Bacary Sagna Biography

Bacary Sagna, born 14 February 1983 in Sens, is a French retired footballer who used to play as a right-back for many different clubs in France, England, Italy and Canada, proving himself as one of the best fullbacks of his generation in France national team.

Sagna was discovered by

, a prestigious Ligue 1 club, where he played until 2007. He joined

on 12 July 2007 for approximately €11 million. At the London club, he was promptly inserted into Arsène Wenger's starting line-up, filling that position and making over 250 appearances for the Gunners in all competitions.

As a reward for his good performances, he was named twice in the PFA Team of the Year, the award given by the PFA to the best in the Premier League, in 2007-08 and 2010-11. He transferred to Manchester City on 13 June 2014 on a three-year contract. He spent three seasons there, making a total of 54 league appearances for the Citizens.

He joined the Italian side Benevento in the winter of 2018, signing a six-month contract. In August 2018, while having a poor season with Italian side Benevento Calcio, the former France international Bacary Sagna joined Major League Soccer's Montreal Impact. Having spent two years at the Canadian team, he ended his playing career.

All You Need to Know About Bacary Sagna Biography

He got his first call-up to the French national team on 22 August 2007. He was part of the squad that played at the World Cup in South Africa in 2010, in which the French were knocked out early in the group stage.

After playing a total of 65 international matches for his country, Bacary Sagna retired from international football after the final of the Euro 2016 match against Portugal in Paris, in which they lost the Euro title to Portugal.

Bacary Sagna Information

Now that we know the French footballer much better, in this section of

Bacary Sagna biography

we will share more general information about him such as

Bacary Sagna nationality

to let you know him even better.

Bacary Sagna Bio

• Full Name: Bacary Sagna

• Nickname: Mr Reliable

• Profession: Professional Footballer

Bacary Sagna Physical Stats

• Weight: 70 Kg

• Height: 1.76 m

• Eye Color: Dark Brown

• Hair Color: Black

Bacary Sagna Football Information

• Position: Right-Back

• Jersey Number: 3

• Professional Debut: 2002

Bacary Sagna Date of Birth and Personal Info

• Date of Birth: 14 February 1983

• Birth Place: Sens, France

• Zodiac Sign: Aquarius

• Nationality: French

Now stay tuned to this section of

Bacary Sagna biography

as we want to share some info about

Bacary Sagna childhood

.

Bacary Sagna Early Life

Bacary Sagna began his football career with his hometown club Sens, Eveil Senonais, and subsequently with FC Sens. He progressed through the ranks and was eventually lured away by neighbouring club AJ Auxerre.

Nevertheless, Sagna's father believed that it was still too early for his son to move out of the family fold. One year later, at the age of 14, Sagna joined the club Auxerre. Sagna was part of the sport-study group, a programme in which he completed his schooling up to the French baccalaureate. Upon graduation, he became part of the club's training centre, where he rapidly played in the French CFA 2 and then CFA.

The young Bacary Sagna was playing as a striker during this period. During a match against US Boulogne-sur-Mer, Bernard David, coach of the CFA group, decided to play him at right-back to make up for the absence of the injured starting player and his performance was so good that since then he played there.

Auxerre

He made his Ligue 1 debut for Auxerre on 11 September 2004 in a 0:1 defeat against SC Bastia. In his debut season, he made 26 league appearances and his team went on to finish 8th in the league while winning the French Cup which saw them advance to the UEFA Cup.

During the 2004/2005 season, the French club also took part in this competition, and reached the quarter-finals, while Sagna played in all 10 matches. The following July 2005, Auxerre suffered a 1:4 loss in the French Super Cup final against

.

Bacary Sagna Profile

Sagna went on to appear in 23 Ligue 1 games the following season and he and his club finished 6th in the league. Nevertheless, the French team failed to make it past the first round of the UEFA Cup, where they lost to Levski Sofia; at that point, Sagna played in one of the two matches.

During the 2006/2007 season, Sagna made 38 league appearances and the club went on to finish 8th in the table. Meanwhile, Auxerre was unable to progress out of UEFA Cup Group A and finished in 3rd place; with Sagna playing in all eight games.

