Anthony Le Tallec

Anthony Le Tallec (born 3 October 1984) is a French former professional footballer who played as a forward or an attacking midfielder for Liverpool, Sochaux, and Annecy FC.

Anthony Le Tallec

Le Tallec playing for Le Mans in 2009
Personal information
Date of birth	(1984-10-03) 3 October 1984 (age 40)[1]
Place of birth	Hennebont, France
Height	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)[1]
Position(s)	Forward
Youth career
1992–2001	Le Havre
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2002–2008	Liverpool	17	(1)
2002–2003	→ Le Havre (loan)	25	(5)
2004–2005	→ Saint-Étienne (loan)	10	(1)
2005–2006	→ Sunderland (loan)	27	(3)
2006–2007	→ Sochaux (loan)	0	(0)
2007–2008	→ Le Mans (loan)	0	(0)
2008–2010	Le Mans	96	(19)
2010–2012	Auxerre	52	(8)
2012–2015	Valenciennes	71	(20)
2015–2017	Atromitos	53	(13)
2017	Astra Giurgiu	18	(1)
2018–2019	Orléans	37	(8)
2019–2021	Annecy	17	(2)
International career
2001	France U17	6	(3)
2005–2008	France U21	4	(5)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Club career

Liverpool

Born in Hennebont,^[1] Le Tallec was signed from Le Havre AC by Liverpool in 2001, along with his cousin Florent Sinama Pongolle,^[2] by manager Gérard Houllier. This was after impressive performances for France at the UEFA European Under-16 Championship and the FIFA U-17 World Cup, with the player being awarded the 'Silver Ball' as the second best player (behind his cousin) in the latter tournament as the national team emerged champions;^[3] both players remained a further two years at Le Havre, loaned by the Reds.^[2]

After making his Liverpool debut in a league match against Blackburn Rovers,^[4] Le Tallec scored his first and only Liverpool goal in a UEFA Cup tie against NK Olimpija Ljubljana in October 2003.^[5] After his return, he also featured in the club's victorious run in the UEFA Champions League, starting in the home leg of the quarter-final tie against Juventus FC^[6] but failing to appear in the squad of 18 for the final itself.

For 2005–06, Le Tallec joined fellow Premier League side Sunderland on loan, in a bid to gain some more first-team football. He stated: "I am a competitor and I want to play all the time, but with Liverpool it was impossible. I chose to come to Sunderland because I need to play every week". In a disappointing season for the club, who finished bottom of the table, he was its top scorer with only five goals in all competitions; this included a goal on his debut against Manchester City and a header against Fulham, helping the Black Cats pick up their only home win.^[7][8]

In May 2006, after Sunderland announced they would not be looking to retain his services, Le Tallec returned to Liverpool but was not given a squad number by boss Rafael Benítez. At the end of the month, he joined up with the French under-21s for the European Championship which took place in Portugal, only featuring in the final group match after the team had already secured qualification and being substituted after 61 minutes.^[9]

Return to France

In August 2006, Le Tallec moved to FC Sochaux-Montbéliard on another loan deal. He won the Coupe de France scoring a late equaliser after coming off the bench in the final, which eventually led to a penalty shootout against Olympique de Marseille – a fellow Liverpool player out on loan, Djibril Cissé, netted two goals in the match for the opposition.^[10]

On 31 August 2007, it was reported that Scottish Premier League club Heart of Midlothian were close to signing Le Tallec.^[11] However, the player ended up moving to Ligue 1 team Le Mans Union Club 72, on loan for the entire season with a view to a permanent deal for approximately £1.1 million pounds.^[12]

In July 2008, Le Mans decided to make the loan permanent, signing Le Tallec to a four-year contract.^[13][14] On 27 June 2010, following their top flight relegation, he reached an agreement with fellow league club AJ Auxerre for a four-year deal, worth €3 million.^[15]

Atromitos

On 19 July 2015, Le Tallec signed with Atromitos F.C. for two years.^[16] He cited the possibility of playing in the UEFA Europa League as the main reason for his signature.^[17]

Later years

On 3 July 2017, the 32-year-old Le Tallec joined FC Astra Giurgiu in the Romanian Liga I.^[18] He returned to his country in the following transfer window, moving to Ligue 2's US Orléans.^[19]

In September 2019, Le Tallec signed with Annecy FC.^[20]

He retired from professional football in May 2021 after a twenty-year career.^[21]

Personal life

Le Tallec's younger brother, Damien, is also a footballer. Another French youth international who was groomed at Le Havre, he started his professional career in Germany with Borussia Dortmund.^[22]

In June 2023, Le Tallec was a witness to a mass stabbing attack in an Annecy park in which four children and an adult were injured.^[23]

Career statistics

As of match played on 6 February 2021^[24][25]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National Cup		League Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Liverpool	2003–04	Premier League	13	0	4	0	2	0	4[a]	1	23	1
	2004–05		4	0	0	0	0	0	3[b]	0	7	0
	2005–06		0	0	0	0	0	0	2[b]	0	2	0
	Total		17	0	4	0	2	0	9	1	32	1
Sunderland (loan)	2005–06	Premier League	27	3	0	0	—		—		27	3
Sochaux (loan)	2006–07	Ligue 1	12	4	0	0	—		—		12	4
Le Mans	2007–08	Ligue 1	26	5	0	0	—		—		26	5
	2008–09		34	6	0	0	—		—		34	6
	2009–10		36	8	0	0	2	1	—		38	9
	Total		96	19	0	0	2	1	0	0	98	20
Auxerre	2010–11	Ligue 1	22	1	1	0	1	0	3[b]	0	27	1
	2011–12		24	3	1	0	2	1	—		27	4
	2012–13	Ligue 2	6	4	0	0	2	0	—		8	4
	Total		52	8	2	0	5	1	3	0	62	9
Auxerre B	2011–12	CFA	2	0	—		—		—		2	0
Valenciennes	2012–13	Ligue 1	20	5	1	0	—		—		21	5
	2013–14		17	2	0	0	1	0	—		18	2
	2014–15	Ligue 2	34	13	2	0	1	0	—		37	13
	Total		71	20	3	0	2	0	0	0	76	20
Valenciennes B	2013–14	CFA 2	2	1	—		—		—		2	1
Atromitos	2015–16	Super League Greece	27	7	8	1	—		3[a]	0	38	8
	2016–17		26	6	4	0	—		—		30	6
	Total		53	13	12	1	0	0	3	0	68	14
Astra Giurgiu	2017–18	Liga I	18	1	2	0	—		4[a]	1	24	2
Orléans	2017–18	Ligue 2	9	1	0	0	—		—		9	1
	2018–19		26	7	3	0	4	0	—		33	7
	2019–20		2	0	0	0	—		—		2	0
	Total		37	8	3	0	4	0	0	0	44	8
Annecy	2019–20	National 2	6	1	2	1	—		—		8	2
	2020–21	National	11	1	1	1	—		—		12	2
	Total		17	2	3	2	0	0	0	0	20	4
Career total			404	80	29	3	15	2	19	2	467	87

1. Appearances in UEFA Cup/UEFA Europa League
2. Appearances in UEFA Champions League

Honours

Liverpool

• UEFA Champions League: 2004–05

Sochaux

• Coupe de France: 2006–07

France U17

• FIFA U-17 World Championship: 2001

Individual

• FIFA U-17 World Championship Silver Ball: 2001