Jimmy Kébé

Jimmy Boubou Kébé (born 19 January 1984) is a former professional footballer who played as a right winger. Born in France, he represented Mali at international level.

Jimmy Kébé

Kébé playing for Reading in 2011
Personal information
Full name	Jimmy Boubou Kébé[1]
Date of birth	19 January 1984[1]
Place of birth	Vitry-sur-Seine, France
Height	6 ft 1.5 in (1.87 m)
Position(s)	Right winger
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2002–2008	Lens	0	(0)
2002–2006	Lens B	57	(5)
2006–2007	→ Châteauroux (loan)	18	(2)
2007–2008	→ Boulogne (loan)	16	(5)
2008–2013	Reading	175	(29)
2013–2015	Crystal Palace	6	(0)
2014	→ Leeds United (loan)	9	(1)
2015–2016	Real Mallorca	0	(0)
Total		281	(42)
National team
2004	Mali U23	4	(0)
2005–2009	Mali	2	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Club career

Born in Vitry-sur-Seine, France, Kébé started his footballing career at RC Lens. He played predominately for the B side before having successful loan spells at clubs Châteauroux and Boulogne.

Reading

On 16 January 2008, Kébé agreed to join Reading after being spotted by the then scout Brian McDermott, but his then club US Boulogne initially refused to let him end his season-long loan early.[2] Kébé went on strike in order for Boulogne to release him from his loan spell early to join Reading.[3] On 28 January 2008, Reading announced that Kébé had signed a 2½ year contract with them, moving for an undisclosed fee.[4]

He made his debut for Reading as a substitute, coming on for John Oster late into a 1–0 away defeat to Everton on 9 February 2008 and should have opened his Reading account minutes later.[5] He scored his first Reading goal in the 1–2 home defeat against Southampton on 22 November 2008.[6] On 6 December 2008 he was sent off for the first time in his Reading career for aiming an elbow towards Barnsley defender Dennis Souza.[7]

Kébé has since extended his contract until the summer of 2012.[8] 2010 saw an up-turn in Kébé's goal-scoring form, notching up 13 goals in the Championship in the 2010 calendar year.[9] On 21 August 2010, Kébé played his 100th game for Reading, appearing in a 1–1 draw with Nottingham Forest at the Madejski Stadium.

The 2011–12 season saw a further development in Kébé's position at Reading, with a well-publicised dispute over his contract. Having shown himself to be one of Reading's key players in the 2010/11 Playoff push, the club were eager to see him sign a new long term contract to ward off interest from other clubs such as Leicester City[10] as his contract was at the time due to run out at the end of the 2011–12 season. It soon became clear that Kébé wanted to stay at the club, but was reluctant to sign a two-year deal rather than the three-year deal he wanted. Reading could not afford to offer Kébé a three-year, despite being willing to make him one of their highest earners.[11] This ongoing contract saga continued into the new year, with Reading manager Brian McDermott becoming increasingly resigned to the possibility of losing his prized winger.[12] On 5 January 2012, it was confirmed that Reading had offered Kebe a new contract for the three years that he wanted.[13] On 24 January 2012, following Anton Zingarevich's takeover of Reading,[14] Kebe signed a new contract that will keep him at Reading until 2014.[15]

Kebe scored his first Premier League goal in a 2–2 draw at home to Newcastle United. He scored on his return from injury with a cool finish at home to Arsenal in a 5–2 defeat. His next goal came at home to West Bromwich Albion with a far post diving header, to pull one back with 8 minutes to go. This sparked a dramatic comeback from the Royals who scored two more late goals in the dying moments to win 3–2. In January 2013, Kébé announced on his official Twitter page that he had joined [[Newcastle United F.C.]Newcastle United]], this was then picked up by several media outlets, only for Kébé to reveal that it had been a joke due to the number of French-speaking players Newcastle had recently signed.[16]

Kebe scored both the goals as Reading beat Sunderland at home 2–1, to move out of the relegation zone. After the match Reading captain Jobi McAnuff proclaimed Kébé to be a big player for Reading and a real sight to see when he's in full flow and I'm glad he's in our side when he's on song like this.".[17] After the same game, Kébé also received special praise from manager Brian McDermott who proclaimed Kébé has been brilliant for me in the three years I have had this job.[18]

He then injured his groin in the early minutes of the 1–3 defeat to Everton on 2 March 2013, and was ruled out for the rest of the season. Reading were subsequently relegated from the Premier League at the end of the season.

