Jonathan Blondel

Summary

Jonathan Blondel (born 3 April 1984) is a retired Belgian footballer who last played as a midfielder for Club Brugge.

Jonathan Blondel
Personal information
Full name Jonathan Blondel
Date of birth (1984-04-03) 3 April 1984 (age 40)
Place of birth Ypres, Belgium
Height 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)
Position(s) Midfielder
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2001–2002 Mouscron 18 (0)
2002–2004 Tottenham Hotspur 2 (0)
2004–2015 Club Brugge 189 (10)
Total 209 (10)
International career
1999–2001 Belgium U16 12 (0)
1999–2000 Belgium U17 3 (1)
2001–2003 Belgium U19 13 (3)
2003 Belgium U20 1 (0)
2002–2007 Belgium U21 20 (4)
2002–2010 Belgium 4 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Career edit

Excelsior Mouscron edit

Blondel started his career at Excelsior Mouscron, making his league debut as a substitute on a 1–0 loss against RSC Charleroi on 7 September 2001,[1] making a total of 18 league appearances in the season. Blondel also helped Mouscron to finish as runners-up at the 2001–02 Belgian Cup, scoring the equaliser in their subsequent defeat by Club Brugge and helping his team to qualify for the 2002–03 UEFA Cup[2][3]

Tottenham Hotspur edit

Blondel was signed by Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur on 7 August 2002, having rejected a move to Manchester United earlier in the year.[4] He made his Premier League debut on 31 August 2002 as a substitute in a 2–1 win against Southampton[5] at the age of 18 years and 150 days.[6] Lacking first-team football and being relegated to the reserve team, Blondel considered to ask a loan move to Belgium.[7] Royal Excelsior Mouscron enquired about a loan return deal, which was not agreed.[8][9]

Blondel made his second and last Premier League appearance in a 1–0 home loss against Bolton Wanderers on 1 November 2003, again as a substitute and almost netting a late equaliser.[10]

Club Brugge edit

On 28 January 2004, Blondel returned to Belgium after agreeing to join Club Brugge.[11][12] He played a total of 266 games for The Blues,[13] before announcing his retirement from professional football on 13 January 2015 after years of injury trouble. His last official match was on 8 August 2013, in the 2013–14 UEFA Europa League.[14]

During his career at Club Brugge, Blondel won the 2004–05 Belgian First Division, the 2003–04 and 2006–07 Belgian Cups and was part of the squad that won the 2014–15 Belgian Cup, although not playing in the latter and retiring before Club Brugge won the title.

International career edit

Blondel has played for Belgium under-19 and under-21 teams before being capped for the Belgium national football team. His debut was on 21 August 2002, coming off the bench in a friendly match against Poland.[15] He returned to the national side in 2004 for the friendly matches against Germany[16] and Turkey[17] After almost six years from his 3rd international appearance, Blondel received his 4th and last cap in 2010, in a friendly match against Croatia.[18]

Honours edit

Club edit

Club Brugge

References edit

  1. ^ "Excelsior Mouscron v Charleroi, 07 September 2001".
  2. ^ "Spurs sign teenager Blondel". 11 July 2002.
  3. ^ "Belgium Cup 2001/02".
  4. ^ "Spurs land Blondel". 11 July 2002.
  5. ^ "Tottenham Hotspur v Southampton, 31 August 2002".
  6. ^ "All time – Youngest appearances Tottenham Hotspur Premier League".
  7. ^ "Blondel may seek loan move".
  8. ^ "Blondel faces uncertain future". 29 October 2002.
  9. ^ "Mouscron consider Blondel move".
  10. ^ "Tottenham 0 – 1 Bolton". The Guardian. 2 November 2003.
  11. ^ "Blondel set for Belgium return".
  12. ^ "Brugge bring Blondel home". 28 January 2004.
  13. ^ "Jonathan Blondel puts an end to his career". 13 January 2015.
  14. ^ "Jonathan Blondel (30) quits professional football" (in Dutch). sporza.be. 13 January 2015. Archived from the original on 18 January 2015.
  15. ^ "Poland v Belgium, 21 August 2002".
  16. ^ "Germany v Belgium, 31 March 2004".
  17. ^ "Belgium v Turkey, 28 April 2004".
  18. ^ "Belgium v Croatia, 03 March 2010".
  19. ^ "Anderlecht beaten in the Supercup". anderlecht-online.be. Retrieved 20 April 2022.
  20. ^ "SUPERCOUPE DE BELGIQUE. FIN". besoccer.com. Retrieved 20 April 2022.

External links edit

  • (in English) Soccerbase website – Blondel's entry
  • Guardian Football
  • Jonathan Blondel at National-Football-Teams.com
  • Jonathan Blondel at the Royal Belgian Football Association