Steed Malbranque

Steed Malbranque is a Belgian-born French footballer who plays for Olympique Lyonnais. He was a trainee at Lyon youth academy between 1995 and 1997, during which time he won the Under-15 championship twice, the Under-17 Cup and the reserve team championship. He also captained the French Under-18 side. He made his professional debut for the club in a 1–1 draw against Montpellier on 21 February 1998 aged 18. He eventually made his move to the Premier League in 2001, joining Fulham for a fee believed to be £4.5 million. He went on to score 10 goals in his first season. He opted to sign for Tottenham Hotspur on the deadline day of the transfer window (31 August) for a fee believed to be £2 million. He scored his first goal for Spurs in an emphatic 5–1 victory over Charlton Athletic at White Hart Lane on 9 December. He started for Spurs as they won the 2008 Football League Cup Final against Chelsea. With every step, his statistics kept improving and his profile kept getting better. Malbranque signed a four-year contract on 30 July 2008. He went on to score his first goal for the club with the first goal in Sunderland\'s 4–1 victory over Hull City at the KC Stadium. Malbranque enjoyed his best form in a Sunderland shirt during the 2009–10 season. On 1 February 2011, he made his 100th appearance for Sunderland playing against Chelsea at the Stadium of Light. On 3 August 2011, it was announced Malbranque had signed with French side AS Saint-Étienne on a two-year contract. On 25 August 2012 Malbranque signed a one year contract with Lyon. In his first game after returning to Lyon, Malbranque played a superb game against Valenciennes. Although born in Belgium, he was called up to the French Under-21s and was part of the squad of Les Bleus that competed in the final of the 2002 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship.