Lukasz Fabianski Biography

Name :
Lukasz Fabianski

Born :
April 18, 1985

Birth place :
Kostrzyn Nad Odra,
Poland

Height :
6' 3'' (1.91m)

Weight :
83 kg

Position :
Goalkeeper

Squad Number :
21

Previous Club(s) :
Lech Poznan
Legia Warsaw

Joined Arsenal :
July 26, 2007

2007/08
Lukasz signed for the Club from Legia Warsaw on a long-term contract in May 2007 and upon completing his move to the Gunners said: "I am delighted to be joining Arsenal. They are a great club with many world-class players. Arsenal is one of the biggest and best clubs in Europe and I hope that I can help the team win trophies in the future."

The Polish stopper set his sights on becoming Arsène Wenger’s first choice, though in his first season in England had to be content with a place in the Carling Cup squad. He made his debut against Newcastle in that competition in a September win and then captained the side in only his second game in the next round against Sheffield United.

He helped the Gunners reach the Semi-Finals but they were beaten 7-3 on aggregate by Tottenham at that stage. Despite that he went on to make his Premier League debut against Derby in April and Lukasz was satisfied with his league debut. "I thought I dealt with it OK. My coming for crosses was OK, my punching was OK and my catching was OK,” he said. “The boss spoke to me after the game and he said 'well done’."

In his first season in north London Lukasz made a total of eight starts as he continued his development.

2008/09
Lukasz played understudy to Manuel Almunia but he started the season in fine form. In the closing minutes of the Carling Cup tie against Wigan he produced a stunning double-stop to secure a second successive clean sheet in the competition. He pushed aside a shot from Daniel de Ridder and then showed incredible reflexes and agility to spring up and tip Amr Zaki's close-range effort onto the underside of the crossbar. It was one of the best saves Emirates Stadium had ever seen.

He quickly established himself as an able deputy to Almunia, making 18 first-team appearances during the season across all competitions with nine clean sheets to his name.

In June Lukasz signed a new long-term contract and after putting pen to paper said: “I’m very happy to sign my new contract with Arsenal, it’s a big motivation for me to keep working hard and shows that the Club believes in me. I’ll be doing everything I can to repay that belief by helping Arsenal to win trophies in the coming years.”

2009/10
Lukasz was thrust into the spotlight after some high-profile mistakes during the 2009/10 campaign.

But the Polish keeper showed his worth as his confidence grew with an extended run in the side at the end of the season.

Surgery to cure a knee problem kept Lukasz out until October, meaning he was unable to capitalise on Manuel Almunia's absence in the autumn. He returned for the Carling Cup clash with Liverpool and also played against Manchester City in the same competition before impressing in a Champions League clash at Olympiacos.

But Lukasz received criticism for his role in Stoke's first goal as Arsenal lost 3-1 in the FA Cup and further errors followed at Porto and Wigan in the months to come.

But Arsène Wenger reiterated his belief that Lukasz will be a fine keeper and the manager put his faith in him for the final few games of the season. The Pole responded with clean sheets against Manchester City and Fulham to end an up-and-down campaign on a high note.