Costel Fane Pantilimon (; born 1 February 1987) is a Romanian professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who plays as a

goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...

. He is currently a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

. Pantilimon began his senior career at Politehnica Timișoara. In 2011, he signed for Manchester City on an initial loan, serving as a back-up to

Joe Hart Charles Joseph John Hart (born 19 April 1987) known professionally simply as Joe Hart is an English professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Scottish Premiership club Celtic. He began his career at his hometown club Shrewsbury T ...

. Pantilimon was first choice for City in the 2013–14 League Cup, which they went on to win. He then stayed in the

Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Fo ...

with Sunderland, spending one-and-a-half seasons there before a transfer to

Watford Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, and ...

in 2016. Pantilimon was an international for

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...

from 2008 to 2017, and was selected for

UEFA Euro 2016 The 2016 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2016 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2016) or simply Euro 2016, was the 15th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe ...

Club career

Early career

Born in

Bacău Bacău ( , , ; hu, Bákó; la, Bacovia) is the main city in Bacău County, Romania. At the 2016 national estimation it had a population of 196,883, making it the 12th largest city in Romania. The city is situated in the historical region of ...

, Pantilimon started his career at Aerostar Bacău and got his share of limelight at the Romania national under-19 team before transferring to Politehnica Timișoara on 1 February 2006, his 19th birthday.

Politehnica Timișoara

Initially, Pantilimon was Timișoara's second-choice goalkeeper, behind Marius Popa. In May 2008, however, the owner of the club,

Marian Iancu Marian Alexandru Iancu (born 11 July 1965 in Bucharest) is a Romanian businessman, president of oil company Balkan Petroleum (UK) Limited, and was the president of Romanian football club FC Politehnica Timișoara. After living abroad until the a ...

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

Dinamo București A dynamo is a magnetic device originally used as an electric generator. Dynamo or Dinamo may also refer to: Places * Dinamo (Moscow Metro), a station of the Moscow Metro, Moscow, Russia * Dinamo (Yekaterinburg Metro), a station of the Yekaterin ...

, in March 2007. In a match against Ceahlăul on 17 October 2009, Pantilimon captained the team for the first time, since

Dan Alexa Dan Alexa (born 28 October 1979) is a Romanian professional football manager and former player. As a defensive midfielder, he spent 16 years as a professional player. After he ended his playing career, Alexa became a manager. His first job was ...

, Gigel Bucur and Arman Karamyan and his brother Artavazd were all on the bench. Pantilimon was part of the Timișoara team that defeated

UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay ...

winners

Shakhtar Donetsk Football Club Shakhtar Donetsk ( uk, Футбольний клуб «Шахтар» Донецьк , short nickname "miners") is a Ukrainian professional football club from the city of Donetsk. In 2014, due to the War in Donbass, the club was f ...

in the qualifying rounds of the 2009–10 Champions League campaign. He played all 90 minutes of each leg.

Manchester City

On 11 August 2011, Pantilimon joined Manchester City on a one-year

loan In finance, a loan is the lending of money by one or more individuals, organizations, or other entities to other individuals, organizations, etc. The recipient (i.e., the borrower) incurs a debt and is usually liable to pay interest on that ...

deal from Politehnica Timișoara to act as cover for

following the departure of

Shay Given Séamus John James Given (born 20 April 1976) is an Irish former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. With 134 caps, he is the second-highest capped Republic of Ireland player. Given started his career at Celtic, however he neve ...

. Pantilimon's first start was a

League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...

win against holders

Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. Sin ...

on 21 September 2011. His next match was on 26 October, against

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club's ...

in the same competition, where City fielded a second-string team, although still comprehensively won 5–2. Pantilimon got his next Manchester City start during the 1–0 League Cup quarter-final win against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. In the Arsenal match, he was named Man of the Match, making two saves in the first half. He started the third round of the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

against Manchester United at the City of Manchester Stadium on 8 January 2012, saving

Wayne Rooney Wayne Mark Rooney (born 24 October 1985) is an English professional football manager and former player, who is the manager of Major League Soccer club D.C. United in the United States. He spent much of his playing career as a forward while ...

's penalty but was unable to save the follow up; Manchester City lost the game 3–2. Pantilimon's loan deal was made permanent for an undisclosed fee. He was contracted to City until 2016. During the

2012–13 FA Cup The 2012–13 FA Cup was the 132nd season of the FA Cup, the main domestic cup competition in English football, and the oldest football knock-out competition in the world. It was sponsored by Budweiser for a second consecutive season, thus the com ...

, he kept four clean sheets in a row and managed an outstanding performance against

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...

in the semi-final, conceding just one goal in five matches. In response to this performance, then City manager

Roberto Mancini Roberto Mancini (; born 27 November 1964) is an Italian football manager and former player. He is currently the manager of the Italy national team. As a player, Mancini operated as a deep-lying forward, and was best known for his time at Sa ...

immediately promised that the Romanian would keep his place when the team return to

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 2002 to 2003. The stadium ...

to face

Wigan Athletic Wigan Athletic Football Club () is an English professional association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1932, ...

on 11 May. However, he was a substitute in the

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: * Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of con ...

