David N'Gog

David Philippe Henri Ngog (born 1 April 1989), known as David N'Gog, is a French former professional footballer.[3]

David N'Gog
N'Gog playing for Liverpool in 2011
Personal information
Full name David Philippe Henri Ngog[1]
Date of birth (1989-04-01) 1 April 1989[2]
Place of birth Gennevilliers, France
Height 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)
Position(s) Striker
Youth career
2001–2006 Paris Saint-Germain
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2006–2008 Paris Saint-Germain 18 (1)
2008–2011 Liverpool 63 (9)
2011–2014 Bolton Wanderers 81 (14)
2014 Swansea City 3 (0)
2014–2016 Reims 44 (10)
2016–2017 Panionios 13 (1)
2018 Ross County 10 (1)
2018–2020 Budapest Honvéd 28 (8)
2020 Žalgiris 2 (1)
Total 262 (45)
National team
2004–2005 France U16 13 (11)
2005–2006 France U17 6 (2)
2006–2007 France U18 4 (2)
2007 France U19 6 (6)
2008–2010 France U21 17 (3)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 30 May 2020

N'Gog started his career with French Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain. He made his senior debut in 2006 and in 2008 won the Coupe de la Ligue. English Premier League club Liverpool signed him at the start of the 2008–09 season. After three years, he moved to fellow Premier League club Bolton Wanderers, but was relegated with them after just one season. Following spells in Greece, Scotland, Hungary, and Lithuania, N'Gog announced his retirement in 2020.

N'Gog is a former French youth international, having earned caps at all youth levels. However, he was also eligible to represent Cameroon, by way of his father, and was approached by Cameroon in the past to make the switch.

Early life

N'Gog was born in Gennevilliers, Hauts-de-Seine, to a Cameroonian father and a French mother.[4] He is the cousin of former French international player Jean-Alain Boumsong.[5]

Club career

Paris Saint-Germain

N'Gog started his career with Paris Saint-Germain of Ligue 1 in 2001. He signed his first professional contract in June 2006.

2008–09 season

Manager Rafael Benítez hailed his scouting network after his signing, saying that "They are finding players like N'Gog, players with quality who are not a high price".[6] N'Gog played his first game for Liverpool in a friendly game against Villarreal on 30 July 2008 and scored his first goal one game later against Rangers in another pre-season friendly. He then followed this up by scoring Liverpool's final goal in their next pre-season friendly, a 4–1 win over Norwegian side Vålerenga. He made his Premier League debut against Aston Villa, coming on as a substitute for Fernando Torres. N'Gog scored his first goal for Liverpool in their 3–1 victory over PSV Eindhoven in the group stages of the UEFA Champions League.[7] N'Gog made his first start for Liverpool on 7 February 2009 against Portsmouth, and scored his first league goal on 3 March 2009 against Sunderland in a 2–0 win at Anfield.[8] N'Gog scored his second league goal for the club on 11 April 2009 against Blackburn Rovers at Anfield in an emphatic 4–0 win.[9]

2009–10 season

N'Gog scored his first goal of the new season with the final goal in a 4–0 home win against Stoke City.[10] This was his fourth career goal for Liverpool, three of which came in league matches. The following month, he then went on to score the winning goal in a third-round League Cup game, to win 1–0 away against Leeds United. On 25 October, in a crucial game against Manchester United, he came on for goalscorer Torres at Anfield, scoring a goal in the 96th minute in the 2–0 win to seal an important victory for Liverpool.[11] After the crunch tie, N'Gog said scoring the goal was "a fantastic moment for me and the team and I would say it's my best moment in football." He scored his fourth goal of the season on 9 November against Birmingham City before winning a controversial penalty[12] that gave Liverpool a draw after Steven Gerrard converted from the spot.[13] N'Gog then scored Liverpool's only goal in their next match away to Debrecen in the Champions League.[14] Benítez showed his faith in N'Gog by handing him a start against Everton in the Merseyside derby; this match finished 2–0 to Liverpool.[15] He scored his fourth league goal (six in total of the 2009–10 season) in a 2–1 victory over Wigan Athletic.[16] N'Gog's goal nine minutes from time eventually broke the resistance of a determined Unirea Urziceni at Anfield in the Europa League.[17]

2010–11 season
N'Gog playing for Liverpool in 2011

On 29 July, N'Gog scored twice in Roy Hodgson's first competitive match as manager in Liverpool's Europa League third qualifying round first leg 2–0 win over Macedonian side Rabotnički.[18] In the second leg of the tie played at Anfield, N'Gog scored the opening goal via a header and also won a penalty, which Gerrard scored, as Liverpool ran out 4–0 aggregate winners.[19]

