Younes Kaboul (born 4 January 1986) is a French former professional footballer who played as a centre-back for Auxerre, Tottenham Hotspur, Portsmouth, Sunderland and Watford. For France, Kaboul played for the under-21 team and went on to play five matches and scored one goal for the senior national team in 2011.
Kaboul began his professional career with Auxerre in 2004. After an estimated £8 million move to Tottenham Hotspur in 2007, he spent eleven years in England's Premier League. He won the League Cup with Tottenham in 2008.
Club career Auxerre
Born in Saint-Julien-en-Genevois, Haute-Savoie, Kaboul began his career at Bellegarde, Concordia and Plastics Vallée. He then joined Auxerre, where the player started his professional career.
Kaboul appeared as an unused substitute against PSV in the second leg of the UEFA Cup, as the club lost 3–0 on 25 March 2004, resulting in their elimination from the tournament. He broke into the first team in the 2004–05 season and made his debut for Auxerre, playing the whole game, in a 2–1 win against Toulouse on 3 October. Three weeks later, on 21 October, Kaboul made his debut European debut, playing the whole game, in a 0–0 against Grazer AK. The 2004–05 season saw Kaboul make 15 appearances in all competitions for Auxerre and helped the club win the Coupe de France in 2005, as well as having European football experience in the UEFA Cup. With his playing time reduced for most of the 2005–06 season, Kaboul's playing time increased in mid March and he went on to make nine appearances in all competitions.
At the start of the 2006–07 season, Kaboul started the season well when he played both legs against Farul Constanța in the third round of the UEFA Intertoto Cup to help Auxerre win 4–2 on aggregate. Kaboul then became a first-team regular for the club, playing at centre-back. In a match against Le Mans on 4 November 2006, however, he was sent off for a second bookable offence, in a 3–2 loss. After serving a one-match suspension, Kaboul returned to the first team against Toulouse on 19 November and helped Auxerre keep a clean sheet, in a 1–0 win. He then helped the club keep three consecutive clean sheets in three matches between 3 March 2007 and 18 March 2007. During this time, Kaboul scored his first goal for Auxerre, in a 1–0 win against Paris Saint-Germain on 11 March. Three weeks later, on 1 April, he scored his second goal for the club, in a 2–2 draw against Le Mans. Despite being sidelined with injuries during the 2006–07 season, he went on to make 40 appearances and score two goals in all competitions. During his time at Auxerre, Kaboul was known to be the "back bone" for the club due to his excellent tackling skills, good judgment and strength. He was also known to score a few key goals that clinched wins for the club.
Tottenham Hotspur
Kaboul signed for Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League on 5 July 2007 for an undisclosed fee believed to be around £8 million. He quickly became a fan favourite, admired for his power and aggression on the pitch. He made his Premier League debut starting alongside Anthony Gardner at centre-back in a 1–0 loss against Sunderland on the first day of the 2007–08 season. In a following match against Everton, however, Kaboul suffered a hamstring injury and was substituted in the 18th minute, as Tottenham lost 3–1. After missing two matches, he returned to the starting line-up against Fulham on 1 September and scored his first goal for the club, in a 3–3 draw. Kaboul scored again on his European debut for Tottenham, on 20 September, with the first goal in a 6–1 win over Anorthosis Famagusta. Two weeks later, on 1 October, on the club's 125th anniversary, Kaboul scored the equaliser late in stoppage time against Aston Villa to pull Tottenham level at 4–4 and complete a remarkable comeback from 4–1 down. Since joining Tottenham, he rotated in the centre-back position with other defenders. However, Kaboul produced numerous errors that saw him out of the team on three separate occasions after the appointment of Juande Ramos. Kaboul came on as a 102nd-minute substitute for Robbie Keane as Tottenham beat Chelsea 2–1 in the 2008 Football League Cup Final at Wembley Stadium on 24 February 2008. However, his return was short-lived as he suffered a knee injury and never played for the club for the rest of the season. In April, Kaboul criticised Ramos for not giving him a chance to play in the first team. He made 29 appearances for Tottenham in his first season at the club, scoring four goals.
Ahead of the 2008–09 season, Kaboul said that he wanted to stay at Tottenham and fight for his place in the first team. It came after Ramos was keen on selling him. Kaboul was linked with a move to Juventus, Portsmouth, Hamburg, Aston Villa, Sunderland and Newcastle United. By June, he announced his intention to leave the club for the sake of his career.
Portsmouth
On 11 August 2008, Kaboul signed for Portsmouth on a four-year contract for an undisclosed fee believed to be around £6 million. He made his debut in the opening game of the season against Chelsea and played the whole game, as the club lost 4–0. Since joining Portsmouth, Kaboul found himself in and out of the starting line-up, fighting for his place at centre-back. In a match against Hull City on 22 November, he set up the team's first goal, in a 2–2 draw. Five days later, on 27 November, Kaboul scored his first goal for Portsmouth, in a 2–2 draw against AC Milan in the UEFA Cup. His first league goal came on 12 April 2009 with a left-footed strike into the top corner at home against West Bromwich Albion. Despite suffering injuries throughout the 2008–09 season, Kaboul went on to make 25 appearances and score two goals in all competitions.