Towards the end of the season, the Frenchman was named in the best eleven of the Ligue 1 season as a right-back and he was also voted best player of his team. In his time playing for Auxerre, he wore the jersey with the number 29. He appeared in 87 Ligue 1 games during his three seasons with the team.

Now stay tuned to this section of Bacary Sagna biography as we want to share some info about his Arsenal career.

Arsenal

Sagna arrived in London on 10 July 2007 for talks with Arsenal there. Only two days later, he penned a five-year contract with the club (the amount of the fee was not disclosed) after previously turning down offers from Newcastle United and Olympique Lyon.

On the other hand, L'equipe reported that Arsenal had paid €9 million and could add €2 million subject to certain conditions. Sagna was handed the number 3 jersey, which had previously been worn by the likes of Ashley Cole and Nigel Winterburn. He said of the transfer:

"This is an unbelievable sort of thing. If anyone told me that one day I would be an Arsenal player, I wouldn't believe them. This is a great happiness for my family and friends. I am looking forward to playing at Emirates Stadium and winning trophies for the club and the fans."

His debut for his new club occurred on 19 July in a 3-0 pre-season win against Turkey's Gençlerbirliği SK which was played at Bad Waltersdorf Stadion. Towards the end of July, the Emirates Cup tournament was held, with Arsenal taking first place and Sagna appearing in both matches. At the beginning of August, the Amsterdam Tournament also took place, which Arsenal won and the Frenchman featured in one of the two matches.

His first Premier League appearance was on 12 August, with Sagna playing from the first minute in a 2-1 win against

. After moving to the Premier League, Sagna succeeded Emmanuel Eboué on the right back defence and he started as a right-winger.

In a 2-1 loss to Arsenal's local rival

on 23 March 2008, Sagna netted his first goal for the club with a header after a corner kick. He then dedicated this goal to his brother, who had passed away a month earlier. In that match, he also suffered an ankle injury that would rule him out for the rest of the season.

Sagna was named in the PFA's team of the year at the end of the season and was named the best right-back in the league. In that season, Sagna was also named the club's best player by fans in a vote on Arsenal's official website.

Sagna made 29 league appearances, three cup appearances and eight Champions League appearances in his first season with his new team. He scored one goal (on 23 March in a league game against Chelsea). Arsenal reached the quarter-finals in the Champions League where they lost to

. In the league, however, they finished third, behind Manchester United and Chelsea.

Sagna had his Arsenal contract extended for another two years on 4 June 2008, binding him to the team until 2014. The Amsterdam Tournament was held in early August, as it had been the year before, with Arsenal winning for the second consecutive year.

In a national team match on 16 October, Sagna picked up a knee injury that forced him out of action for the next two games. Together with him, William Gallas and Nicklas Bendtner also picked up injuries during this period.

On 26 October, Sagna made his return to the team when he replaced Robin van Persie in the 90th minute in a 2-0 win over West Ham United. Sagna then suffered an ankle injury on 15 November, which would keep him out of action for several weeks. He made a return to action two weeks later, when he starred in a league game against Chelsea. The 2008/09 season ended with 35 league appearances, five in domestic cups and nine in European cups.

The French press speculated in June 2009 that Real Madrid had an interest in Sagna. But the Frenchman denied this and stayed in London. In the 2009/10 season, Bacary Sagna went on to play a total of 44 matches for his club, providing 5 assists to his teammates in English Premier League. That season he also played 6 UEFA Champions League matches for Arsenal.

Sagna started the following season on 15 August 2010 in a 1-1 draw against Liverpool in the English Premier League. In their next match against Blackpool which resulted in a huge 6-0 win, Sagna provided the assist of the fourth goal to Abou Diaby in the 49th minute.

He scored a goal in the

match against Everton which was played on 14 November 2010. Sagna also scored a goal in their Third Round FA Cup match against

. That season, Sagna made a total of 43 matches in all competitions with two goals and three assists to his name.

He was named in the Premier League's Team of the Year for 2010-2011 on 17 April 2011 and was named the best right-back of the season for the second time. He was also a finalist in the League Cup that season but was defeated by Birmingham City.

