Vito Mannone
Mannone with Arsenal in 2009 |
| Personal information |
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| Full name | Vito Mannone[1] |
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| Date of birth | 2 March 1988 (age 25) |
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| Place of birth | Desio, Italy |
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| Height | 1.89 m (6 ft 2 in)[2] |
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| Playing position | Goalkeeper |
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| Club information |
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| Current club | Sunderland |
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| Number | 25 |
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| Youth career |
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| 2003–2005 | Atalanta |
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| 2005–2006 | Arsenal |
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| Senior career* |
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| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
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| 2006–2013 | Arsenal | 15 | (0) |
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| 2006 | → Barnsley (loan) | 4 | (0) |
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| 2010–2011 | → Hull City (loan) | 10 | (0) |
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| 2012 | → Hull City (loan) | 21 | (0) |
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| 2013– | Sunderland | 11 | (0) |
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| National team‡ |
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| 2009–2010 | Italy U21 | 7 | (0) |
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* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 19:33, 3 January 2014 (UTC).
† Appearances (Goals).
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 12 October 2010 |
Early career
Born in
Desio,
Lombardy, Mannone was signed by
Arsène Wenger during the summer of 2005, joining
Arsenal from
Atalanta on a three-year deal for a £350,000 compensation fee, as the player had not yet signed a professional contract with the Italian side. He made his Arsenal debut in a pre-season friendly against
Barnet on 16 July 2005, as Arsenal ran out 4–1 winners.
Club career
Arsenal
2006–07 season - loan to Barnsley
On 18 August 2006, Mannone was sent out on a three-month loan to
Championship club
Barnsley, where he was expected to challenge
Nick Colgan for the number-one spot.
[4] He made his debut in the
League Cup against
Blackpool on 22 August 2006. After a 2–2 draw, the game went to a penalty shootout in which Mannone saved a penalty from
Keigan Parker to help his team through to the next round.
[5] However Mannone's time at Barnsley was ultimately not a happy one. Making his league debut in an away game to
Preston North End on 22 September, he came on as a substitute after Colgan was sent off. He punched a cross onto
Patrick Agyemang's head and the ball bounced in for the winning goal to Preston.
[6] In his next match, starting in place of the suspended Colgan, against
Luton Town, he dropped a cross late on and
Ahmet Brković scored the winner.
After suffering a knee injury, Mannone's loan period was cut short and he returned to Arsenal on 23 October 2006 for treatment.
[7]
2007–08 season[edit]
Mannone was understudy to
Łukasz Fabiański during Arsenal's
2007–08 League Cup campaign. However, he was an unused substitute in all of the club's five matches in the competition, before they were knocked-out in the semi-finals by North London rivals
Tottenham Hotspur. On 19 December 2007, Arsenal announced that Mannone had signed a new long-term contract.
[9] On 19 April 2008, he was named on the bench for a
Premier League game for the first time, in Arsenal's 2–0 win against
Reading at the
Emirates Stadium. But he was an unused substitute as
Jens Lehmann played the entire match.
2008–09 season
Following the departure of Jens Lehmann in the summer of 2008, Mannone became Arsenal's third-choice goalkeeper, behind
Manuel Almunia and Łukasz Fabiański. Mannone changed his shirt number from 40 to 24 at the beginning of the
2008–09 season, after Manuel Almunia (the previous owner) was given the number 1. On 19 July 2008, he was brought on for the second half of Arsenal's 2–1 pre-season friendly win over
Barnet at
Underhill, keeping a clean sheet. He made a total of four pre-season appearances for Arsenal's first team in the summer of 2008, coming on as a half-time substitute in all of them.
He finally made his competitive debut for Arsenal's first team in their final match of the 2008–09 season, a Premier League fixture at home to
Stoke City on 24 May 2009. Arsenal won the game 4–1.
[10]
2009–10 season
Mannone made his second Premier League appearance against
Wigan Athletic on 19 September 2009. He kept a clean sheet in a 4–0 victory for Arsenal.