In August 2013, after 6 months out injured with a groin strain, Kébé was set to make a comeback for Reading in a match against Peterborough in the League Cup, however he controversially dropped out of contention with an injury, with manager Nigel Adkins unhappy about the timing after speculation linking Kébé with a move to Crystal Palace. Kébé revealed that he did not refuse to play and that he missed the game due to a hamstring injury.[19]

Crystal Palace

On 31 August 2013, Kébé was signed by manager Ian Holloway for Crystal Palace on a three-year contract for an undisclosed fee.[20] Kébé made his Palace debut against Manchester United on 14 September in a 2–0 away defeat at Old Trafford.[21] Not long after Kébé joined the club, Holloway left, and was replaced by Tony Pulis.

On 8 January 2014, after dropping down the pecking order under Pulis, Leeds United approached Crystal Palace to take Kébé on loan for the remainder of the season and to reunite with his former Reading manager Brian McDermott.[22] Pulis confirmed in his pre-match press conference on 9 January that Kébé had been in talks with Leeds and was set to join them on loan until the end of the 2013–14 season.[23][24] on 23 January 2015 his Crystal Palace Contract was terminated.[25]

Leeds United (loan)

On 10 January 2014, Kébé signed on a 6-month loan for Leeds United.[26] The deal contained a clause to make the move permanent at the end of the season if Leeds are promoted. Kébé was awarded the number 38 shirt.[27]

Kébé made his Leeds debut on 11 January, starting the game in a 6–0 defeat against Sheffield Wednesday.[28] On 1 February 2014, only the day after the alleged sacking of Kébé's mentor Brian McDermott, Kébé scored his first goal for Leeds in a 5-1 victory against local rivals Huddersfield Town.[29] On 1 March, in Leeds draw against Q.P.R. Kébé was subject of chants to be substituted, with Leeds fans calling for the arrival of Sam Byram due to Kébé's mixed displays since signing for the club. After the game manager Brian McDermott leapt to the defence of Kébé's performances and work rate and proclaimed he believed Kébé could still become a fans' favourite.[30]

Return to Crystal Palace, release and Real Mallorca

At the end of the 2013/14 season, Leeds decided against making Kebe's loan permanent and he returned to Palace, where upon his return he was deemed surplus to requirements. He joined Real Mallorca in Spain[31] but did not make a single appearance. Kebé later retired, and now plays professional poker, where he is ranked 6,473 in the world.[32]

International career

He was part of the Mali football team in the 2004 Summer Olympics, finishing top of Group A, but losing to Italy 1–0 (aet) in the next round.

Career statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition[33]

Club	Season	League			National Cup		League Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Reading	2007–08	Premier League	5	0	0	0	0	0	-		5	0
	2008–09	EFL Championship	41	2	1	0	0	0	2[lower-alpha 1]	0	44	2
	2009–10		42	10	5	2	0	0	-		47	12
	2010–11		36	9	3	0	2	0	1[lower-alpha 1]	0	42	9
	2011–12		33	3	0	0	0	0	-		33	3
	2012–13	Premier League	18	5	0	0	1	0	-		19	5
	Total		175	29	9	2	3	0	3	0	190	31
Crystal Palace	2013–14	Premier League	6	0	0	0	0	0	-		6	0
	2014–15		0	0	0	0	0	0	-		0	0
	Total		6	0	0	0	0	0	-	-	6	0
Leeds United F.C. (loan)	2013–14	EFL Championship	9	1	0	0	0	0	—		9	1
Career total			190	30	9	2	3	0	3	0	205	32

1. Appearances in the Championship Playoffs

International

As of match played 21 June 2009[34]

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Mali	2005	1	0
	2006	0	0
	2007	0	0
	2008	0	0
	2009	1	0
Total		2	0

