Julien Escudé

Julien Escudé
Escudé training with Beşiktaş in 2013
Personal information
Full name Julien Régis Paul Escudé[1]
Date of birth (1979-08-17) 17 August 1979 (age 45)
Place of birth Chartres, France
Height 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s) Centre back
Youth career
1994–1998 Cannes
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1998–1999 Cannes 21 (1)
1999–2003 Rennes 111 (0)
2003–2006 Ajax 61 (6)
2006–2012 Sevilla 164 (5)
2012–2014 Beşiktaş 25 (2)
Total 382 (14)
International career
1999–2002 France U21 21 (1)
2006–2010 France 13 (0)
Medal record
Men's football
Representing  France
UEFA European Under-21 Championship
Runner-up 2002 Switzerland
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Julien Régis Paul Escudé (born 17 August 1979) is a French former professional footballer who played mainly as a central defender but also as a full back.[2]

After making a name for himself with Rennes, he went on to play abroad with Ajax, Sevilla and Beşiktaş. He was an important part of the Spanish club as it won six major titles, including two UEFA Cups; he appeared in 237 official games for the team.

Escudé earned 13 caps for France, but never went to a major tournament.

Club career

France / Ajax

Born in Chartres, Escudé began his professional career at AS Cannes, playing one season in the second division. On 26 July 1999, after some solid performances, the 20-year-old joined Ligue 1 club Stade Rennais FC, managed by young Paul Le Guen, where he gradually developed into a top flight player, amassing nearly 150 official appearances.

In the summer of 2003, Escudé signed with AFC Ajax,[3] scoring six goals in his first two seasons combined at the Amsterdam Arena and winning the Eredivisie title in his first year. In August 2005, after a defeat against Feyenoord, he fell out of favour with manager Danny Blind, and never played a match for the Dutch side afterwards.[4]

Sevilla

In January 2006, Escudé signed for Sevilla FC from Spain for €1.5 million, signing for the rest of the season plus three more.[5] His La Liga debut came on 11 February as he featured nine minutes in a 4–0 win at Andalusia neighbours Cádiz CF;[6] in the following round, he played the entire 1–0 home success against Celta de Vigo.[7]

Escudé became an essential defensive unit in the following years for the Spaniards, helping them conquer a total of five titles (he played in the 2005–06 final of the UEFA Cup, a 4–0 win against England's Middlesbrough[8]). His first goal for the team was on 18 November that year, opening a 3–0 home win over Valencia CF.[9] His importance grew after the long injury layoff which bothered the captain of the team Javi Navarro, but he would also be sidelined for a long part of the 2007–08 season with a groin problem[10]– they finished fifth, missing on qualification to the UEFA Champions League.

In June 2007, Escudé extended his contract for four more years, alongside Renato.[11] When there was one year remaining on his deal, he signed again to keep himself at the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán Stadium until 2013.[12]

Beşiktaş

On 26 July 2012, Escudé signed for Beşiktaş J.K. of the Turkish Süper Lig after freeing himself from his Sevilla contract.[13] After two years in Istanbul, and despite interest to bring him back to Rennes, he retired at the age of 35.[14]

International career

In March 2005, Escudé was called to the France national team for two qualifiers for the 2006 FIFA World Cup against Switzerland and Israel, but eventually did not make his debut.[15] His first game was on 11 October 2006, playing as left back against Faroe Islands for the UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying campaign[16]– he was not picked for the final stage after a season of injuries.[17]

On 18 November 2009, in the tenth minute of the second leg of the 2010 World Cup qualification playoffs against the Republic of Ireland, Escudé broke his nose and had to be stretchered off.[18] He was also not selected for the squad of 23 which appeared in South Africa.

Personal life

Escudé's older brother, Nicolas, played tennis professionally, reaching the top 20 in 2000.[3] His father Paul, who died in 1998, was also a footballer, representing mainly Pau FC as a player and manager.[19]

During his spell with Sevilla, Escudé played several matches with "SQD" on the back of his shirt, it being the phonetic spelling of his surname.[20]

Honours

Ajax

Sevilla

References

  1. ^ "Entreprise Las Sevillanas à Gomer (64420)" [Company Las Sevillanas in Gomer (64420)]. Figaro Entreprises (in French). Société du Figaro. 19 December 2018. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
    "Julien Escude". BFM Business (in French). Retrieved 15 June 2019.
  2. ^ "Julien Escudé". UEFA. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  3. ^ a b Clubs reach agreement, Julien Escude signs four year Ajax contract; Ajax USA, 17 July 2003
  4. ^ Ajax looking to future; at Sky Sports
  5. ^ "Escudé ya es del Sevilla" [Escudé is now Sevilla's] (in Spanish). 19 January 2006. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  6. ^ "El Sevilla se disfrazó de verdugo en el Carnaval" [Sevilla disguised as henchman for Carnival]. Diario AS (in Spanish). 12 February 2006. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
  7. ^ Escude pleased at Sevilla start; at Sky Sports
  8. ^ "Sevilla run away with the trophy". UEFA. 11 May 2006. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
  9. ^ Gutiérrez, Antonio (19 November 2006). "El Sevilla golea al Valencia y se muestra intratable" [Sevilla rout Valencia and show that they are unrivalled]. El Comercio (in Spanish). Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  10. ^ Escude to miss Steaua return; Sky Sports, 29 October 2007
  11. ^ "El Sevilla renueva a Renato y Escudé" [Sevilla renew Renato and Escudé]. El Periódico Extremadura (in Spanish). 27 June 2007. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  12. ^ Lagos, D. (20 August 2010). "Escudé renueva dos temporadas" [Escudé renews for two years]. Diario de Sevilla (in Spanish). Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  13. ^ Mira, Luis (26 July 2012). "Official: Besiktas sign Julien Escude from Sevilla". Goal. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  14. ^ "Escudé : " Le footbal m'a permis de voyager "" [Escudé: "Football allowed me to travel"] (in French). So Foot. 5 September 2014. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  15. ^ "Football : Escudé sélectionné en Equipe de France" [Football: Escudé selected in France national team]. La Croix (in French). 28 September 2006. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  16. ^ "La France corrige les Iles Féroé" [France punish Faroe Islands]. L'Express (in French). 12 October 2006. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
  17. ^ "Euro-2008: Cissé et Landreau parmi les exclus de l'équipe de France, Gomis sélectionné" [Euro 2008: Cissé and Landreau among those not in the France squad, Gomis chosen]. La Dépêche du Midi (in French). 28 May 2008. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  18. ^ Escude out for two weeks; Sky Sports, 19 November 2009
  19. ^ "Les frères Escudé à Pau pour inaugurer un terrain au nom de leur père" [Escudé brothers in Pau to inaugurate a pitch named after their father]. La République des Pyrénées (in French). 11 December 2010. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  20. ^ "Kitman: Sevilla's Julien Escude goes phonetic with his SQD shirt". Off The Post. 13 September 2010. Retrieved 18 September 2015.