N'Gog playing for Liverpool in 2009

N'Gog then scored again in Liverpool's opening match of the season at home to Arsenal in a 1–1 draw by turning past Thomas Vermaelen and rifling the ball into the top corner of the net past Arsenal goalkeeper Manuel Almunia. He was enjoying the best start to a Liverpool season before he was taken out of the squad that played West Bromwich Albion for Torres. After being left out of the game against Birmingham City, N'Gog shot to fire again in the Europa League, scoring two in Liverpool's 4–1 victory over Steaua București.[20] He scored an extra-time equaliser in the League Cup defeat to Northampton Town to take the tie to penalties, but missed his penalty in the shoot-out,[21] and played the remaining 35 minutes in the Reds' frustrating 2–2 draw against Sunderland at Anfield.[22] On 3 October, he replaced the injured Torres after just 10 minutes in their 2–1 home loss to Blackpool.[23] On 24 October, he replaced Joe Cole in the 80th minute in Liverpool's 2–1 Premier League win at Anfield against Blackburn Rovers. He replaced Cole for the second time, in Liverpool's 1–0 Premier League win against Bolton Wanderers at the Reebok Stadium on 31 October. N'Gog was praised by Sam Allardyce for the way in which his introduction changed the game for Liverpool, indirectly leading to their late winner. He continued to be an impact sub from the bench, following the departure of Torres, and the signings of Luis Suárez and Andy Carroll and often finding himself in the starting line-up. He ended his Liverpool career at the end of the 2010–11 season with a record of 19 goals in 94 games.

Bolton Wanderers

On 31 August 2011, for £4 million transfer fee,[24] Liverpool announced that N'Gog had completed a move to Bolton Wanderers in a three-year deal.[25] N'Gog made his first appearance for Bolton as a substitute for Kevin Davies in Bolton's 5–0 defeat to Manchester United at the Reebok Stadium on 10 September. His first goal for Bolton Wanderers came in Bolton's 3–1 win against Wigan Athletic at the DW Stadium on 15 October.[26] Fulham made an unsuccessful £3 million bid for him in August 2012.[27]

Swansea City

On 27 January 2014, N'Gog joined Premier League side Swansea City until the end of the season, signing for an undisclosed fee.[28] He made his debut for the club on 1 February 2014 as a substitute for Nathan Dyer in a 2–0 away defeat to West Ham United.[29]

Reims

On 1 September 2014, N'Gog ended his six-year spell in the English leagues after signing a two-year contract with Ligue 1 outfit Reims.[30]

Panionios

On 12 August 2016, Superleague Greece club Panionios announced that they had signed N'Gog for an undisclosed fee.[31][32]

Ross County

On 23 January 2018, N'Gog joined Ross County of the Scottish Premiership on a deal until the end of the 2017–18 season. The Frenchman reunited with Owen Coyle, who had managed him at Bolton Wanderers.[33] He scored his first goal for the club in a 2–1 loss to Rangers on 28 January 2018.[34]

Budapest Honvéd

In August 2018, N'Gog joined Hungarian club Budapest Honvéd.[35] On 25 August, he scored seven minutes into his debut against Debrecen.[36]

Žalgiris and retirement

In February 2020 N'Gog became a member of Lithuanian A League side FK Žalgiris.[37]

On 21 June 2020, Žalgiris announced that N'Gog had officially retired from professional football at the age of 31.[38][39]

International career

N'Gog has played for France at many youth levels. He scored one goal in a 2–0 victory over England under-19s in 2007.

In November 2009, David N'Gog was approached to play for Cameroon, despite having already represented France at youth levels. The then Liverpool striker said: "I have had contact with the Cameroonian federation. Now I need some time to think about things. I'm very flattered."[40] In February 2010, with Cameroon preparing for the 2010 World Cup, Cameroon's Minister of Sports, Michel Zoah, met with N'Gog's father on two occasions to try and convince the player to switch allegiances.[4] A few months later, in May, N'Gog was not included in Cameroon's preliminary squad for the World Cup. When asked why, Cameroon coach Paul Le Guen said that N'Gog had insisted on a starting spot with the Indomitable Lions.[41] However, N'Gog refuted the claims.[4]

Career statistics
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition[42][43]
Club Season League National Cup League Cup Europe Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Paris Saint-Germain 2006–07 Ligue 1 40100010—60
2007–08 1414012——193
Total 181501210—253
Liverpool 2008–09 Premier League 142002031—193
2009–10 245202192—378
2010–11 2521011115—388
Total 6393052238—9419
Bolton Wanderers 2011–12 Premier League 3334120——394
2012–13 Championship 3182000——338
2013–14 1731110——194
Total 81147230——9116
Swansea City 2013–14 Premier League 30000000—30
Reims 2014–15 Ligue 1 2872000——307
2015–16 1631010——183
Total 44103010——4810
Panionios 2016–17 Superleague Greece 13132———163
Ross County 2017–18 Scottish Premiership 1010000——101
Budapest Honvéd 2018–19 Nemzeti Bajnokság I 2368600——3112
2019–20 52100041—103
Total 288960041—4115
Žalgiris 2020 A Lyga 2100—001031
Career total 2624530101042891033168

