Costel Pantilimon

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Costel Pantilimon
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Pantilimon with Romania, June 2014
Personal information
Full name Costel Fane Pantilimon[1]
Date of birth (1987-02-01) 1 February 1987 (age 37)
Place of birth Bacău, Romania
Height Script error: No such module "person height".
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Team information
Current team
 Watford
Number 18
Youth career
Aerostar Bacău
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2003–2012 Politehnica Timișoara 93 (0)
2011–2012 → Manchester City (loan) 0 (0)
2012–2014 Manchester City 7 (0)
2014–2016 Sunderland 45 (0)
2016– Watford 4 (0)
International career‡
2003–2004 Romania U17 5 (0)
2005 Romania U19 3 (0)
2006–2008 Romania U21 12 (0)
2008– Romania 22 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 13 March 2016
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 25 May 2016

Costel Fane Pantilimon (born 1 February 1987) is a Romanian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for English club Watford and the Romania national team. At six foot, eight inches (203 cm) tall, he is currently the tallest player in the Premier League.[3]

He began his career at Politehnica Timișoara, becoming their first-choice goalkeeper. In 2011 he signed for Manchester City, initially on loan, as back-up for Joe Hart. Pantilimon was first choice for City in the 2013–14 Football League Cup, which they went on to win. He then remained in the Premier League with Sunderland, spending one-and-a-half seasons there before a transfer to Watford in 2016. He has been a full international for Romania since 2008.

Club career

Early career

Born in Bacău, Pantilimon started his career at Aerostar Bacău and got his share of limelight at the Romania national under-19 team before transferring to Timișoara on 1 February 2006, his nineteenth birthday.[4]

Politehnica Timișoara

Initially Pantilimon was Timișoara's second-choice goalkeeper, behind Marius Popa; however, in May 2008 the owner of the club, Marian Iancu, transferred Popa to the second team, and Pantilimon took the pole position.[5] He made his debut in the Romanian Liga 1 against Dinamo Bucharest, in March 2007.[4]

In a match against Ceahlăul on 17 October 2009 he captained the team for the first time, since Dan Alexa, Gigel Bucur and Arman Karamyan and his brother Artavazd were all on the bench.[6]

Pantilimon was part of the Timișoara team that defeated UEFA Cup winners Shakhtar Donetsk in the qualifying rounds of the 2009–10 Champions League campaign. He played all 90 minutes of each leg.[7][8]

Manchester City

File:Pantilimon Aguero.JPG
Pantilimon (left) with Sergio Agüero on Manchester City's Premier League victory parade, May 2012

On 11 August 2011, Pantilimon joined Manchester City on a one-year loan deal from Poli Timișoara to act as cover for Joe Hart following the departure of Shay Given.[9]

His first start was in the League Cup win against holders Birmingham City on 21 September 2011. His next game was on 26 October, against Wolverhampton Wanderers in the same competition, where City fielded a second-string team, although still comprehensively won 5–2. Pantilimon got his next Manchester City start during the 1–0 League Cup quarter final win against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. In the Arsenal game he won the Man of the Match award, making two saves made in the first half. He started the third round of the FA Cup against Manchester United at the City of Manchester Stadium on 8 January 2012, saving Wayne Rooney's penalty but was unable to save the follow up; Manchester City lost the game 3–2.[10]

Pantilimon's loan deal was made permanent for a fee in the region of £3 million. He was contracted to City until 2016.[11] During the 2012–13 FA Cup, he kept four clean sheets in a row and managed an outstanding performance against Chelsea in the semi-final, conceding just a single goal in five games. In response to this performance the Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini immediately promised that the Romanian would keep his place when the team return to Wembley to face Wigan Athletic on 11 May.[12] However, he was a substitute in the final with Joe Hart starting, which saw Manchester City lose to Wigan 1–0.[13] It was later revealed that Mancini had promised on the eve of the FA Cup Final that the Romanian would play, but then deputed the goalkeeping coach on match day morning to say there had been a change of plan.[14]