, with Joe Hart starting; Manchester City lost to Wigan 1–0. It was later revealed that Mancini had promised on the eve of the

FA Cup Final The FA Cup Final, commonly referred to in England as just the Cup Final, is the last match in the Football Association Challenge Cup. It has regularly been one of the most attended domestic football events in the world, with an official atten ...

that the Romanian would play, but then deputed the goalkeeping coach on match day morning to say there had been a change of plan. Pantilimon was given his first start of the 2013–14 season for City in the Football League Cup third-round match at home to Wigan on 24 September 2013, which City won 5–0; manager

Manuel Pellegrini Manuel Lúis Pellegrini Ripamonti (; ; born 16 September 1953) is a Chilean professional football manager and former player who is the manager of Real Betis. As a coach, he has managed teams in Spain, England, Argentina, Chile, China and Ecuador. ...

praised him for keeping a clean sheet. Five weeks later, Pantilimon was also selected to start in the next League Cup match away to Newcastle United on 30 October; once again, he conceded no goals, as City won 2–0 and progressed to the last eight of the competition. Three days later, he made his

debut at home to

Norwich City Norwich City Football Club (also known as The Canaries or The Yellows) is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. The club competes in the EFL Championship following their relegation from the Premier League in the 20 ...

, keeping his third clean sheet in a row in an emphatic 7–0 victory. On 7 November 2013, he started in Champions League game against

CSKA Moscow CSKA Moscow (russian: ЦСКА Москва) is a Russian sports club based in Moscow. It was created in 1911 in the Russian Empire on base of OLLS (Skiing Society, founded 1901). Later, during the Soviet era, it was a central piece of the big So ...

that ended in City winning 5–2. He started his second Premier League game on 10 November 2013 away against Sunderland that ended in a 0–1 defeat. On 2 March 2014, Pantilimon started for Manchester City in the 2014 League Cup Final at Wembley Stadium. The team won 3–1 against Sunderland with goals from

Yaya Touré Gnégnéri Yaya Touré (born 13 May 1983) is an Ivorian professional football coach and former player who played as a midfielder. He is an academy coach for Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur. Touré aspired to be a striker during his you ...

Samir Nasri Samir Nasri (born 26 June 1987) is a French former professional footballer. He primarily played as an attacking midfielder and a winger, although he had also been deployed in central midfield. Nasri was known for his dribbling, ball control ...

and

Jesús Navas Jesús Navas González (; born 21 November 1985) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a right winger or a right-back for La Liga club Sevilla. He has spent the vast majority of his career with Sevilla, playing 605 official matches ...

. Overall, Pantilimon made seven appearances during the

2013–14 Premier League The 2013–14 Premier League (known as the Barclays Premier League for sponsorship reasons) was the 22nd season of the Premier League, the top-flight English professional league for men's football clubs, and the 115th season of top-flight Engli ...

season, keeping three clean sheets as Manchester City won a second league title in three years. He was also the team's first-choice goalkeeper for their League Cup and

matches.

Sunderland

On 16 June 2014, Pantilimon joined Sunderland on a free transfer from Manchester City. On 27 August, he made his first appearance for the club in the second round of the

second round against Birmingham City, keeping a clean sheet in a 3–0 win at St Andrew's. Pantilimon started the season as back-up for

Vito Mannone Vito Mannone (born 2 March 1988) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Ligue 1 club Lorient. He has represented Italy at U21 level. Previously Mannone played for Arsenal, Barnsley, Hull City, Sunderland, Reading ...

, but after poor performances in an 8–0 loss to

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

and a 2–0 loss to Arsenal, the Italian was subsequently dropped and Pantilimon made his Premier League debut for Sunderland in a 3–1 win at

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building ...

on 3 November 2014, thus becoming the club's first choice keeper for the rest of the season. He started the next season as first choice before losing his place to Mannone, eventually dropping to third choice behind Jordan Pickford.

Watford

On 19 January 2016, Pantilimon joined Premier League rivals

on a three-and-a-half-year deal, for an undisclosed fee. He made his first appearance for the Hornets on 30 January in their FA Cup Fourth Round victory at

Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and have been playing their home games at the City Ground, on the banks of the River Tren ...

. He also started the game in the Fifth Round against

Leeds United Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire in England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of England's football league system, and plays its home matches at Elland Road ...

