Mathieu Valbuena

Mathieu Valbuena is a French professional footballer born on 28 September 1984, who plays as an attacking midfielder for the Maltese Challenge League club St. Lucia. He occasionally plays as a winger and is known for his pace, technical ability and tenacious style. Because of his small stature he is nicknamed le petit velo, which means the little bike. He began at Bordeaux, was let go after two seasons and joined the amateur club Langon-Castets, then moved in 2004 to Libourne Saint-Seurin in the third tier. After a good 2005-06 season he signed with the Ligue 1 club Marseille, with whom he first played in the UEFA Champions League and was part of the team that won the league and league cup double and the Trophee des Champions in 2009-10. He made his France debut in a friendly against Costa Rica in May 2010, scoring in that match, and was named to the squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, where he appeared in one of three matches. In November 2010 he scored against England at Wembley Stadium.