Costel Pantilimon
Encyclopedia
Costel Pantilimon is a Romanian footballer
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...

 who plays as a goalkeeper for the Premier League club Manchester City
Manchester City F.C.
Manchester City Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Manchester. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's , they became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894...

, on loan from Politehnica Timişoara
FC Politehnica Timişoara
Fotbal Club Politehnica Timişoara is a Romanian football club which was established in 1921 and is currently playing in Romania's second league, Liga II...

.

Early career

Pantilimon started his career at Aerostar Bacău
CS Aerostar Bacau
Aerostar Bacău is a Romanian professional football club from Bacău, Bacău county, Romania, founded in 1977.The club is named after Aerostar SA, a local aeronautics company and the sponsor of the team....

 and got his share of limelight at the Romania national under-19 team
Romania national under-19 football team
The Romania national under-19 football team represents Romania in international football at this age level and is controlled by Federația Română de Fotbal, the governing body for football in Romania.-Current squad:...

 before transferring to Timişoara on 1 February 2006, his nineteenth birthday.

Politehnica Timişoara

Initially Pantilimon was Timişoara's second-choice goalkeeper, behind Marius Popa
Marius Popa
Marius Cornel Popa is a Romanian football player, currently contracted by Universitatea Cluj. He is one of the team's goalkeepers.He started his career at the local team, FC Bihor in 1997 and three years later moved to FC Naţional...

; however, in May 2008 the owner of the club, Marian Iancu
Marian Iancu
Marian Alexandru Iancu is a Romanian businessman, president of the UK based Oil-company Balkan Petroleum, , as well as president of Romanian football club FC Politehnica Timişoara.-References:...

, transferred Popa to the second team, and Pantilimon took the pole position. He made his debut in the Romanian Liga 1 against Dinamo Bucharest, in March 2007.

In a match against Ceahlăul on 17 October 2009 he captained the team for the first time, since Dan Alexa
Dan Alexa
Dan Alexa is a Romanian football player who currently plays for FC Rapid Bucureşti. He is a defensive midfielder.-Early career:...

, Gigel Bucur
Gheorghe Bucur
Gheorghe "Gigel" Bucur is a Romanian football player, currently playing at Kuban Krasnodar. He is a speedy and short striker....

 and the Karamyan brothers were all on the bench
Technical area
A technical area in association football, is where a manager, other coaching personnel and substitutes are allowed to occupy during a match.The area, where people may stand or sit, includes the dugout, bench and a marked zone adjacent to the pitch....

.

Pantilimon was part of the Timişoara team that defeated UEFA Cup
UEFA Cup
The UEFA Europa League is an annual association football cup competition organised by UEFA since 1971 for eligible European football clubs. It is the second most prestigious European club football contest after the UEFA Champions League...

 winners Shakhtar Donetsk in the qualifying rounds of the 2009–10 Champions League
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...

 campaign. He played all 90 minutes of each leg.

Manchester City (loan)

On 11 August 2011, Pantilimon joined Manchester City
Manchester City F.C.
Manchester City Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Manchester. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's , they became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894...

 on one-year loan deal from Poli Timişoara
FC Politehnica Timişoara
Fotbal Club Politehnica Timişoara is a Romanian football club which was established in 1921 and is currently playing in Romania's second league, Liga II...

 to act as cover for Joe Hart
Joe Hart
Charles Joseph John "Joe" Hart is an English football goalkeeper who plays for Premier League club Manchester City and the England national football team and was previously a regular for the England under-21 team....

 following the departure of Shay Given
Shay Given
Séamus John James "Shay" Given is an Irish footballer who plays for Aston Villa and the Republic of Ireland national team as a goalkeeper. He won the PFA's Player of the Year in 2002....

.

Pantilimon was on the bench for the forthcoming game against Fulham
Fulham F.C.
Fulham Football Club is a professional English Premier League club based in southwest London Fulham, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. Founded in 1879, they play in the Premier League, their 11th current season...

. His first start was in the League Cup
Football League Cup
The Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...

 win against holders Birmingham City
Birmingham City F.C.
Birmingham City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, they became Small Heath in 1888, then Birmingham in 1905, finally becoming Birmingham City in 1943.They were relegated at the end of the...

 on 21 September 2011. His next game was on 26 October, against Wolverhampton Wanderers
Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club that represents the city of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands region. They are members of the Premier League, the highest level of English football. The club was founded in 1877 and since 1889 has played at...

 in the League Cup where City fielded a second-string team, although still comprehensively won 5–2. Pantilimon got his next Manchester City start during the League Cup Quarter Finals, where Manchester City were playing Arsenal
Arsenal F.C.
Arsenal Football Club is a professional English Premier League football club based in North London. One of the most successful clubs in English football, it has won 13 First Division and Premier League titles and 10 FA Cups...

. They won 1–0 away at the Emirates Stadium
Emirates Stadium
Ashburton Grove, currently known as the Emirates Stadium, is a UEFA elite football stadium which is home to Arsenal FC, where they moved from Highbury in 2006. It has an current capacity of 60,361, and there have been rumours of an expansion...

.

International career

Pantilimon is a former Romania under-21
Romania national under-21 football team
The Romania national under-21 football team is the national under-21 football team of Romania and is controlled by the Romanian Football Federation. The team competes in the European Under-21 Football Championship, held every two years....

 international. He made his debut for the Senior National side on 19 November 2008, in a friendly against Georgia
Georgia national football team
The Georgia national football team is the national association football team of Georgia and is controlled by the Georgian Football Federation. The Georgian team's first match took place in 1990, while Georgia was still part of the Soviet Union. The team have attempted to qualify for each major...

.

Club statistics

Club Season League Cup Europe Other Total
Apps Apps Apps Apps Apps
Poli Timişoara
FC Politehnica Timişoara
Fotbal Club Politehnica Timişoara is a Romanian football club which was established in 1921 and is currently playing in Romania's second league, Liga II...

2006–07 8 4 2 1 0 0 0 0 10 5
2007–08 5 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 2
2008–09 31 12 5 2 2 0 0 0 38 14
2009–10
2009–10 Liga I
The 2009–10 Liga I season was the ninety-second since its establishment. Unirea Urziceni were the defending champions.- Teams :Farul Constanţa, Otopeni and Gloria Buzău were relegated at the end of the 2008–09 season after finishing in 16th through 18th place...

21 11 0 0 9 4 0 0 30 15
2010–11
2010–11 Liga I
The 2010–11 Liga I was the ninety-third season of the top-level football league of Romania. The season commenced on 23 July 2010 and ended on 21 May 2011. A winter break where no matches were played was held between December 11, 2010 and February 18, 2011...

28 8 1 0 3 0 0 0 32 8
Total 93 37 8 3 14 4 0 0 115 44
Manchester City
Manchester City F.C.
Manchester City Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Manchester. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's , they became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894...

2011–12
2011–12 Premier League
The 2011–12 Premier League is the twentieth season of the Premier League since its establishment in 1992. The 2011–12 fixtures were announced on 17 June 2011 at 9:00 BST. The season began on 13 August 2011 and is due to end on 13 May 2012...

0 0 3 2 0 0 0 0 3 2
Total 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 2 1
Career Total 93 37 9 3 14 4 1 1 117 45


Statistics accurate as of match played 22 September 2011

Personal life

Costel Pantilimon is the hearing child of two deaf parents
Child of deaf adult
A child of a deaf adult, often known by the acronym "CODA", is a person who was raised by a deaf parent or guardian. Many CODAs identify with both deaf and hearing cultures...

.

External links

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