. He kept clean sheets in both games. He made his Premier League debut for the Hornets in a forgettable 6–1 defeat at

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...

on 6 November 2016, after

Heurelho Gomes Heurelho da Silva Gomes (born 15 February 1981) is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He played for Premier League clubs Tottenham Hotspur and Watford, having previously made a name for himself at Dutch club ...

was injured during the first half. On 1 September 2017, Pantilimon joined

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men' ...

club

Deportivo La Coruña ''Deportivo'' (Spanish, 'sporting') may refer to: * Deportivo de La Coruña, commonly known as simply Deportivo, a Spanish football club * Déportivo, a French rock band * Deportivo (Mexicable) Mexicable is a aerial lift line in Ecatepec de Mo ...

on a one-year loan from Watford, lasting until 20 May 2018. The long-term absence of first-choice keeper Rubén, who suffered a hand injury in training, prompted the signing. Pantilimon made his debut for the

Galicians Galicians ( gl, galegos, es, gallegos, link=no) are a Celtic-Romance ethnic group from Spain that is closely related to the Portuguese people and has its historic homeland is Galicia, in the north-west of the Iberian Peninsula. Two Romance la ...

against

Real Betis Real Betis Balompié, known as Real Betis () or just Betis, is a Spanish professional football club based in Seville in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded in 1907, it plays in La Liga. It holds home games at the Estadio Benito Vill ...

on 16 September. The following week, Pantilimon picked up his first clean sheet, coming in a 1–0 win over Alavés.

Nottingham Forest

On 31 January 2018, Pantilimon left Spain to return to England and sign on loan for EFL Championship side Nottingham Forest until the end of the 2017–18 season. He made his full début away at Fulham on 3 February. He made his home début against

Hull City Hull City Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England, that compete in the . They have played home games at the MKM Stadium since moving from Boothferry Park in 2002. The club's t ...

the following week, saving a penalty from Jon Toral. He made the

English Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engl ...

's Team of the Week after producing a clean sheet at

Burton Albion Burton Albion Football Club is a professional association football club in the town of Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The club moved its home grou ...

when Forest were reduced to ten men for much of the match on 17 February. On 3 July 2018, Pantilimon signed a three-year deal with Forest. On 30 January 2020, Pantilimon was loaned to

Cypriot First Division The Cypriot First Division ( el, Πρωτάθλημα Α΄ Κατηγορίας) is the top tier football league competition in Cyprus, run by the Cyprus Football Association. Since February 2016, it is sponsored by Cyta and is thus officially ...

side Omonia for the remainder of the season.

Denizlispor

On 4 September 2020, Pantilimon joined Turkish

Süper Lig The Süper Lig (, ''Super League''), officially known as Spor Toto Süper Lig for sponsorship reasons, is a Turkish professional league for association football clubs. It is the top-flight of the Turkish football league system and is run by the ...

side

Denizlispor Denizlispor, due to current sponsorship Altaş Denizlispor, is a Turkish sports club based in Denizli. It is known by its distinct green and black colors. The club's branches include football, volleyball, basketball, table tennis, and gymnastics. ...

following a mutual termination of his contract at Nottingham Forest.

International career

Algérie-Roumanie - 20140604 - Equipe de Roumanie

Pantilimon is a former Romania under-21 international. He made his debut for the senior

Romania national team Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...

on 19 November 2008, in a friendly against

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. On 31 May 2016, Pantilimon was included in the final 23-man squad for

, but did not appear in all matches in this tournament; Romanian coach

Anghel Iordănescu Anghel Iordănescu (; born 4 May 1950), also known as "Tata Puiu", is a Romanian former footballer and former manager of the Romania national team, who played as a forward. In 2007, Iordănescu retired from football, and the following Februar ...

used Ciprian Tătărușanu as the nation's first-choice.

Personal life

Pantilimon is a hearing child of two deaf parents. He married Andreea Berbece in 2013.

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours

Politehnica Timisoara *

Liga I The Liga I (; ''First League''), also spelled as Liga 1, is a Romanian professional league for men's association football clubs. Currently Sponsor (commercial), sponsored by betting company Superbet, it is officially known as the SuperLiga. It ...

: runner-up 2008–09,

2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. ...

Liga II The Liga 2, most often spelled as Liga II, is the second level of the Romanian football league system. The league changed its name from Divizia B just before the start of the 2006–07. It is currently sponsored by Casa Pariurilor, a betting c ...

: 2011–12 * Cupa Romaniei: runner-up 2006–07, 2008–09 Manchester City *

: 2013–14 * Football League Cup: 2013–14 * FA Community Shield:

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

Deportivo La Coruna *

Teresa Herrera Trophy The Teresa Herrera Trophy ( es, Trofeo Teresa Herrera) is an annual pre-season football tournament hosted by Deportivo La Coruña at the Estadio Riazor. Established in 1946, it is the third oldest professional football tournament in Spain (behind ...

: 2017, runner-up 2018 Omonia Nikosia *

: 2019–20

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Pantilimon, Costel 1987 births Living people Sportspeople from Bacău Romanian footballers Romanian expatriate footballers Romania youth international footballers Romania under-21 international footballers Romania international footballers Association football goalkeepers CS Aerostar Bacău players FC Politehnica Timișoara players Manchester City F.C. players Sunderland A.F.C. players Watford F.C. players Deportivo de La Coruña players Nottingham Forest F.C. players AC Omonia players Denizlispor footballers Liga I players Premier League players La Liga players Cypriot First Division players Süper Lig players Expatriate footballers in England Expatriate footballers in Spain Expatriate footballers in Cyprus Expatriate footballers in Turkey Romanian expatriate sportspeople in England Romanian expatriate sportspeople in Spain Romanian expatriate sportspeople in Cyprus Romanian expatriate sportspeople in Turkey UEFA Euro 2016 players