Rod Fanni

Rod Dodji Fanni (born 6 December 1981) is a French footballer who plays as a center-back most recently for Montreal Impact in Major League Soccer. He made five appearances for the French national team between 2008 and 2010.

Rod Fanni
Fanni in 2010
Personal information
Full name Rod Dodji Fanni[1]
Date of birth (1981-12-06) 6 December 1981
Place of birth Martigues, France
Height 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)
Position(s) Center-back
Youth career
1999–2000 Martigues
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2000–2002 Martigues 63 (1)
2002–2005 Lens 39 (0)
2004–2005 → Châteauroux (loan) 34 (1)
2005–2007 Nice 57 (0)
2007–2011 Rennes 114 (2)
2011–2015 Marseille 127 (5)
2015–2016 Al-Arabi SC 15 (1)
2016 → Charlton Athletic (loan) 14 (0)
2016–2018 Marseille 28 (1)
2018 Montreal Impact 26 (1)
2019–2020 Montreal Impact 15 (0)
National team‡
2008–2010 France 5 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 11 November 2020
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 14 October 2009

Club career

Early career

Fanni began his career with FC Martigues, playing in both Ligue 2 and the Championnat National. He joined RC Lens in 2002 where he made his debut in Ligue 1, as well as both the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Cup. He played the entire 2004–05 season on loan at Châteauroux in Ligue 2.

Nice

In June 2005, he joined Nice but left after only two seasons to sign a four-year contract with Rennes, where he was viewed as a replacement for Dutch defender Mario Melchiot, who had departed for Premier League club Wigan Athletic. Fanni was named in the Ligue 1 Team of the Year for the 2008–09 season. He expressed desire to play in the Premier League and was strongly linked with a move to Newcastle United before signing for Rennes.[2] He was also linked with Everton[3] and West Ham United[4] prior to signing a one-year contract extension with Rennes in November 2009, which kept Fanni tied to Les Rouges et Noirs until June 2012.

Marseille

In December 2010, Marseille successfully acquired the services of Fanni.[5]

Al-Arabi SC and Charlton Athletic

In 2015 Fanni left Marseille after his contract ended. On 11 July 2015 Qatari side Al-Arabi SC signed Fanni on a free transfer.[6]

On 1 February 2016, Fanni signed for Charlton Athletic on loan until the end of season.[7]

Return to Marseille

On 31 August 2016, Fanni returned to Marseille.[8] In February 2018, Marseille announced it had agreed to terminate Fanni's contract at the end of January. Fanni had not made an appearance in the first half of the 2017–18 season.[9]

Montreal Impact

In early March 2018, Montreal Impact announced the signing of Fanni on a contract until June with the option of a further season, pending international transfer certification and a medical.[10][11]

International career

Fanni made his debut for the French national team against Tunisia on 14 October 2008 in a 3–1 victory. Despite stiff competition from players such as Bacary Sagna and François Clerc, Fanni was named regularly in Raymond Domenech's squad as second choice right-back behind Sagna.

Personal life

Fanni's family originates from Benin. He began his football career whilst pursuing his studies, earning a BEP (French secondary school diploma) and then going on to study for a Bachelor's degree in Industrial Science and Technology.

Honours
Fanni winning 2011 Trophée des champions with Marseille

Club

Marseille

Individual

References
  1. "List of players under written contract registered between 01/02/2016 and 29/02/2016" (PDF). The Football Association. p. 33. Retrieved 11 November 2016.
  2. Fanni keen on England move Sky Sports 12 December 2008
  3. Everton trail defender Sky Sports 6 October 2009
  4. Hammers keen on Frenchman Sky Sports 4 June 2009
  5. "Officiel: Accord de principe trouvé pour Fanni!". Olympique de Marseille. Retrieved 4 October 2014.
  6. "Al Arabi Sign French Defender Rod Fanni from Marseille". Qatar News Agency. Archived from the original on 12 July 2015. Retrieved 11 July 2015.
  7. "DONE DEAL Charlton secure Rod Fanni on loan". Charlton Athletic. 1 February 2016.
  8. "Rod Fanni est de nouveau Olympien" [Rod Fanni is Olympian again] (in French). Olympique de Marseille. 31 August 2016. Retrieved 31 August 2016.
  9. "Rod Fanni libéré par l'OM". So Foot (in French). 19 February 2018. Retrieved 6 March 2018.
  10. "Impact sign veteran French defender Rod Fanni to contract through June 30". Montreal Gazette. 5 March 2018. Retrieved 6 March 2018.
  11. "Montreal Impact sign France international center-back Rod Fanni". ESPN FC. 5 March 2018. Retrieved 6 March 2018.
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