Robert Jonquet was a French former football
defenderWithin the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to prevent the opposition from attacking....
. He played the majority of his professional career for the club Stade de Reims, winning five
French championshipLigue 1 , is the French professional league for association football clubs. It is the country's primary football competition and serves as the top division of the French football league system. Ligue 1 is one of two divisions making up the Ligue de Football Professionnel, the other being Ligue 2....
s and appearing in two
European CupThe 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...
finals. He is considered as one of the best central defender of his time.
Nicknamed "The Hero of
HighburyArsenal Stadium was a football stadium in Highbury, North London, which was the home ground of Arsenal Football Club between 6 September 1913 and 7 May 2006...
" after an outstanding individual performance against
EnglandThe England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
in London in 1951, Jonquet was integral to the
French national teamsThe France national football team represents the nation of France in international football. It is fielded by the French Football Federation , the governing body of football in France, and competes as a member of UEFA, which encompasses the countries of Europe...
of the 1950s, playing at the
World CupThe FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
finals of
1954The 1954 FIFA World Cup, the fifth staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in Switzerland from 16 June to 4 July. Switzerland was chosen as hosts in July 1946. The tournament set a number of all-time records for goal-scoring, including the highest average goals scored per game...
and
1958The 1958 FIFA World Cup, the sixth staging of the World Cup, was hosted by Sweden from 8 June to 29 June. The tournament was won by Brazil, who beat Sweden 5–2 in the final for their first title. To date, this marks the only occasion that a World Cup staged in Europe was not won by a European...
.
During his youth, Jonquet played in the surrounding countryside of southern Paris in
Châtenay-MalabryChâtenay-Malabry is a commune in the southwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located 10.8 km from the center of Paris.The commune includes the valley la vallée aux loups with green forests and pretty houses including the estate of French writer Chateaubriand. It also includes the Butte...
, and afterwards for the
Société Sportive Voltaire.