Honours

Club
Paris Saint-Germain[43]
Žalgiris[43]

References
  1. "UEFA Champions League 2009/2010: Booking List Group Stage before MD4" (PDF). UEFA. p. 5. Retrieved 3 February 2019.
  2. Hugman, Barry J., ed. (2010). The PFA Footballers' Who's Who 2010–11. Mainstream Publishing. p. 307. ISBN 978-1-84596-601-0.
  3. The curious career of David N’Gog: From going AWOL to retiring at 31 planetfootball.com
  4. Guy Nsigué (7 March 2012). "David Ngog veut "enfin" jouer pour le Cameroun". Camfoot. Archived from the original on 29 April 2012. Retrieved 9 April 2012.
  5. "David N'Gog profile". Liverpool FC. Archived from the original on 6 August 2008. Retrieved 6 August 2008.
  6. "Gerrard worry for Liverpool". Sporting Life. 5 August 2008. Archived from the original on 26 May 2012. Retrieved 6 August 2008.
  7. Champions League round-up Sky Sports, 9 December 2008
  8. Liverpool 2–0 Sunderland BBC Sport, 3 March 2009
  9. Sanghera, Mandeep (11 April 2009). "Liverpool 4–0 Blackburn". BBC Sport. Retrieved 11 April 2009.
  10. "Liverpool 4–0 Stoke". BBC Sport. 19 August 2009. Retrieved 4 September 2009.
  11. "Reds stun rivals to end losing run". TEAMtalk. 25 October 2009. Archived from the original on 28 October 2009. Retrieved 25 October 2009.
  12. "Liverpool 2–2 Birmingham". BBC Sport. 9 November 2009.
  13. "Birmingham angry at 'cheat' N'Gog". BBC Sport. 10 November 2009. Retrieved 10 November 2009.
  14. "Debrecen 0–1 Liverpool". BBC Sport. 24 November 2009. Retrieved 27 January 2014.
  15. "Everton 0–2 Liverpool". BBC Sport. 29 November 2009. Retrieved 27 January 2014.
  16. "Liverpool 2–1 Wigan". BBC Sport. 16 December 2009. Retrieved 27 January 2014.
  17. Liverpool 1–0 Unirea Urziceni ESPN Soccernet, 18 February 2010
  18. "Rabotnicki Skopje 0–2 Liverpool". BBC Sport. 29 July 2010. Retrieved 29 July 2010.
  19. "Liverpool 2–0 Rabotnicki Skopje (agg 4–0)". BBC Sport. 5 August 2010.
  20. "Liverpool 4–1 Steaua Bucharest". BBC Sport. 16 September 2010.
  21. Smith, Rory (22 September 2010). "Liverpool 2 Northampton Town 2; 2–4 pens: match report". London: Telegraph. Retrieved 23 September 2010.
  22. "Liverpool 2–2 Sunderland". BBC Sport. 25 September 2010.
  23. "Liverpool 1–2 Blackpool". BBC Sport. 3 October 2010.
  24. "Football Transfer News & Latest Rumours – Mirror Online".
  25. Ngog completes Bolton move Archived 19 January 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  26. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 18 October 2011. Retrieved 21 October 2011.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  27. Nixon, Alan (12 August 2012). "Trotters trading: Fulham get knocked back after £3m move for Bolton's Ngog".
  28. "Swans snap up Ngog". Swansea City. Retrieved 27 January 2014.
  29. Sanghera, Mandeep (1 February 2014). "West Ham United 2–0 Swansea City". BBC Sport. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  30. "David N'Gog returns to France after English exile". Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  31. "Συμφώνησε με Ν' Γκογκ ο Πανιώνιος". Retrieved 12 August 2016.
  32. "Panionios : Accord de principe avec Ngog". Retrieved 12 August 2016.
  33. "David Ngog joins the club". rosscountyfootballclub.co.uk. 23 January 2018. Archived from the original on 23 January 2018. Retrieved 23 January 2018.
  34. "Ross County 1–2 Rangers". BBC. 28 January 2018. Retrieved 29 January 2018.
  35. "Jó helyre került" (in Hungarian). honvedfc.hu. 10 August 2018. Retrieved 10 August 2018.
  36. "Ngog David Philippe gólja a Budapest Honvéd – DVSC mérkőzésen" (in Hungarian). youtube.com. 26 August 2018. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  37. http://www.fkzalgiris.lt/naujienos/n7830.html
  38. "Prancūzas Davidas Ngogas baigia futbolininko karjerą" (in Lithuanian). fkzalgiris.lt. 21 June 2020. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
  39. "David N'Gog retires at 31". French Football News. 21 June 2020. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
  40. "Best Football Cleats".
  41. Khaled Karouri (20 May 2012). "Paul Le Guen torpille David". Foot-Mercato. Retrieved 9 April 2012.
  42. David N'Gog at Soccerbase
  43. David N'Gog at Soccerway. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
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