 Mbia playing for Marseille in 2010 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Stéphane Mbia | ||
| Date of birth | 20 May 1986 | ||
| Place of birth | Yaoundé, Cameroon | ||
| Height | 1.89 m (6 ft 2 1⁄2 in) | ||
| Playing position | Defensive midfielder / Centre back | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Sevilla (on loan from Queen's Park Rangers) | ||
| Number | 22 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2003–2004 | Kadji Sports Academy | ||
| 2004 | Rennes | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2004–2009 | Rennes | 105 | (4) |
| 2009–2012 | Marseille | 69 | (5) |
| 2012– | Queens Park Rangers | 29 | (0) |
| 2013– | → Sevilla (loan) | 4 | (0) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2005– | Cameroon | 41 | (3) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 30 January 2013.
† Appearances (Goals).
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 30 November 2012 | |||
Stéphane Mbia (born 20 May 1986) is a Cameroonian footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder orcentre back for Sevilla. Mbia has also represented the Cameroon national football team on 41 occasions since winning his first cap in 2005. He has scored a total of 3 goals in his international career, scoring once against Liberia during the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations qualification on the 3 June 2007 and twice versus Tunisia during the quarter-finals of the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations in Ghana on 4 February 2008.
A strong, powerful and technically gifted player, Mbia primarily plays as a defensive midfielder although he is capable of playing as either a centre half or a full back should the need arise.
Career
Stade Rennais
Born in Yaoundé, Mbia made his début for the Rennes first team during the 2005–06 season, going on to making a handful of appearances. The Cameroonian scored his first Ligue 1 goal for the club in November 2006 against the incumbent French champions Lyon.
On 18 April 2007, Mbia was abused by Lyon player Milan Baroš. This led to disciplinary action being taken against Baroš by the French Football Federation, who banned the striker for three matches for implying that Mbia smelt. The Federation later ruled that although Baroš was guilty of implying Mbia smelt, the remark was not made in a racial context.[1][2]
Marseille
On 14 July 2009, Mbia completed his £10.4 million move to Marseille from Rennes, going on to play a vital role in Marseille's victorious Ligue 1 campaign that season, starting off as a defensive midfielder but later making the transition to the role of centre back alongside former Charlton Athletic powerhouseSouleymane Diawara. His redeployment at centre back was a success and he played the rest of the season in this position, where he was considered to be one of the best performers in Didier Deschamps' talented, diverse squad, all the while forming a formidable defensive partnership with Diawara.
Queens Park Rangers
On 31 August 2012 Mbia signed a two-year deal with English Premier League club Queens Park Rangers, transferring from Marseille for an undisclosed fee, with Joey Barton heading in the opposite direction on a season-long loan.[3][4]
On 27 October 2012, Mbia was sent off seventeen minutes from the end of only his fourth league appearance for QPR, a 1–0 defeat to Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. He was dismissed in the 79th minute for violent conduct after kicking Gunners defender Thomas Vermaelen in retaliation to a strong challenge that had left Mbia floored. He received the standard three-match ban from the FA, and became ineligible for QPR's league games versus Reading, Stoke City and Southampton. On 6 May 2013, Mbia had tweeted to Joey Barton, asking him if he would like to switch seats with him as Marseille hinting that he wants to leave Queen Park Rangers after they were relegated from the Premier League.[5]
International career
Mbia played international football at junior level for Cameroon. He was part of the Cameroon squad that competed in the 2003 FIFA U-17 World Championshipin Finland, where his side were eliminated in the group stage.[6]
He made his debut for the Cameroon national team in 2005. He was part of the squad for the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations in Ghana, where Mbia scored twice against Tunisia in the quarter-finals.
Mbia was part of the Cameroon squad for the 2008 Olympics in China, playing in all four of his teams matches, and scoring once against Honduras
