Gaël Givet

Monaco

Born in Arles, France, Givet started his professional career at AS Monaco as a left back before moving to centre half. He made his debut in a 2–2 draw against Guingamp in December 2000. He played for Monaco between 2000 and 2007, making 178 league appearances and scoring a respectable 8 goals. The highlights of his time at the club were winning the French League Cup in 2003 and reaching the UEFA Champions League Final in 2004, where he missed out on a winner's medal with a 3–0 defeat against Jose Mourinho's FC Porto. He played a pivotal role in their success, making 13 Champions League appearances during the campaign. He made a name for himself in the 2003-04 season where he blossomed in the Monaco defense alongside Patrice Evra, Julien Rodriguez and Sébastien Squillaci.

Marseille

After a successful career at Monaco, Givet moved to Marseille. During the 2007–08 season he featured 29 times in the French league and made nine appearances in the UEFA Champions League. However at the beginning of the next season he found his opportunities very limited in the first team.

Blackburn Rovers

On 10 January 2009, L'Equipe reported that Givet would be flying to England to finalize a six-month loan deal with English club Blackburn Rovers on 12 January. On 14 January, Sky Sports announced that Blackburn had completed the signing of Givet on a six-month loan deal with a view to a permanent move at the end of the season. This was confirmed by Marseille on 15 January. He appeared in his first match for Blackburn against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light coming on from off the bench in the FA Cup fourth round on 24 January 2009 appearing as a substitute. The match finished 0–0, which resulted in a return fixture at Ewood Park on 4 February. Givet made his home debut in that match, which resulted in a 2–1 win for Blackburn. On Saturday 21 February 2009, he started and played the full 90 minutes against Manchester United at Old Trafford in a 2–1 defeat.

On 15 May 2009, an agreement in principle was made with Marseille to make his loan switch to Blackburn permanent. On 26 June 2009, Blackburn completed the signing of Givet on a four-year contract for £3.5 million. He scored his first goal in over three years against Sunderland on 22 August 2009 in a 2–1 away defeat. He scored his second goal for Rovers at home against Bolton Wanderers at Ewood Park on 21 February 2010 in a 3–0 victory. Following the 2009–10 season, Givet was awarded the 'Player's Player of the Year' award by the club.

On 14 August 2010, he started and completed the full 90 minutes in the 1–0 win over Everton on the opening day of the new Premier League season. On 22 September 2010, he scored a volley from the edge of the area on 34 minutes against Aston Villa at Villa Park in the League Cup third round 3–1 defeat. On 13 November 2010, Givet scored a goal against Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane and played the full 90 minutes at left-back in a 4–2 defeat. On 8 January 2011, he suffered a knee injury whilst playing in the FA Cup third round fixture against Queens Park Rangers in a 1–0 win for Rovers when he accidentally collided with Jamie Mackie and both players had to be stretchered off the field on around about the half-hour stage. In April 2011, Givet was left out of the squad as his future is in doubt after a £275,000 tax dispute with the club. At the end of the 2010–11 season, Givet made 32 appearances and scored two goals in all competitions.

On 24 August 2011, Givet made his first appearance of the 2011–12 season, playing the full 90 minutes against Sheffield Wednesday at Ewood Park in the League Cup 2nd round. On Saturday 27 August 2011, he started and played the full 90 minutes alongside Christopher Samba in a 1–0 defeat against Everton at Ewood Park. On Sunday 11 September 2011, he started and played the full 90 minutes against Fulham in a 1–1 draw at Craven Cottage. On Saturday 17 September 2011, Givet started the league game with Arsenal and completed the full 90 minutes at Ewood Park in a 4–3 victory in the left-back berth. On Tuesday 20 September 2011, he captained Rovers in their League Cup third round tie against Leyton Orient at Ewood Park which ended in a 3–2 win for Rovers and also played the full 90 minutes alongside Grant Hanley. On Saturday 24 September 2011, Givet started and played the full 90 minutes against Newcastle United at St. James' Park in a 3–1 defeat. On Saturday 1 October 2011, he started and played the full 90 minutes at left-back in a 4–0 loss against Manchester City at Ewood Park. He was forced to leave the game versus Sunderland on 11 December due to heart palpitations. Immediately suffering heart palpitations, Givet was taken to hospital and will be monitored by club doctors, tested for an ongoing heart condition and the club are hopeful that the routine tests will show no problems. After suffering heart palpitations, manager Steve Kean recalled Givet suffering heart palpitations, told Givet to get off pitch before he collapsed and Club doctor was unable to regulate heart beat.

Also in the match between Blackburn Rovers and Wigan Athletic the second half was delayed due to Givet and paramedics were treating him. This was a scare but they thankfully revealed it was because he had suffered a hamstring strain.

On 4 February 2012, Givet received a red card just two minutes before half-time after a challenge on Robin van Persie as Blackburn were beaten heavily by Arsenal 7–1. Since his sending off, Givet had not made his first appearance and rumors begin to spread that Kean will offered Givet a contract clause because of his recent absence but Kean however dismissed about it. Despite not on the bench for Blackburn in a 3–0 defeat to Swansea City, Kean revealed he didn't choose Givet stating was 'not in the right frame of mind' to play. After, Givet said that he wanted to leave Blackburn in the summer. In a stunning turn of events, Givet was selected to start against Norwich City at Ewood Park in the Premier League on 21 April 2012 and played the full 90 minutes, replacing the injured Scottish defender Grant Hanley. On Monday 7 May 2012, Givet started the Premier League game alongside Scott Dann versus Wigan Athletic at Ewood Park in a crucial game knowing that a win would put them on course for survival, but during half-time, he suffered a heart scare after a row with manager Steve Kean and from being upset that Rovers were going down. He therefore was substituted for midfielder Radosav Petrovic. The match finished 1–0 to Wigan, relegating Blackburn.

AC Arles-Avignon

On August 30, 2013, Givet made a return to his boyhood team Arles-Avignon after four and a half years with Blackburn Rovers. He left the club in September 2014, signing for Evian TG. However, after only one Ligue 1 game against his former team Marseille, he returned to Arles after falling out with Evian as they described his beard as "jihadist" and ordered him to shave it.

International career

Givet has represented France at international level. He made his debut as a half-time substitute for Monaco clubmate and fellow debutant Sébastien Squillaci on 18 August 2004 in a 1-1 friendly draw with Bosnia-Herzegovina. In 2006, he was a member of the French squad that reached the Final of the FIFA World Cup held in Germany, though he did not play. He has earned 12 caps for his country, last appearing on 16 August 2006.

Club career statistics

Personal life

He is married to Anne-Sophie and has a son named Gabriel (born 8 May 2006), and a daughter Anna (born 12 May 2009).

Club

International