Top facts about Darius Vassell, former striker

Darius Martin Clarke Vassell (born 13 June 1980) is a former English footballer who played for Aston Villa,

, Ankaragücü, and Leicester City as a striker.

Darius Vassell’s age

is 41. Here you can find out the most important facts about Darius Vassell, a noughties Premier League legend.

The first fact about Darius Vassell is that he started his career in the Premier League with his hometown club

, where he was groomed by their system and made his first team debut in 1998.

In 2005, he was transferred for £2 million to Manchester City, where he stayed for four seasons until being released in 2009 and moved to Turkey to play for the Süper Lig side Ankaragücü.

Sven-Göran Eriksson, his former international manager, welcomed him back to England in October 2010 to play for Leicester City in the Championship.

Vassell scored six goals in 22 international appearances for England under Eriksson between 2002 and 2004, including games at the 2002 FIFA World Cup in South Korea/Japan and the UEFA Euro 2004 in Portugal.

Top facts about Darius Vassell:

Darius Vassell was a Manchester City winger in the English Premier League. Since 2002, he has also been a member of the England national football team. Vassell's quick start makes him an ideal replacement against an already worn-down defense.

Darius Vassell early life

Darius Vassell was born in the West Midlands city of Birmingham. He attended Yenton Primary School in Erdington and John Willmott School at Falcon Lodge, Sutton Coldfield, where he was nurtured in Birmingham's Gravelly Hill neighborhood.

Regarding

Darius Vassell’s childhood

, it should be mentioned that he began his football career with local junior club Romulus in the Birmingham Boys League, where he scored 46 goals in a season and six in a single match. After that, he joined the Aston Villa youth squad. There is no information about

Darius Vassell’s parents

.

Darius Vassell personal life

A notable fact about Darius Vassell is that he is a devout Christian who was born to Jamaican parents. He attributes his survival of a major vehicle accident to his religion.

Vassell's cousin Isaac, who plays for

, is also a footballer. Vassell is married to Amani Rodriquez-Thomas, and the couple has a daughter called Persia, after whom his 2017 book, Road to Persia, was named. He is also a relative of Kyle Vassell, who plays for Cheltenham Town.

Darius Vassell professional career

Darius Vassell played over 330 professional games and scored 62 goals throughout his esteemed career. He also went onto to represent England on 22 occasions and played for his country at the 2002 World Cup and the 2004 European Championships.

Darius Vassell club career

Darius Vassell, an Aston Villa supporter, was recruited by the club's School of Excellence.

Aston Villa

A notable fact about Darius Vassell is that he established a club record by scoring 39 goals in a single season while playing for the club's youth squad. In August 1998, he made his first team debut as a substitute in a 3–1 victory against

. Vassell's quickness and agility were his strongest assets.

Aston Villa supporters bemoaned the fact that his finest performances have been with England, where he has proven especially valuable as a "super sub," coming on for the last 15 to 20 minutes of a game to worry a fatigued defense with his remarkable speed.

One strange aspect of his career was that he had never lost a league game in which he had scored. His streak came to an end on April 22, 2011, when he scored for

against Nottingham Forest in a 3–2 loss.

Manchester City

An important

fact about Darius Vassell

is that he was sold to Manchester City for £2 million in July 2005. Vassell scored eight league goals in 35 appearances for Manchester City in his debut season, forging an excellent combination with Andrew Cole.

In addition, he scored two goals in five FA Cup games to assist the Blues reach the quarter-finals. He missed part of the season due to a hernia, which necessitated surgery late in the season.

He was given the number 12 in the 2007–08 season, while colleague Elano was given the number 11. He struggled to find his best form in general. Many of his appearances in the second part of the season were as a wide midfielder, as Sven-Göran Eriksson used a defensive 4–5–1 configuration.

A notable fact about Darius Vassell is that he was linked with a transfer away from Eastlands after a £1 million deal from Turkish runners-up Besiktas was rejected, and he was connected with Premier League rivals Bolton Wanderers and newly promoted Derby County.

Vassell scored his 50th Premier League goal against local rivals

on February 10, 2008. Vassell only appeared in 15 games in 2008–09, and his contract expired at the conclusion of the season, therefore he was released.

Ankaragücü

A notable fact about Darius Vassell is that he joined Turkish club Ankaragücü in July 2009. Approximately 3,000 supporters gathered to greet him.

In the second week of the season, he scored his first goal in the Turkish Super Lig against Manisaspor. At the completion of the 2009–10 season, he parted ways with the club.

