FA Premier league winner (2) - 2001/2002, 2003/2004
FA Cup winner (3) - 2002, 2003, 2005

International

World Cup winner - 1998
European Championship winner - 2000
FIFA Confederations Cup (2) - 2001, 2003

Other

Football Writers' Association Player of the Year - 2001/2002
Légion d'Honneur, France's highest decoration 1998

Club career

(correct as of 18 May 2006)

Club	Season	League			Cup		Europe		Total
Club	Season	Apps	Goals	Assists	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Metz	1992-93	2	-	-	-	-	-	-	2	-
	1993-94	24	1	-	-	-	-	-	24	1
	1994-95	35	9	?	-	-	-	-	35	9
	1995-96	38	11	?	-	-	-	-	38	11
	1996-97	32	11	?	-	-	6	-	38	11
	1997-98	31	11	?	-	-	3	-	34	11
	All	162	43	?	-	-	9	-	171	43
Marseille	1998-99	34	6	?	-	-	11	3	45	9
	1999-00	32	2	?	-	-	11	2	43	4
	All	66	8	?	-	-	22	5	88	13
Arsenal	2000-01	33	4	?	6	3	12	1	51	8
	2001-02	28	9	15	5	1	12	3	45	13
	2002-03	26	14	3	7	2	9	-	42	16
	2003-04	36	14	10	4	1	10	4	50	19
	2004-05	33	14	4	6	2	8	1	47	17
	2005-06	33	7	4	3	2	12	2	48	11
	All								283	84
All									541	140

International career

National team	Season	Apps	Goals
France	1994-95	12	5
	1995-96	3	-
	1996-97	1	1
	1997-98	12	5
	1998-99	12	5
	1999-00	12	5
	2000-01	12	5
	2001-02	12	5
	2002-03	12	5
	2003-04	12	5
	2004-05	9	-
	2005-06		0
	All	79	14

References

Accolades

Gourt Home::Gourt :: Robert Pirès