Steed Claude Malbranque (born 6 January 1980) is a French former professional footballer. Malbranque started his professional career with Olympique Lyonnais, before moving to England in 2001, where he had spells with Fulham, Tottenham Hotspur and Sunderland. He returned to France in 2011 for a short spell with Saint-Étienne. In 2012, he joined Lyon for the second time. He principally played as a winger or attacking midfielder. During his second spell at Lyon he also played as a central midfielder. Club career Lyon He was a trainee at Lyon youth academy between 1995 and 1997, during which time he won the Under-15 championship twice, the Under-17 Cup and the reserve team championship. He also captained the French Under-18 side. He made his professional debut for the club in a 1–1 draw against Montpellier on 21 February 1998 aged 18. He went on to play a total of 96 games for the club, which included 12 appearances and two goals in the Champions League and seven appearances in the UEFA Cup. Malbranque was an unused substitute in the final as Lyon won the 2001 French Coupe de la Ligue. During his time at the club, there was a chance to join English club Arsenal after impressing in a Champions League tie at Highbury and the following tie, a 3–0 victory over Bayern Munich at Stade de Gerland. He rejected the move as he felt he was not ready to play in the Premier League. Fulham He eventually made his move to the Premier League in 2001, joining Fulham for a fee believed to be £4.5 million, making his debut in a 3–2 defeat at Old Trafford against Manchester United. He went on to score 10 goals in his first season. As a result, making an impressive display in his first season at Fulham, Malbranque was described by Christian Damiano, who has kept track of Malbranque's development since he was 13-year-old, as "the number 10 position that Zidane excels at Fulham". He became a firm favourite during his five years at the club, playing a total of 211 games and scoring 44 goals, including six appearances and three goals in Fulham's short-lived UEFA Cup campaign in the 2002–03 season. He was the top scorer that season with 13 goals that helped save Fulham from relegation. He was offered the chance to play for Belgium towards the end of the campaign, having not