Leicester City

An important fact about Darius Vassell is that he signed a two-year agreement with Leicester City until the conclusion of the 2011–12 season on October 20, 2010, reuniting him with his former Manchester City and England boss Eriksson. On December 11, he scored his first goal for Leicester in a 5–1 triumph against Doncaster Rovers.

In a game against

on October 29, 2011, he sustained a major knee injury that forced him to miss the remainder of the season.

A torn anterior cruciate ligament was the cause of the injury.  Vassell departed the club on June 30 after failing to get a new contract offer. Vassell was without a club until January 28, 2016, when he retired at the age of 35.

Darius Vassell international career

An important

fact about Darius Vassell

is that he made his England debut on February 13, 2002, in a 1–1 draw against the Netherlands, when he was named man of the match.

Michael Ricketts and Wayne Bridge were both making their debuts in this game. He equalized the game with a bicycle kick in the 60th minute. Following that, he was named to England's World Cup squad in 2002. He appeared in three games, starting only one: England's opening group game against Sweden.

A notable fact about Darius Vassell is that he missed a penalty kick in the Euro 2004 quarter-finals against hosts Portugal.

Coming in for the injured Wayne Rooney early in the game, he missed England's last penalty attempt in the penalty shoot-off, allowing Portugal goalkeeper Ricardo to knock England out of the tournament with the winning penalty. Vassell was never a member of the England team again.

Darius Vassell quotes

When Darius chatted with John Hutchinson about his career, the Birmingham-born ex-striker spoke about his time with local club Aston Villa before moving on to Premier League rivals Manchester City.

An important

fact about Darius Vassell

is that he later joined Ankaragücü in the Turkish Super Lig and eventually relocated to Leicester. He played for England at the Under-18 and Under-21 levels before earning 22 senior appearances.

In 2002, he was chosen to England's FIFA World Cup team after scoring his first goal three months before the tournament began, and he was also picked to the squad for the 2004 UEFA European Championship finals.

Darius had been a fan of Villa since he was a toddler, and he was ecstatic when he was given the chance to attend their School of Excellence at the age of ten.

"If you put a child in the team he loves and he has a little bit of skill, he is in the right situation," he stated. “I had all of the necessary motivation. When I was younger, I used to play as a winger, but the coaches in my junior team switched me to striker.”

"I was in close proximity to all of the guys I backed. After that, I couldn't get enough of being at the club. Everything made sense. It was simple for me to settle in at the club.”

"They coach you every day as a young team player for a couple of years and get to know you as a person." I toughened up, which prepared me well for when I got my contract.”

"As a kid, I couldn't stop scoring. I scored 39 goals in one season, which is a record, but I couldn't have done it without the help of my teammates. When I was younger, I used to play as a winger, but the coaches in my junior team switched me to striker."

"With me scoring all these goals, the Villa manager, John Gregory, gave me my first team opportunity," Darius said after his debut against Middlesbrough on August 23, 1998.

"I recall sitting on the bench. I knew there was a possibility I'd make it when the score was 1-1. At that moment, I wasn't sure whether I wanted to continue in case I made a mistake!”

"But then we scored a goal, and Gregory brought me on for the last ten minutes. It was everything I desired. It was fantastic, and the fans got to know me a little better as a result.”

"I don't recall ever touching the ball, but I'm sure I did." There's nothing quite like representing your local team." Darius made almost 200 appearances for Villa over the following seven seasons.

"I had a really nice career at Villa," he said. I would still be happy with my debut in 1998 if my career had stopped there. Three weeks later, against Strmsgodset in the UEFA Cup, I scored my first goal. We were down 2-1 when I came in and scored two goals in 10 minutes. We came out on top 3-2.”

"This demonstrated to the supporters that I was capable of scoring at that level. It was an excellent start. Juan Pablo ngel and I were playing up front. I also recall scoring a goal when we played Manchester United at home. That was significant to me since United was the dominant team at the time.”

"I'll never forget that game since it proved to the supporters that I could compete against the best. I went on to score a couple more goals after that." Darius made his England debut against Holland in a 1-1 draw on February 13, 2002.

"That was the most exciting part," he continued. "It was a fantastic sensation to be the sole Villa player in the England squad. I felt unique.”

"Sometimes players get called up for England and then they aren't seen again in the England set-up, but I was there and thereabouts for a long time."