At the start of the 2009–10 season, Kaboul continued to establish himself in the first team, playing at right-back and centre-back. He scored from a header in a 4–1 loss to Arsenal on 22 August 2009. He helped Portsmouth keep three clean sheets between 24 October and 31 October. After missing a month through suspension, Kaboul scored on his return, but was sent off for a second bookable offence in the last minute of the game, in a 1–1 draw on 12 December. In the January transfer window, he was linked a move away from the club. Amid the transfer speculation, Kaboul was left out of the Portsmouth team. However, he returned to the starting line-up against Sunderland in the fourth round of the FA Cup on 23 January 2010 and set up a goal for John Utaka, who scored twice, in a 2–1 to advance to the next round. Three days later, on 26 January, Kaboul made his last appearance for Portsmouth, coming against West Ham United and helped the club earn a point, in a 1–1 draw. In total, Kaboul made 50 appearances for Portsmouth, scoring five goals.
Return to Tottenham Hotspur
On 30 January 2010, Tottenham Hotspur announced that Kaboul would be rejoining the club for an undisclosed fee, reported to be £9.5 million. Portsmouth would receive just £6.5 million of this owing to instalments outstanding on the earlier transfer and to a sell-on clause. Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp stated that Kaboul was "much improved" from his first spell at the club, and that he was a "late developer". He made his second debut, playing the whole game at right-back, in a 1–0 loss against Wolverhampton Wanderers on 10 February. Since joining Tottenham, Kaboul found himself in and out of the starting line-up rotating in playing in defensive midfield, centre-back and right-back. On 5 May, Kaboul was in the starting line-up against Manchester City at right-back and was instrumental in the goal that brought Tottenham a 1–0 victory, whipping in a cross that the City goalkeeper could only palm into the path of Tottenham striker Peter Crouch. This victory guaranteed them fourth place in the 2009–10 Premier League and passage into the UEFA Champions League qualifiers for the first time in the club's history. Kaboul made 10 appearances in all competitions for Tottenham in the 2009–10 season.
At the start of the 2010–11 season, Kaboul made four starts for Tottenham, playing at right-back and centre-back. He made his UEFA Champions League debut against Werder Bremen and played the whole game, as the club drew 2–2 on 14 September 2010. During a 3–1 win against Wolverhampton Wanderers on 18 September, Kaboul suffered a hamstring injury and was substituted at half time, which sidelined him for weeks. It was not until 23 October when Kaboul returned to the starting line-up against Everton at centre-back and helped Tottenham draw 1–1. He then scored the winner in the North London derby against Arsenal in a match which Tottenham were losing 2–0 at half-time, and continued his scoring form after volleying home the first goal in a 3–0 victory against Werder Bremen in the Champions League. However, during a 2–1 win against Liverpool on 28 November, Kaboul suffered a hip injury in the 36th minute and was substituted as a result. After the match, it was announced that he would be out for two weeks after having a scan. Kaboul made his return to the first team against Aston Villa on 26 December and helped the team win 2–1. In the following match against Newcastle on 28 December, he set up a goal for Aaron Lennon but was sent off in the 65th minute for a second bookable offence, in a 2–0 win. After serving a three-match suspension, his return was short-lived as Kaboul suffered a knee injury that eventually saw him out for three months. He returned on 9 April 2011 when starting against Stoke City, helping Tottenham win 3–2. Following this, Kaboul regained his first-team place, playing at right-back, as the club finished in fifth place in the league. He went on to make 24 appearances and score two goals in all competitions in the 2010–11 season.
Ahead of the 2011–12 season, Kaboul was linked a transfer to Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain although this never materialised. At the start of the 2011–12 season, he continued to establish himself in the first team, playing at centre-back. Kaboul scored his first goal of the season on 28 August 2011, with a header in a 5–1 loss against Manchester City. Kaboul captained Tottenham for the first time on 20 September against Stoke City in the third round of the League Cup, as he played 120 minutes in a 0–0 draw and saw Tottenham lost 7–6 on penalties. In November, Juventus rekindled their interest in signing Kaboul, but the player said he was happy to stay at Tottenham. Following this, Kaboul was sent off for a second bookable offence on 11 December in a 2–1 loss against Stoke. Four days later, on 15 December, he captained Tottenham for the second time this season against Shamrock Rovers in the UEFA Europa League match and helped the team keep a clean sheet, in a 4–0 win. After serving a one-match suspension, Kaboul returned to the starting line-up against Norwich City on 27 December and helped Tottenham win 2–0. However, Kaboul suffered a knee injury that saw him miss two matches. It was not until on 26 February 2012 when he made his return to the starting line-up against rivals Arsenal and played the whole game, as Tottenham lost 5–2. Following this, Kaboul regained his first-team place, playing at centre-back for the rest of the 2011–12 season and helped the club finish in fourth place in the league. He went on to make 41 appearances and score on goal in all competitions in the 2011–12 season.