Patrick Vieira (b. June 23, 1976) is a French midfield football player, born in Dakar, Senegal. He is currently the captain of Arsenal. In the 2004 offseason, he was linked with Spanish superpower Real Madrid in transfer speculation; Real offered Arsenal €35 million for Vieira, but Arsenal rejected the offer. An elegant and powerful defensive central midfielder, current Arsenal coach Arsène Wenger asked for him to be bought from A.C. Milan before he took the position as coach.
In his most recent season at Arsenal, he captained the side on a historic unbeaten run in the English premier league 2004 season.
Teams
- Cannes Football Club (1993-1995)
- A.C. Milan (1995-1996)
- Arsenal F.C. (1996-present)
- French international team (since January 1997)
Honors
- Selected to FIFA 100: 2004
- FIFA World Cup
- Appearances: 1998 2002
- Winner: World Cup 1998
- European Championship
- Winner: Euro 2000
- English Premiership titles (3) : 1998 2002 2004
- English FA Cup (3) : 1998 2002 2003
- Carlsberg Player of the Year in 2004