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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Sylvain Distin[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1977-12-16)16 December 1977 (age 47)[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Bagnolet, France | ||
| Height | 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in)[2] | ||
| Position | Defender | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1997–1998 | Joué-lès-Tours | 32 | (4) |
| 1998–1999 | Tours | 26 | (3) |
| 1999–2000 | Gueugnon | 32 | (1) |
| 2000–2002 | Paris Saint-Germain | 28 | (0) |
| 2001–2002 | →Newcastle United (loan) | 28 | (0) |
| 2002–2007 | Manchester City | 178 | (5) |
| 2007–2009 | Portsmouth | 77 | (0) |
| 2009–2015 | Everton | 174 | (2) |
| 2015–2016 | AFC Bournemouth | 12 | (0) |
| Total | 587 | (15) | |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Sylvain Distin (born 16 December 1977) is a French former professionalfootballer. He is left-footed and played as acentre-back, and was also capable of playing atleft-back.
Distin began his career playing for French amateur sides, working his way up to professional sidesGueugnon and subsequentlyParis Saint-Germain. He moved to England in 2001, first joiningNewcastle United on a loan move from PSG, before signing a permanent contract withManchester City, where he spent five seasons. He then spent two years atPortsmouth where he won theFA Cup, before joiningEverton in 2009. In six seasons atGoodison Park, he made 210 appearances across all competitions, leaving in 2015 forAFC Bournemouth.
After one season with Bournemouth, Distin was released when his contract expired in June 2016. He played fifteen consecutive seasons in thePremier League, with over 450 appearances in England's top flight – themost of any foreign outfield player.[3]
Born inBagnolet, Distin started his career at French non-league sideJoué-lès-Tours before moving toTours a year later, where he played 26 times and scored three goals. He then transferred toGueugnon ofLigue 2, signing his first professional contract. With Gueugnon he won theCoupe de la Ligue in 2000. His performances for Gueugnon promptedParis Saint-Germain to sign him, though his time at PSG was short-lived and after a year, Distin went on loan toNewcastle United where he made 35 appearances in all competitions.
Following the loan spell, Newcastle wanted to sign Distin permanently but he instead opted to sign forManchester City where he could play in his preferred position ofcentral defence, rather than left-back at Newcastle. The transfer fee was £4 million, setting a club record for a defender. Consistent performances in his first Manchester City season resulted in Distin being named the club's Player of the Year for the 2002–03 season.[4] At the start of the 2003–04 season, Distin was named captain of Manchester City following the retirement ofAli Benarbia. In total, Distin played 207 times for Manchester City and scored six goals.
Distin left City at the end of his contract in May 2007, seeking a "fresh challenge",[5] and moved toPortsmouth on a three-year deal.[6] Distin was appointedvice captain byHarry Redknapp and led Portsmouth inSol Campbell's absences due to injury. At the end of Distin's first season atFratton Park, he won his first and only major honour in English football, the2008 FA Cup.[7]
AfterSol Campbell's departure from Portsmouth, Distin was named the new club captain.[8]
In August 2009,Everton signed Distin from Portsmouth for a fee of about £5 million on a three-year contract.[9] He was given the number 15 shirt and made his debut in a 2–1 victory overWigan Athletic. On 17 September 2009, he scored his first goal for Everton in theUEFA Europa League against Greek teamAEK Athens.[10] He scored his second goal for Everton in the UEFA Europa League on 16 February 2010 againstSporting CP to give Everton a 2–1 win. Distin was later sent off resulting in Sporting's goal from the penalty spot after a poor touch following an equally poorJack Rodwell pass. Distin scored his first league goal for the club againstLiverpool on 16 January 2011, heading in from a corner at the start of the second half. During his 2011–12 season, Distin assisted goalkeeperTim Howard's 100-yard goal, notable as only the fourth goal from a keeper in the history of the Premier League.
