Anton Ferdinand
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| Anton Ferdinand | ||
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| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Anton Julian Ferdinand | |
| Date of birth | February 18, 1985 | |
| Place of birth | Peckham, England | |
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | |
| Playing position | Centre-back | |
| Club information | ||
| Current club | West Ham United | |
| Number | 5 | |
| Youth clubs | ||
| 2002–2003 | West Ham United | |
| Senior clubs1 | ||
| Years | Club | App (Gls)* |
| 2003– | West Ham United | 138 (5) |
| National team2 | ||
| 2004–2007 | England U21 | 17 (0) |
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1 Senior club appearances and goals |
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Anton Julian Ferdinand (born February 18, 1985 in Peckham, London) is an English footballer. He is currently playing for West Ham United. He plays as a central defender.
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[edit] Background
Born into a footballing family (both his brother Rio and cousin Les[1] are successful players), Anton Ferdinand showed considerable talent from an early age. Like his brother, he preferred to play in defence. His ability in this position led to him being signed to West Ham United's famed academy.
[edit] Club career
[edit] West Ham United
Ferdinand joined West Ham as a trainee in December 2002[2] and was handed his full debut in August 2003 when he started the 2-1 victory at Preston North End on the 2003-04 season's opening day.[2] He went on to feature in 26 games that season.[2]
In the 2004-05 season, he cemented his first team place with several key performances (including scoring the opening goal on the final day as the Hammers beat Watford 2-1) as West Ham booked a play-off spot. West Ham went on to beat Preston in the final, earning them promotion back into the FA Premier League after an absence of two years. At the end of July 2005, Ferdinand decided to stay at West Ham by signing a three-year contract extension with the club.[3]
Ferdinand won the Premier League Player of the Month award in January 2006. In the 2006 FA Cup Final against Liverpool in Cardiff, Ferdinand fell to his knees in tears after missing the decisive penalty in the shoot out.
In March 2007 it was revealed that Ferdinand had been fined two weeks wages (estimated at £45,000) for lying about his whereabouts. Ferdinand told the club he needed to go to the Isle of Wight to visit his grandmother when in fact, he went to South Carolina to celebrate his 22nd birthday. West Ham lost the following game to relegation rivals Charlton Athletic 0-4[4].
[edit] International career
Ferdinand was a regular selection for England's Under-21 side, having made his début in a 3-1 win over Ukraine at the Riverside Stadium on August 17, 2004.
Ferdinand was selected to be part of the England squad for the 2007 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship in the Netherlands, and given the number 5 shirt. Going into the tournament whilst recovering from an injury, he made only one appearance, as substitute, in the semi-final against the hosts. The match finished 1-1 after extra time, and in the penalty shootout which followed, he scored one and missed one as the Netherlands won 13-12. This was his final U21s appearance.
Despite having played for England's Under-21s, Anton could still play for The Republic of Ireland due to his Anglo-Irish descent.
[edit] Court case
In October 2006 Ferdinand was arrested on assault charges following a fracas outside a nightclub in Ilford. He was charged in November 2006 .[5] He appeared at Snaresbrook Crown Court on 12 November 2007 charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm and affray, arising from this incident. It was alleged that Ferdinand had punched Emile Walker. In his defence Ferdinand said he had feared he was going to be robbed of his £64,000 watch and was defending himself.[6] On 20 November 2007 Ferdinand was cleared of all charges as it was viewed that he was acting in self-defence.[7]
[edit] Statistics
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | ||
| West Ham United | 2007–08 | 24 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 1 |
| 2006–07 | 31 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 34 | 0 | |
| 2005–06 | 33 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 38 | 2 | |
| 2004–05 | 29 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 36 | 1 | |
| 2003–04 | 20 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 0 | |
| Total | 137 | 5 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 161 | 5 | |
[edit] References
- ^ "Ferdinand: I'm devastated", TheFA.com, 17 November 2005. Retrieved 22 June 2007.
- ^ a b c Soccerbase: Anton Ferdinand, Racing Post. Retrieved 22 June 2007.
- ^ "Ferdinand signs new West Ham deal", BBC news report, 30 July 2005. Retrieved 11 June 2007.
- ^ "Anton suffers Hammers shame", The Sun, 16 March 2007, retrieved 10 June 2007.
- ^ "Footballer charged with assault", BBC news report, 22 November 2006. Retrieved 22 November 2006.
- ^ "Football star 'punched clubber", BBC news report, 13 November 2007. Retrieved 13 November 2007
- ^ "Ferdinand cleared of club assault ", BBC news report, 20 November 2007. Retrieved 20 November 2007
[edit] External links
- Anton Ferdinand career stats at Soccerbase
- Guardian Interview
- The Wonderful World of West Ham United statistics
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