Lilian Thuram

Thuram's football career began with Monaco in Ligue 1 in 1991. He then transferred to Parma (1996–2001) and then to Juventus (2001–2006) for £25 million, and eventually to Barcelona in 2006.

Monaco

Thuram started his professional career with Monaco in 1991. He only made one appearance that season, but was officially promoted to the first team the following season, when he would go on to make 19 appearances. He was inserted into the starting XI by the end of 1992 and would go on to make 155 league appearances for the Ligue 1 outfit, before transferring to Parma in the summer of 1996. He made his national team debut in 1994, while at Monaco. With Monaco, he won the Coupe de France in 1991, and reached the final of the 1991–92 European Cup Winners' Cup. He scored a total of 11 goals in his time at AS Monaco. Thuram scored his only UEFA Champions League goal in his career for Monaco in a 4–1 victory over Spartak Moscow in the 1993–94 season.

Parma

In July 1996, Thuram made a transfer to Italy to join Serie A club Parma. In his first season, he made over 40 appearances for the club in all competitions, scoring one goal, as Parma finished second in the 1996–97 Serie A to Juventus. He maintained a starting position in defense throughout his time with Parma, making 163 Serie A appearances and scoring one league goal. In all, he made over 200 appearances for the club, which helped him cap in his national team. Following another season in 2000–01, where Parma…

After becoming world champion in 1998, Thuram was part of France's triumph at UEFA Euro 2000, which led to the team being ranked by FIFA as number one from 2001–2002. He also played in the 2002 World Cup, 2006 World Cup, Euro 1996, Euro 2004 and Euro 2008, in addition to winning the 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup. In France's 2–1 group win over England at Euro 2004, Thuram became the third Frenchman to 100 caps, after fellow 1998 champions Didier Deschamps and Marcel Desailly.

1998 World Cup

Thuram was named in the French squad for the 1998 World Cup and played a part in their entire tournament. In the semi final against Croatia, after getting caught out of position and being at fault for Croatia's opening goal, Thuram went on to score a brace, his only two international goals, giving France a 2–1 win to take them to the final where the team defeated Brazil 3–0 to win their first World Cup. Thuram was awarded the Bronze Ball as the third most valuable player in the tournament. He, Bixente Lizarazu, Laurent Blanc and Marcel Desailly composed the backbone of the French defence that conceded only two goals in seven matches.

2006 World Cup

After a brief international retirement, France coach Raymond Domenech convinced Thuram to return to the French team on 17 August 2005, along with fellow "Golden Generation" teammates Zinedine Zidane and Claude Makélélé, as Les Bleus struggled to qualify for the 2006 World Cup. Thuram's centre back partnership with William…

Thuram played primarily as a defender, appearing as both a right-back and centre-back, and was also used in midfield on occasion. FIFA's Technical Study Group selected him as a right full-back in its 1998 World Cup All-Star Team, describing him as physically strong, difficult to beat, and capable of winning the ball from opponents. During his club career, he was used in both central and right-sided defensive roles, and as a full-back, he could move forward from wide positions and contribute crosses.

Thuram was born in Guadeloupe in the French West Indies. His family relocated to mainland France in 1981.