Honours

Reading

• Football League Championship: 2011–12

References

1. Hugman, Barry J., ed. (2009). The PFA Footballers' Who's Who 2009–10. Mainstream Publishing. p. 231. ISBN 978-1-84596-474-0.
2. "Reading move for Malian". Sky Sports. 17 January 2008. Retrieved 17 January 2008.
3. "Reading land Jimmy Kebe". The Mirror. 28 January 2008. Retrieved 29 January 2008.
4. "Kebe joins Royals from Lens". readingfc.co.uk. 28 January 2008. Archived from the original on 29 January 2008. Retrieved 28 January 2008.
5. "Royals are unlucky to be beaten". readingfc.co.uk. 9 February 2008. Archived from the original on 10 February 2008. Retrieved 9 February 2008.
6. "Royals taste defeat at home". readingfc.co.uk. 22 November 2008.
7. "10-man royals defeat Barnsley". readingfc.co.uk. 22 November 2008.
8. "Winger Kebe signs new Royals deal". BBC News. 13 December 2008.
9. https://web.archive.org/web/20110123001042/http://www.readingfc.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0%2C%2C10306~2270642%2C00.html. Archived from the original on 23 January 2011. Retrieved 19 January 2011. Missing or empty |title= (help)
10. Mercury, Leicester (31 August 2011). "Leicester City target Andy Johnson and Jimmy Kebe | Leicester Mercury". Thisisleicestershire.co.uk. Archived from the original on 13 September 2012. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
11. Post, Reading (9 November 2011). "Jimmy Kebe breaks his Reading FC contract silence". Get Reading. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
12. "Reading FC - News, views, gossip, pictures, video - Get Reading". Getbracknell.co.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
13. "Reading reiterate desire to keep winger Jimmy Kebe". BBC News. 16 January 2012. Retrieved 19 January 2012.
14. "Thames Sports Investment confident Anton Zingarevich will be a hit with Reading fans". 27 January 2012. Archived from the original on 2 February 2014. Retrieved 29 May 2012.
15. "Reading winger Jimmy Kebe signs new contract". 24 January 2012. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
16. "Reading's Jimmy Kebe mocks Newcastle's French signings with hoax tweet". 24 January 2013. Retrieved 24 January 2013.
17. "Jimmy Kebe hailed as key to Reading's recent revival after victory over Sunderland". 3 February 2013. Retrieved 3 February 2013.
18. "Reading boss Brian McDermott delighted with Jimmy Kebe". 3 March 2013. Retrieved 30 August 2013.
19. "EXCLUSIVE – Reading FC's Kebe reveals real reason behind Posh no-show". 30 August 2013. Archived from the original on 9 January 2014. Retrieved 30 August 2013.
20. "Kebe Arrives At Palace". Crystal Palace F.C. Retrieved 31 August 2013.
21. "Manchester United 2–0 Palace: Controversial red card spoils brave Eagles performance". 15 September 2013. Archived from the original on 9 January 2014. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
22. "Leeds set to sign Jimmy Kebe from Crystal Palace". 9 February 2014. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
23. "Reading FC: Transfer window". 9 January 2014. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
24. "Crystal Palace winger Jimmy Kebe set to join Leeds". 9 January 2014. Archived from the original on 9 January 2014. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
25. "Kebe Released By Palace". cpfc.co.uk. Crystal Palace Official Website. 23 January 2015.
26. "Jimmy Completes United Move". Leeds United AFC. 10 January 2014.
27. "NO HOLIDAY FOR JIMMY". Leeds United AFC. 10 January 2014.
28. "MISERY AT WEDNESDAY". Leeds United AFC. 11 January 2014.
29. "Leeds United 5 - Huddersfield Town 1". Leeds United Official Site. 1 February 2014. Retrieved 1 February 2014.
30. "Kebe can become favourite, believes McDermott". Yorkshire Post. 7 March 2014. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
31. Low, Jonathan (6 July 2015). "Former Reading FC winger Jimmy Kebe joins Real Mallorca". getreading. Retrieved 7 May 2018.
32. "Jimmy Kebe | RAG710 | France | The Official Global Poker Index – GPI Rankings". www.globalpokerindex.com. Retrieved 7 May 2018.
33. Jimmy Kébé at Soccerbase
34. Jimmy Kébé at National-Football-Teams.com

External links

• Jimmy Kébé at Soccerbase
• Jimmy Kébé at National-Football-Teams.com
• Jimmy Kébé – French league stats at LFP (also available in French)