Florent Malouda

Florent Johan Malouda (born 13 June 1980) is a football coach and former professional player who played as a midfielder.

Born in French Guiana, he represented both France and French Guiana at international level.

Malouda's performances began to catch the attention of French club Lyon who, after claiming their second consecutive title during the 2002–03 season, decided to sign Malouda.

In an outstanding Lyon team containing Juninho, Michael Essien, Grégory Coupet and Mahamadou Diarra, Malouda established himself on the left side of Lyon's attack, forming great link-ups with all of Lyon's strikers.

His performances for Lyon finally earned him a call-up to the France national team.

A France international from 2004 to 2012, Malouda represented Les Bleus on 80 occasions, including in two FIFA World Cups and two European Championships.

He was part of the French team which reached the 2006 World Cup final.

The highlights of Malouda's career at Lyon were a man of the match display against Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League and his ten goals which led Lyon to their sixth consecutive Ligue 1 title, both during the 2006–07 season.

He also won the Ligue 1 Player of the Year that season, edging teammate Juninho, Lille's Kader Keïta, Toulouse's Johan Elmander and Lens' Seydou Keita to the accolade.

Malouda made public his wish to leave Lyon at the end of the 2006–07 season, with Chelsea, Liverpool and Real Madrid showing interest in the winger.

On 29 June 2007, Malouda told Lyon-based newspaper Le Progres that he has his heart set on a move to Chelsea, confirming that Chelsea had lodged a €17 million bid for him.

Malouda later repeated this comment in an interview with the Daily Star.

On 5 July 2007, Chelsea chief executive Peter Kenyon told Sky Sports News that Chelsea had been in discussions with Lyon regarding Malouda's transfer and were hoping to tie up the deal before Chelsea's pre-season tour of the United States.

On 8 July 2007, Lyon club president Jean-Michel Aulas announced that the club had accepted an undisclosed bid, rumoured to be around £13 million, from Chelsea for Malouda.

Chelsea later officially revealed that Malouda would be traveling to London on 9 July for a medical and to discuss personal terms.

Malouda had looked set to join Liverpool until their Premier League rivals Chelsea intervened.

At 7 pm on the same day, Malouda officially signed a three-year contract with the club.

He was handed the number 15 shirt.

Chelsea manager José Mourinho described Malouda as a mature and proven player who was up to the challenge of adapting to the fast pace of English football, and hinted that Malouda would be fielded in tandem with Dutch winger Arjen Robben.

Malouda made his debut for Chelsea against Manchester United in the 2007 FA Community Shield on 5 August 2007 in a 1–1 draw; despite Chelsea going on to lose on penalties, he scored in what was an impressive display.

On 5 May 2008, Malouda scored his second Premier League goal in the penultimate game of the season against Newcastle United, converting a Frank Lampard through-ball.

Malouda ended his first season in English football with two goals and one assist in the league.

Malouda scored his first two goals in the Luiz Felipe Scolari era against French outfit Bordeaux in the Champions League group stages on 16 September 2008, and in the League Cup third round tie against Portsmouth.

Both games went on to be 4–0 victories for Chelsea.

A left winger, he spent most of his career at Lyon and Chelsea, winning four consecutive Ligue 1 titles with the former and the UEFA Champions League in 2012 with the latter, among other honours.

Malouda started against Birmingham City on 12 August on the left wing and scored Chelsea's second goal in a 3–2 victory, before being replaced by Steve Sidwell in the 83rd minute, with the win cementing Chelsea's place in the history books by overtaking Liverpool's record of 63-straight home games unbeaten.

On 19 August, Malouda won a penalty awarded by referee Rob Styles in a Premier League match against Liverpool.

Replays of the incident indicated Malouda had backed into Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher after trying to leave the ball for the unmarked Didier Drogba.

The penalty kick was given and Frank Lampard scored.

Referee Rob Styles was dropped from the next weekend Premier League games as a result of this incident and some other contentious decisions during the game.

Malouda scored against Schalke 04 in his first Champions League match for Chelsea, squeezing the ball through keeper Manuel Neuer's legs after turning his marker Rafinha.

On 23 January, Malouda set up Joe Cole with a long pass to score against Everton in the League Cup; Chelsea won the tie 3–1 on aggregate.

In 2017, he played for his home region French Guiana.

Malouda was born in Cayenne, French Guiana.

He attracted the interest of scouts from French club Châteauroux and he soon moved to Paris to join the club.

Despite the difficulties of living far away from his family home in French Guiana, Malouda was able to continue his studies and play professional football.

He played 57 games for Châteauroux, making his senior debut at the age of 16 in Ligue 2.

Malouda was then signed by top division side Guingamp following Châteauroux's inability to secure a Ligue 1 berth.

It was in Guingamp where his talent was showcased in French top-flight football.

Under the tutelage of coach Guy Lacombe, Malouda demonstrated his ability and formed a combination with Didier Drogba, whom he would also accompany later in his career at Chelsea.