Ronald Zubar

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Ronald Zubar

Personal information
Full name	Ronald Zubar
Date of birth	(1985-09-20) September 20, 1985 (age 26)
Place of birth	Les Abymes, Guadeloupe, France
Height	1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)[1]
Playing position	Defender
Club information
Current club	Wolverhampton Wanderers
Number	23
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
2002–2006	Caen	96	(2)
2006–2009	Marseille	98	(3)
2009–	Wolverhampton Wanderers	51	(3)
National team
2003	Guadeloupe	1	(0)
2004–2007	France U-21	15	(2)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 16:30, 22 April 2012 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals).

Ronald Zubar (born 20 September 1985) is a French footballer of Guadeloupean descent who plays as a defender for Premier League club Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Zubar's efforts at French club Caen earned him a string of admirers and, ultimately, a move to Marseille in 2006. His time at Marseille ended sourly though, after individual errors saw fans turn against him and him relegated to the sidelines. He found an exit in Premier League club Wolverhampton Wanderers, for whom he signed in 2009.

Club career

Caen

Born in Les Abymes Guadeloupe, one of France’s overseas regions, Zubar began his professional football career at Ligue 2 side Caen and was part of their Youth Team, which were runners up in the 2001 Gambardella Cup. He made his first team debut for Caen against fellow Ligue 2 side Lorient on the 8 March 2003, which ended in a goalless draw. Zubar sustained a run of games in the first team and helped his team win promotion to Ligue 1 in the 2003-04 season. He was part of the team that reached the French League Cup Final in 2005. However Caen was relegated at the end of the season, finishing in 18th place in Ligue 1. Zubar remained with the club for another season as he tried to help them back into Ligue 1, but he was unsuccessful. Despite Caen’s failure to get promotion, he was named as the best defensive midfielder in Ligue 2’s Team of the Year. He made a total of 96 appearances for Caen, scoring 2 goals.

Marseille

After speculation over his future at Caen, being linked with Premier League teams Arsenal and Chelsea and fellow Ligue 1 rivals Lyon and Bordeaux, Zubar finally joined Marseille on 15 June 2006, signing a four-year contract for an undisclosed fee. His first season with the team saw him narrowly miss out on two honours. Marseille finished runners up in Ligue 1 to fellow side Lyon, and lost the French Cup Final. Zubar himself missed the decisive penalty in the shootout against Sochaux in the final, after a 2-2 draw. At the start of the 2007-08 season, Zubar was converted to defence, playing various games at centre back and right back, from his former defensive midfield role. This campaign was hard for Zubar as he found himself under pressure from fans after several costly mistakes in defence, in a season that only brought the club third place in Ligue 1. He made a total of 98 appearances for the club, scoring 3 goals, before leaving the club in the summer of 2009.

Wolverhampton Wanderers

Zubar playing for Wolves

On 4 July 2009, Zubar signed for Premier League club Wolverhampton Wanderers on a four-year deal for an undisclosed fee, believed to be in the region of £2.5m. After a long period of adjustment due to the language barrier and a newborn child in France, he finally made his Premier League debut on 17 October 2009 in a 1–1 draw at Everton. He scored his first Premier League goal against West Ham United on 23 March 2010, helping Wolves to a 3–1 win at Upton Park. On 15 January 2011, Zubar scored his second league goal for the club in the 86th minute against Manchester City in a 4-3 loss at the City of Manchester Stadium. His season was ended two months early after he underwent back surgery.^[2]

On 18 Match 2012 he was sent off against Manchester United.

International career

Zubar has represented France at under-16, under-17, under-18 and under-21 level. He was part of the French under-17 side which reached the final of the 2002 European Under-17 Championships.

He has represented Guadeloupe, which his the French overseas department he is originally from, at full international level though. As they are not a FIFA member and part of France, he is still eligible to play for France at senior level too.

Personal life

His younger brother, Stéphane, is also a professional footballer who currently plays for Bournemouth.

References

External links

• Official club profile
• Official personal site (French)
• Ronald Zubar career stats at Soccerbase
• Ronald Zubar French league stats at LFP.fr (French)