Sagna suffered a fractured right fibula on 2 October 2011 during the North London derby between the Gunners and Tottenham on matchday 7, a match that Spurs won two goals to one. After missing almost four months, he made a return to action on 29 January 2012 in the FA Cup 4th round tie against Aston Villa (3-2 win), when he came on as a late substitute for Theo Walcott.

He suffered another fractured fibula in his right leg in the Gunners' match against

on 5 May 2012. This resulted in his withdrawal from Euro 2012. The following 27 October, he was back on the Premier League pitch, playing in the Matchday 9 match against Queens Park Rangers and played the majority of the rest of the season. In the following season, he won the 2014 FA Cup against Hull City AFC in extra time. At the end of that season, he joined the Citizens.

Manchester City

Bacary Sagna switched clubs after seven years of loyal service at Arsenal. He signed a three-year contract with English champions

on 13 June 2014. With Pablo Zabaleta standing in his way, he made little impact in the first season before becoming a regular starter the following season.

In 2016, he won the League Cup after beating Liverpool in a penalty shoot-out. At the end of his contract on 25 May 2017, Manchester City announced his departure.

Benevento

On February 3, 2018, he reached an agreement with

, signing until June, with the option for another season. His first appearance was the following week in the league match against Roma, coming on in the middle of the game. His first goal for Benevento was scored on 29 April, in the match between Benevento and Udinese, resulting in a 3-3 draw (and returning to scoring after five years).

Montréal Impact

He signed a contract with

Impact on August 8, 2018, running until the end of the 2018 season, with an extension option for the following season. He played as a starter for the full ninety minutes against the Chicago Fire on August 18.

He scored his first goal with the Canadiens on 1 September, with a header for a 2-0 lead against N.Y. Red Bulls. Red Bulls. He was confirmed as a starter on the left side of the pitch the following season and helped Toronto FC win the Canadian championship.

Now stay tuned to this section of

Bacary Sagna biography

as we want to share some info about his international career.

France national team

Bacary Sagna was included in the French U-21 team twelve times between 2004 and 2006. He participated in the European Championship in 2006, in which

was knocked out in the semi-finals by the Netherlands.

He was called up for the first time by Raymond Domenech on 24 May 2007 for the senior French team to play against Ukraine and Georgia, although he had to wait for the friendly match against Slovakia (1-0) to make his first appearance on 22 August 2007.

After the Euro 2008, he replaced Willy Sagnol at right-back. With Domenech's confidence, Sagna participated in the qualifying campaign for the 2010 World Cup. He was part of Raymond Domenech's 23-man squad for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

Bacary Sagna, like all of his teammates, was disappointing during this World Cup, having shown himself to be friable on his side during the three games played against Uruguay, Mexico and South Africa.

After the World Cup, he was a regular in the Laurent Blanc era, although a severe injury to his right fibula kept him out of the Euro 2012 squad. A new injury in May with Arsenal meant he was unable to take part in the European Championship. Matthew Debuchy and Anthony Réveillère took their place.

While his last cap against Romania was in September 2011, he was summoned back to the French team on 6 February 2013 by Didier Deschamps for a friendly match against Germany. During his long absence, however, Debuchy had emerged as a key right-back and Sagna was left to settle for a backup role ahead of the 2014 World Cup.

Bacary Sagna reached 50 caps for the French national team on 4 September 2015 against

. He made the list of 23 French players selected to play at Euro 2016 and was named as the starter. Sagna played in the two preparation matches against Cameroon (3-2 win) and Scotland, providing an assist in the latter match (3-0 win).

He provided another assist, this time during the tournament, in the Round of 16 against Ireland when Antoine Griezmann scored a brace while the Blues were behind (2-1 victory). They went on to defeat Iceland and Germany before falling to Portugal in the final.

Bacary's last appearance for the national team was against Bulgaria in the 2018 World Cup qualifier in Russia, where he provided an assist to Kevin Gameiro following the conceding of a penalty in the 6th minute of play. He was injured a few minutes later and replaced by Djibril Sidibé, who would be Les Bleus' new right-back during the qualifying campaign. In total, Sagna played 65 games for Les Bleus between 2007 and 2016.

Now stay tuned to this section of Bacary Sagna biography as we want to share some info about his playing style.

