Eric Abidal

Early career

Born in Saint-Genis-Laval, Lyon Metropolis to Martiniquais parents Abidal started playing with AS Lyon Duchère, an amateur team in the suburbs. He started his professional career with AS Monaco FC, making his Ligue 1 debut on 16 September 2000 in a 3–0 home win against Toulouse FC but only appearing in 22 league matches over the course of two full seasons. Abidal transferred to fellow top-division club Lille OSC for 2002–03, reuniting with former manager Claude Puel and being first-choice during his spell. Subsequently, he returned to his native region and joined Olympique Lyonnais.

Lyon

During his later years in France, where he won three consecutive national championships – of the seven the team won – Abidal's confidence was shown when Lyon played Manchester United and he was in charge of marking Cristiano Ronaldo: "As a defender, my aim is to infuriate the opponent," he explained. "I want him to be so sick of the sight of me that he has to move somewhere else on the pitch to get away." His defensive teammates at L'OL included François Clerc, Grégory Coupet and Anthony Réveillère, as well as Brazilian internationals Caçapa and Cris. On 10 November 2004, Abidal scored the first goal of his career, in a 3–2 loss at former club Lille in the second round of the Coupe de la Ligue. As a result of his exploit, his parents agreed to get married after a 35-year union. Abidal missed the first months of the 2005–06 campaign after fracturing his…

Abidal earned 67 caps for the France national team, his debut coming on 18 August 2004 in a friendly with Bosnia and Herzegovina. He was selected for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, playing all the games and minutes in the country's runner-up campaign as left-back, with the exception of the match against Togo, from which he was suspended after earning two yellow cards in the first two fixtures. In the final against Italy, he scored his penalty shootout attempt. Again under Raymond Domenech, Abidal was first-choice during the Euro 2008 qualifying campaign. In the final stages, he appeared against Italy as a centre-back, but conceded a penalty and was sent off in the first half of an eventual 2–0 loss and group stage exit. He played against Uruguay and Mexico in the 2010 World Cup again as stopper, opting out of the next game against host country South Africa as the French side again left the competition after only three matches.

Abidal was considered a tactically intelligent and versatile defender, capable of featuring as a centre or left-back due to his positional sense and his ability to read the game. In his prime, he was also quick and strong which, along with his technical ability and distribution, allowed him to run up the wing to assist his team offensively as well as defensively.

Abidal was raised in a Catholic family and converted to Islam in his 20s. He married former gymnast Hayet Kebir in 2003, fathering children Méliana, Canélia, Leyna, Kenya and Edan.