Pantilimon was given his first start of the 2013–14 season for City in the Football League Cup third-round match at home to Wigan Athletic on 24 September 2013, which City won 5–0;[15] manager Manuel Pellegrini praised him for keeping a clean sheet.[16] Five weeks later, Pantilimon was also selected to start in the next League Cup match away to Newcastle United on 30 October; once again, he conceded no goals, as City won 2–0 and progressed to the last eight of the competition.[17] Three days later, he made his Premier League début at home to Norwich City, keeping his third clean sheet in a row in an emphatic 7–0 victory.[18] On 7 November 2013, he started in Champions League game against CSKA Moscow that ended in City winning 5–2. He started his second Premier League game on 10 November 2013 away against Sunderland that ended in a 0–1 defeat.

On 2 March 2014, Pantilimon started for Manchester City in the 2014 Football League Cup Final at Wembley Stadium. The team won 3–1 against Sunderland with goals from Yaya Touré, Samir Nasri and Jesús Navas.[19]

Overall, Pantilimon made seven appearances during the 2013–14 Premier League season, keeping three clean sheets as Manchester City won a second league title in three years.[20] He was also the team's first-choice goalkeeper for their Football League Cup and FA Cup matches.[21]

Sunderland

File:Pantilimon goal kick (18379352005).jpg
Pantilimon taking a goal-kick for Sunderland

On 16 June 2014, Pantilimon joined Sunderland on a free transfer from Manchester City.[22] On 27 August, he made his first appearance for the club in the second round of the Football League Cup second round against Birmingham City, keeping a clean sheet in a 3–0 win at Saint Andrew's.[23] Pantilimon started the season as back-up for Vito Mannone, but after poor performances in an 8–0 loss to Southampton and a 2–0 loss to Arsenal, the Italian was subsequently dropped and Pantilimon made his Premier League debut for Sunderland in a 3–1 win at Crystal Palace on 3 November 2014.[24]

Watford

On 19 January 2016, Pantilimon joined Premier League rivals Watford on a three-and-a-half-year deal, for a fee in the region of €8 million.[25][26] He made his first appearance for the Hornets on 30 January in their FA Cup Fourth Round victory at Nottingham Forest. He also started the game in the Fifth Round against Leeds United. He kept clean sheets in both games.

International career

File:Algérie-Roumanie - 20140604 - Equipe de Roumanie.jpg
Pantilimon (right) in the Romania team ahead of a match against Algeria in 2014

Pantilimon is a former Romania under-21 international. He made his debut for the senior Romania national team on 19 November 2008, in a friendly against Georgia.[27]

Club statistics

As of Statistics accurate as of 17 May 2016[28]
Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Europe Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Poli Timișoara 2006–07 8 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 10 0
2007–08 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 0
2008–09 31 0 5 0 0 0 2 0 38 0
2009–10 21 0 0 0 0 0 9 0 30 0
2010–11 28 0 1 0 0 0 3 0 32 0
Total 93 0 8 0 0 0 14 0 115 0
Manchester City 2011–12 0 0 1 0 4 0 0 0 5 0
2012–13 0 0 5 0 1 0 0 0 6 0
2013–14 7 0 5 0 5 0 1 0 18 0
Total 7 0 11 0 10 0 1 0 29 0
Sunderland 2014–15 28 0 1 0 2 0 0 0 31 0
2015–16 17 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 18 0
Total 45 0 1 0 3 0 0 0 49 0
Watford 2015–16 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 0 4 0
Total 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 0 4 0
Career total 145 0 24 0 14 0 15 0 198 0

Honours

Manchester City

Personal life

Pantilimon is a hearing child of two deaf parents.[29] He married Andreea Berbece in 2013.[30][31]

References

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  22. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  23. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  26. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  27. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  28. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  29. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  30. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  31. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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