Style of Play

He is a right-back with good stamina, good running and crossing ability and can also be used as a central defender if required. He also possessed good speed and agility and thus participated in both the attacking and defending phases of his teams.

Reception

During his time as a player, especially after signing for Arsenal in the late 2000s, Bacary Sagna was able to establish himself as one of the best fullbacks in the English Premier League and also proved himself among the top fullbacks of his generation in the French national football team.

Bacary Sagna outside Football

Bacary Sagna, according to himself, is a fan of Tennis and it is his next favourite sport besides football. He and his wife Ludivine always go to watch many Grand Slams together, including the Roland Garros.

Since retiring from playing football, Bacary Sagna lives in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates together with his wife and children. He is a shareholder at Gravipack, a company that sells a creative backpack, which confuses the load on the center of gravity of the human body, it reduces the weight on the neck, shoulders and back.

The retired famous French footballer also is one of the three co-founders of the American Tasty Burger restaurant which works in Paris.

Bacary Sagna Personal Life

In this section of Bacary Sagna biography, we will take a deeper look into his personal life and share some information about things like

Bacary Sagna life story

and

Bacary Sagna religion

, stay tuned.

Family, Children and Relationships

Bacary Sagna married his wife Ludivine in July 2010 after several years of dating. His wife has worked as a columnist of the TV show ‘Touche pas à mon sport’. She met her husband at a very young age. In an interview with Paris Match magazine, she talked about her relationship.

"I was 14 when I met him. My little brother had just broken his femur and Bacary came to see him. So we got to know each other. And then he was from Sens and I was from Auxerre, it's next door, everyone knew each other. We remained friends for three years, then when I was 17, our relationship evolved and we started to be a couple."

They have two children, two boys named Elias and Kaïs, born in February 2009 and May 2011. Ludivine was present at each of Bacary's matches and while his husband was playing for the Citizens, she regularly shared photos from the stands with the other women of the blues.

Since the player's transfer to Arsenal, the family were living in England, and in the country, his boys were already following in their father's footsteps. "They both already play at the City Football Academy (in Manchester). Elias already trains four times a week. At home, we eat football, we sleep football, we breathe football!" added Ludivine in an interview while Bacary Sagna was playing for Manchester City.

Philanthropy

Bacary Sagna has always been active in charity projects both during his playing career and now that he has retired from playing professional football. For example, together with his wife, Bacary Sagna attended the James Milner Foundation Charity Gala on November 30, 2014, in Manchester, something that he has done so many times, supporting each of the foundations.

Legal Issues

Bacary Sagna posted a photo on Instagram on 2 January 2014 with the caption "10 against 12... but we fight and win as a team" following a narrow win over the 12th-placed English side Burnley on matchday 20. He later deleted the words '10 against 12' from his post, but he did not escape the FA's accusation last week that he was 'misbehaving' and that his comments were directed at the match referee.

Following this, Manchester City's French defender Bacary Sagna, fined £40,000 at first instance for questioning the impartiality of a referee on social media. He later had his appeal heard. "Bacary Sagna's appeal against the fine imposed for breaching the FA's rules on media commentary has been rejected and the original sanctions stand," the FA said.

Bacary Sagna Career Statistics

In this section of Bacary Sagna biography, we will take a look at his career stats on the international and club level.

Club

From the start of his playing career at Auxerre to the day he retired from playing football at Montreal Impact in 2019, Sagna played a total of 544 matches in all competitions, scoring 8 goals. Playing for seven consecutive seasons, Bacary Sagna has spent the majority of his career with the Gunners, playing 284 matches and scoring 5 goals for them.

International

Between 2007 and 2016 Bacary Sagna was part of the French national football team, where he participated in major tournaments and played a total of 65 games. He was never able to score a goal for his country during his career.

Bacary Sagna Honors

As a player, Bacary has won some trophies, including the Coupe de France with Auxerre, FA Cup with Arsenal, Football League Cup with Manchester City and the Canadian Championship with Montreal Impact.

The list of his individual awards and titles includes the UNFP Ligue 1 Team of the Year, Auxerre Player of the Season and the PFA Team of the Year on two occasions.

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