[12] Mannone also kept a clean sheet in a 1–0 win against
Fulham at
Craven Cottage on 26 September 2009, in which he pulled off many good saves and almost single-handedly kept Arsenal in the game.
[13] Mannone said the game was the highlight of his career.
[14] He again kept a clean sheet in the 2–0 victory over
Olympiacos in the
UEFA Champions League on 29 September 2009. On 17 October 2009, Mannone was selected as the starting keeper over the previous mainstay, Almunia, who had been overlooked after missing through illness; this was seen as a vote of confidence for Mannone after people had previously questioned his and Almunia's future in the first team.
On 25 January 2010, Mannone signed a new long-term contract with Arsenal, setting his sight to become Arsenal's first choice goalkeeper.
[15]
2010–11 season - loan to Hull City
On 18 October 2010, Mannone joined Championship side
Hull City on loan until 3 January 2011.
[16] On 27 October 2010, Mannone played his first game with Hull City against
Scunthorpe United in a reserve match in which Hull won 3–0. Mannone was reported to have made a few great saves.
[17] He made his first team debut on 13 November 2010 against
Preston North End, where he kept a
clean sheet in a 2–0 victory.
[18] He also kept another clean sheet against
Ipswich Town on his home debut in which the game ended in a 1–0 victory for Hull. He had a good spell with Hull, keeping 4 clean sheets in 7 games and also saved a penalty against
Reading. On 31 December 2010, he returned to Arsenal after a thigh injury, but rejoined Hull on loan until the end of the season.
[19] He returned from injury on 5 March 2011, in a 1–0 win over
Nottingham Forest at the
City Ground.
[20]
2011–12 season
Mannone returned to Arsenal as third choice behind the two Polish keepers,
Wojciech Szczęsny and
Łukasz Fabiański. His first competitive appearance of the
2011–12 season came on 6 December 2011 against
Olympiakos in the
UEFA Champions League, replacing the injured Lukasz Fabianski. Mannone made a blunder that allowed
David Fuster to score Olympiakos' second goal of the night and Arsenal eventually lost the game 3–1.
Return to Hull
Mannone returned to Hull City on 4 January 2012, signing on loan until the end of the season.
[21] His first game back at the
KC Stadium was an
FA Cup Third round match against
Ipswich Town, with
Hull City winning 3–1. His first league game was a 1–0 away win over
Reading. He then played in the
FA Cup Fourth round match against
Crawleywhich ended in a surprise 0–1 defeat for Hull, during which he was announced Man of the Match. He then kept a
clean sheet over
Doncaster in a goalless draw at the
KC Stadium on 31 January.
2012–13 season
Due to injuries to both Wojciech Szczęsny and Łukasz Fabiański, Mannone was the 'first' choice goalkeeper, playing the full 90 minutes in a 0–0 draw against
Stoke City, and keeping another clean sheet a week later against
Liverpoolat Anfield. Mannone also played in a 1–1 draw against
Manchester City on 23 September. Due to his performances this season Mannone has stated he is ready to challenge Szczęsny for the No. 1 Spot. He effectively succeeded Fabiański for the No. 2 spot.
[22]
In March, with Szczesny rested for a few matches and Mannone injured, Fabianski filled in. Fabianski's performances got him promoted to No.2, displacing Mannone to No. 3.
Sunderland
On 3 July 2013, Mannone signed a two year contract with
Sunderland, for an undisclosed fee.
[23] Mannone started both of Sunderland's matches in the
Premier League Asia Trophy in pre-season, but
Kieren Westwood was preferred to him for the opening league game of the season against Fulham. After featuring in the League Cup, Mannone made his league debut for the Black Cats in a 1-0 loss at Hull, replacing the injured Westwood. Mannone retained his place for a 2-1 cup win over Southampton, and made his first league start in a 1-0 home win over
Manchester City.
[24]
International career[edit]
