Joseph Yobo Bio Send To Friend  

Everton initially signed Yobo from French outfit Marseille in July 2002 in a deal which could eventually be worth up to £5million. Everton beat off competition from a number of sides, including Arsenal and Juventus.

It has since proved a fight worth winning - during the 2006/07 season the athletic defender played every second of every Premiership game, matching a record last achieved 20 years earlier by Kevin Ratcliffe.

He could not match that feat the following season, not least because the Nigerian international represented his country during the 2008 African Cup of Nations, but he remained a key player as Everton finished fifth and booked a place in the UEFA Cup.

Yobo, signed an initial one-year loan contract, costing Everton £1million, but he impressed enough to earn a permanent switch at the end of his first season and then signed a long-term five-year contract in the summer of 2006.

The centre-back, who has also been on the books of Standard Liege and has had a loan spell in Spain with Tenerife, was one of the stars of Nigeria's 2002 World Cup campaign - even if they didn't make it past the group stage.

He came up against numerous Premiership stars in the games against Sweden and England. Everton manager David Moyes dubbed him the star player in the Nigerian squad.

In the early months of his debut season Yobo was a rock as Everton carved out a reputation for having one of the best defences in the Premiership.

He had to take a back seat, however, when problems arose as he changed agents. Then a subsequent dispute over money owed to him by Marseille caused a delay in his permanent transfer to the Premiership.

Eventually he forced his way back into the squad in the right-back position, after previously excelling in the centre of defence. Moyes had no hesitation in securing his transfer, but it would be the end of May 2003 before Yobo had cleared up the issues with his former club and won the battle for the £300,000 he was owed.

Everton paid Marseille a further £3.5million to capture the impressive defender, who made 26 appearances in his first season and won the club's Young Player of the Year award for 2003/04.

He really established himself early in the 2005/06 but the African Nations Cup punctuated his Premiership season and Yobo was in and out of the side on his return.

The assured and assertive defender was back to his best during the 2006/07 season and was an ever present as Everton claimed a UEFA Cup place.