Matthieu Delpierre

Lille

In his first season with Lille, Delpierre made few appearances but helped in the club's promotion to Ligue 1. Delpierre played more regularly in his second season, helping Lille finish third and thereby qualify for the UEFA Champions League. Delpierre continued to perform well for Lille though the club finished at a lower position in the league every season.

VfB Stuttgart

Delpierre was signed by VfB Stuttgart on a free transfer after Lille refused to grant him a contract extension. Stuttgart struggled during the 2004–05 and 2005–06 seasons, but Delpierre began to improve under the tutelage of coach Armin Veh. The following season, during which he missed only one game through illness, the French defender formed an almost impenetrable barrier alongside Fernando Meira at the heart of the Stuttgart defence. Matthieu has also been a vital cog in Stuttgart's success in the 2006–07 DFB-Pokal, in which the team conceded only three goals before losing the final to Nürnberg. On 19 May 2007, Delpierre won the German Bundesliga with Stuttgart, playing a significant part in their success.

His defensive performances attracted the attention of Arsenal and Bayern Munich and also French clubs Marseille and Saint-Étienne. However, he remained at Stuttgart, extending his contract until the summer of 2012. On 1 December 2009, Delpierre was appointed the new captain of VfB Stuttgart by Markus Babbel. On 12 January 2012 he asked Bruno Labbadia to appoint another…

Delpierre was called up to the senior France team in March 2008 but was ultimately never capped at that level.

Club

Lille Ligue 2: 1999–2000 Stuttgart Bundesliga: 2006–07 Melbourne Victory A-League Championship: 2014–15 A-League Premiership: 2014–15 FFA Cup: 2015 Individual

PFA Team of the Season: 2014–15, 2015–16 Victory Medal: 2015–16 Players' Player of the Year: 2015–16