On 14 April 2012, he made a rare mistake in theFA Cup semi-final when a poor back pass giftedLuis Suárez the equalising goal for Merseyside rivalsLiverpool. Everton went on to lose the game 2–1, and Distin took to Twitter to apologise to the Everton fans.[11] However, he was named Everton's players' player of the year at the end of season awards ceremony,[12] and then agreed a one-year contract extension to stay at the club for the2012–13 season.[13]On 24 January 2013, Distin signed a new one-year contract with Everton, keeping him at the club until the summer of 2014.[14] On 23 February, he made his 400th Premier League appearance againstNorwich City atCarrow Road. A few weeks later he made his 402nd appearance – more than any other foreign outfield player.[15] Distin's centre back partnership withPhil Jagielka remained Everton's first choice through the2013–14 season, despite the emergence ofJohn Stones, with the club finishing fifth with their record Premier League points tally of 72.[16][17] He signed a new one-year contract to keep him at the club until the summer of 2015.[18]
In June 2015, after being released by Everton at the end of the2014–15 season, Distin agreed in principle, a free transfer to newly promotedAFC Bournemouth,[19] signing on 1 July.[20]
Distin spent one season with Bournemouth and was released when his contract expired at the end of June 2016.[21]
In 2003 Distin represented theL'équipe de l'amitié in a posthumous testimonial game for his former Manchester City teammate,Marc-Vivien Foé, versus the Cameroon national football team.[22]
In addition to France, Distin was also eligible to play for the non-FIFA affiliated nation ofGuadeloupe as his father was born there. Distin was approached to play in the2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup by the Guadeloupean federation, but he rejected the advances as he didn't feel it would be beneficial for his pre-season routine with Everton.[23]
In March 2013, Distin made his 402nd English Premier League appearance, the most of any foreign outfield player, but he never received any international call-ups. Despite this, Distin stated that he has no regrets over his career.[15] In May 2014, Distin humorously announced his international retirement on Twitter, calling his record of 0 caps for France a "wonderful experience".[24]
| Club | Season | League | Cup | League Cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Joué-lès-Tours | 1997–98 | CFA | 32 | 4 | ? | ? | — | — | 32 | 4 | ||
| Tours | 1998–99 | CFA | 26 | 3 | ? | ? | — | — | 26 | 3 | ||
| Gueugnon | 1999–2000 | Division 2 | 32 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | 40 | 1 | |
| Paris Saint-Germain | 2000–01 | Division 1 | 28 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 40 | 0 |
| 2001–02 | — | — | — | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | |||||
| Total | 28 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 45 | 0 | ||
| Newcastle United (loan) | 2001–02 | Premier League | 28 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 0 |
| Manchester City | 2002–03 | Premier League | 34 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 0 |
| 2003–04 | 38 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 50 | 3 | ||
| 2004–05 | 38 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 41 | 1 | ||
| 2005–06 | 31 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 0 | ||
| 2006–07 | 37 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 43 | 2 | ||
| Total | 178 | 5 | 16 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 206 | 6 | ||
| Portsmouth | 2007–08 | Premier League | 36 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 45 | 0 |
| 2008–09 | 38 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 47 | 0 | ||
| 2009–10 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Total | 77 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 95 | 0 | ||
| Everton | 2009–10 | Premier League | 29 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 38 | 2 |
| 2010–11 | 38 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 44 | 2 | |||
| 2011–12 | 27 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 33 | 0 | |||
| 2012–13 | 34 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | — | 40 | 1 | |||
| 2013–14 | 33 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 37 | 0 | |||
| 2014–15 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 18 | 0 | ||
| Total | 174 | 2 | 18 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 9 | 2 | 210 | 5 | ||
| AFC Bournemouth | 2015–16 | Premier League | 12 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 0 |
| Career total | 587 | 15 | 55 | 1 | 30 | 1 | 34 | 2 | 706 | 19 | ||
* Doesn't include2008 FA Community Shield appearance.
Gueugnon
Portsmouth
Individual