"I felt like I done my team and myself proud. I scored a bicycle-kick in my England debut against Holland. Many people, including myself, would not have predicted that! It kept me on Sven's mind for the World Cup Finals (in 2002) and the EURO Finals (in 2004)."

"The heat was my biggest recollection of the World Cups in South Korea and Japan! We had been working together as a team for a long time, approximately eight weeks in all.”

"We traveled to Dubai for a warm-up before the competition. I got to know the big names and famous players, as well as see the other side of them off the field. You go shopping with folks, play golf with them, chat to them about their families, and meet new people. Without the football, you could write a book on it."

Brazil eliminated England in the quarter-finals. Darius came in as a replacement, after performances against

and Nigeria earlier in the competition.

Two years later, when England lost in a penalty shootout against hosts Portugal in the EURO 2004 last-eight stage, he made his last England appearance.

Ricardo, who would become Darius' Leicester City teammate for eight games seven seasons later, saved Darius' penalty. Darius joined Manchester City for £2 million in July 2005.

"The new Villa manager, David O'Leary, was accustomed to acquiring big money players and he was seeking to do it again at Villa," he stated.

"My contract was coming to an end. I wasn't getting many goals. I was given the chance to play up front alongside Andy Cole, one of my favorite players, at Manchester City.”

"Considering we couldn't get a contract worked out at Villa, it was the appropriate decision for both parties at the time. I felt like I made an impact in my debut season at Manchester City.”

"It was a really beneficial move forward in my profession. Many people believe it was all smiles for me when Sven became Manchester City's manager (in July 2007).”

"However, he had a lot of money to bring in new players, so I was fighting a weekly struggle to make the squad. For gamers, this is character development. It informs the manager about the kind of player he can count on. There, Sven got to see a new side of myself. I was no longer a part of the England team. I had to re-invent myself in certain ways.”

"Sven began to use me on the wing. We had a good season that year, but Sven left the club after a year, and I had to start all over again for Mark Hughes when he came in."

Darius went to Turkey a year later, joining for Ankaragücü in July 2009. His arrival at the airport was met by 3,000 admirers.

"I have always been loyal to the clubs I sign for, striving to give my best," he added in retrospect. “This was my mentality at Manchester City, although Hughes had a lot of resources at his disposal.”

"He paid £30 million for Robinho. I'm a pessimist. A player that signs for that much money is likely to participate in the majority of the games. My contract had expired, so I decided to put myself to the test overseas.”

"Like anything else in life, there were advantages and disadvantages. Because I was usually at some office trying to sort out dates and contracts, I didn't have much time to think about football.”

"We are fortunate in England, and we don't even realize it. At the end of the month, you will get compensated. All of your taxes have been taken care of. Because there are physicians at the club, your medicals are taken care of.”

"None of this was the situation over there. The Turkish Football Federation took care of everything for me, enabling me to join with Leicester City in October 2010."

"Sven had rung me during the pre-season and, with his support and the help of the Leicester City officials, my registration was completed so I could make the transfer," Darius explained.

"Leicester was fantastic with me. They took care of me. They were able to straighten me out. They were able to re-enter me into a nightclub. They put me in training with top-tier players every week.”

"I expected a decline in level from playing in the Championship since I was accustomed to Premier League football, but there wasn't a drop in standard when compared to the Süper Lig in Turkey."

"Some of the players we had at Leicester, such as Andy King, who was a kid at the time, and Kasper Schmeichel when he arrived, were fantastic."

Darius had a solid first season in Leicester before suffering a serious injury: "Sven left in October 2011, and a week later, I tore my cruciate ligament at West Ham."

"It takes six to a year for that injury to recover, and I only had six months remaining on my contract. The physiotherapist, Dave [Rennie], was fantastic with me.”

"After six months, I was as fit as I could be, and we gave it a go. I came off the bench in the last game of the season, but I called it a day soon after.”

When Darius finished playing, he enrolled at Loughborough University for a Sports Science degree, coached at

, and began working on his coaching badges.

"My daughter, Persia, takes up a lot of my time," he said. “I'm busier today than when I was playing football! My book, 'The Road to Persia,' is also available.” I composed it because my football career came to an abrupt halt. I was in the middle of healing from an injury. It wasn't the typical method to exit a game.”

"As a result, I decided that writing a book on my career would be an appropriate finale for me. It seemed to be the proper course of action.”

"Because my daughter was not around while I was playing, I thought it would be wonderful for her to be able to read about what her father did in the game when she grew up. I had to deal with a lot of problems on my own.”

"I believe a lot of parents, as well as individuals my age, will connect to it since it comes from a time when football was considerably different than it is now."

Darius Vassell had no idea what he was getting himself into when he chose to quit the Premier League and go to Turkey.

Vassell arrived at Ankara airport after leaving Manchester City, where he was hailed by hundreds of Ankaragücü supporters despite the fact that he had yet to sign a contract with the club.

This had a significant influence on the former Aston Villa striker, who promptly decided to join the Turkish club for a period of highs and lows.

"I was out of contract at Man City and there weren't any teams in the Premier League that I really wanted to play for, so I felt like a fresh challenge," Vassell told ITV news.

"I'd always wanted to learn a new language and play overseas, and this opportunity came in precisely at the ideal moment for me to think, 'This is the one, we'll go for it.'

"It came as a complete shock to both myself and my agency. We weren't anticipating that; we assumed there would be some warmth, but it was beyond our wildest dreams.”

"We had to cope with it on short notice, but it was all pleasant; everything about my signing for them was excellent. I was simply intended to go look at that point, but it was all really wonderful, and it influenced my ultimate selection."

The supporters were the only continuous pleasant aspect of Vassell's time in Turkey, since the club suffered financially and he and his teammates were forced to work without compensation. After Ankaragücü failed to pay the bill, Vassell was evicted from his hotel.

On the field, fervent fans made the experience enjoyable, despite the constant chaos off it. "I get the impression that football is all their supporters have to shout about; you get the impression that it matters a lot to them and that they'll go to great lengths to help the club win."

Despite financial difficulties and articles in the Turkish press attempting to unsettle the former England international, Vassell wanted to establish an open dialogue with the locals in order to communicate what was going on in the striker's life, as they continued to show support for their foreign star.

Vassell's blog earned cult status in England, with many fans anxiously anticipating the next installment since it offered an honest and melancholy image of the striker's life away from home.

The blog interacted with supporters and discussed Vassell's day-to-day activities, such as vehicle accidents and the club's sacrifice of a goat at the training facility.

"I felt a little alone out there, like I didn't know the club, but the one constant out there was the fans, and I knew they were rooting for me."

“Even though they understood the club couldn't afford to pay me at the time, they found methods to welcome me to the club by showing up at games, creating me banners, giving me flowers, and generally attempting to welcome me to the club despite the fact that they didn't speak the language.”

"In reaction, I resolved to attempt to maintain two-way connection with my fans so that they were constantly aware of what was actually going on with me in Ankara, rather than the misrepresentations that were often carried in the local media. I had no idea since I couldn't read the articles because I didn't speak the language well at the time.”

"There were things put out there about me that were purposefully aimed to make me uncomfortable, but I wasn't aware of everything, so my relationship with the fans reduced the impact it might have had on me."

Vassell scored four goals for his employers in his one season at Ankaragücü, despite the club's problems and loneliness.

"I would say it is difficult to adjust, as it was for me in my circumstance; the club had no money or financial aspect, and they were battling to play its own staff, much alone the players, and there were several misconceptions about how the club should be handled."

"A lot of the time, the players were just showing there, paying for their own trip and making time with very little organization."

Despite the difficulties he experienced on a daily basis, Vassell drew as many positives from the experience as he possibly could, as he quickly realized the influence the year in Turkey had on the Birmingham-born player.

In his book, The Road to Persia, he has stated:

“I had no desire to become a journeyman football player. I'd always wanted to play for Aston Villa, and I'd come to adore Manchester City, but I didn't want to repeat the experience in England; I wanted something fresh, something entirely different.”

“I felt there was nothing in England that was suited for me, so I informed my agency that moving overseas was my only alternative. I believed it was a fantastic chance since I was capable of living overseas, learning a new language, and adjusting to a new culture. I'd been studying French and had hoped to play there, but we couldn't locate the suitable club.”

“My agent approached me with the prospect of joining a Turkish team. He said that Ankaraspor, a Super Lig team, was interested in me. When I inquired whether he was certain it was them, he corrected himself and claimed Ankaragucu was the one who wanted me. They were even less well-known!”

“Their club website didn't seem to be legitimate, and I assumed I was on the incorrect page, but no matter how hard I looked for anything else, it was still their site. After I figured out what was going on, I felt it was worth traveling out to see them and have a look.”

“I flew out on July 1, 2009, but I was unprepared for the reception I got at Ankara Esenboga Airport. Thousands of people greeted me with flags and jerseys, and they created such a racket that I was completely taken away; I'd never seen anything like it before.

There were people waving welcome banners, fireworks were fired, and every television camera in the vicinity appeared to be aimed at me.”

“People pushed their way through to come near to me when a young lady brought me a blue and yellow bouquet of flowers, the club's colors, and it quickly became a genuine scrum to get to the waiting vehicles.

It was the type of welcome you'd expect from a global leader, such as Nelson Mandela, or a rock star, rather than an English player visiting a Turkish football team.”

“Although numerous fans hopped into their automobiles and pursued us out of the airport, we ultimately made it to the safety of our cars. I told the agents that this absurd response struck me as odd. I reminded my agent that I wasn't signing anything and was just visiting the club to get a feel for it.”

“My agent and I had an open discussion about attempting to make this work, and we were both on the same page. On July 21, I returned to Ankara to sign the agreement, and then I had the most comprehensive medical examination I'd ever had.”

“My whole body was examined, including my eyes and hair. I was aware that my signing was significant for them, but it was only at this time that I realized how important this was for them. To put it another way, I felt like I was in a movie about astronauts getting ready to travel to space.”

“This was an opportunity for me to make a new start and mature once again. Regrettably, there was no opportunity to settle. For the club's pre-season training camp, I had to go to Austria.

Barbaros, a midfielder who could speak English and had come up through the ranks at

, helped me feel at ease during my first supper with my new teammates.”

“No one was allowed to eat until the captain came, and no one was allowed to leave until the captain said so. Respect was given a lot of weight, which I appreciated. I nervously shook everyone's hand, unsure of how they would respond.”

Some more facts about Darius Vassell:

Raised in Wylde Green, south of Sutton Coldfield, he began his career in the Birmingham Boys League before being accepted into the youth ranks of Birmingham-based club Aston Villa when he was thirteen. Vassell's technical prowess paid off in the 1996/97 season, when he scored 39 goals.

Vassell, who was only 1.71 meters tall at the time, signed his first professional contract with Aston Villa in April 1998.

He made his Premier League debut as a substitute against Middlesbrough FC in his first season. His first highlight came in the first round of the UEFA Cup, when he came on as a substitute in the 81st minute and turned a 2-1 deficit against Norwegian visitors Strmsgodset IF into a 3-2 victory.

Although he was already playing for the under-18 and under-21 national teams during this time, Vassell had to wait more than two years before breaking through at his club before scoring league goals in a 3-0 win over Bradford City in February 2001.

In the following season, 2001/02, he formed a very strong strike duo with Colombian international Juan Pablo ngel, scoring a total of 16 goals.

Furthermore, he was used for the first time in the English national football team by Sven-Göran Eriksson in a friendly match against the Netherlands in Amsterdam in February 2002, where he injured

and was replaced from the start.

At 1-1, Vassell scored his team's only goal of the game. This extremely successful season culminated in three appearances at the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea.

However, Vassell failed to maintain his positive trend in the following seasons, scoring just 11 and 10 goals, respectively, and dealing with minor injuries that have made it difficult for him to regain his former form. He continued to play for the national team, appearing as a substitute in all four of England's Euro 2004 games in Portugal.

His missed penalty in the quarter-finals against Portugal, which was saved by Ricardo, was the season's low point. He has not been called up to the English national team since.

An important fact about Darius Vassell is that he broke his ankle against

on Matchday 10 of the 2004/05 season, was sidelined for four months, and only managed two goals in the league round.

When he returned, the injury had not fully healed, and it was only after a thorough medical examination that Vassell joined Manchester City for £2 million at the start of the 2005/06 season, signing a contract that would last until the end of the 2008/09 season.

He played for Turkish club MKE Ankaragücü from July 2009 to May 2010. Vassell was then without a club until October 2010, when he signed with English Championship club Leicester City.

Vassell is a devout Christian. His religious beliefs are the reason he survived a car accident a few years ago.

Darius Vassell social media

Regarding

Darius Vassell social media

, it should be mentioned that he does not have any pages on any social media platforms.

Darius Vassell body measurements

Speaking about

Darius Vassell body measurements

, it should be mentioned that the former player is 170cm and 76kg.

Darius Vassell net worth and salary

Darius Vassell's net worth

is estimated to be around $9 million, according to Wikipedia, Forbes, and Business Insider.

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