Damien Duff

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Damien Duff : biography

2 March 1979 –

2011–12 appearances includes match in UEFA Europa League, away to Dnipro on 25 August 2011, which is currently not included on Soccerbase website.

International

Republic of Ireland national team
Year Apps Goals
1998 5 0
1999 8 0
2000 3 0
2001 6 1
2002 11 1
2003 9 4
2004 7 0
2005 8 0
2006 6 1
2007 3 0
2008 6 0
2009 8 0
2010 5 0
2011 9 1
2012 6 0
Total 100 8

Internationals goals

# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 15 August 2001 Lansdowne Road, Dublin, Republic of Ireland Croatia}} 1–0 2–2 International Friendly
2. 11 June 2002 International Stadium Yokohama, Yokohama, Japan Saudi Arabia}} 3–0 3–0 2002 FIFA World Cup
3. 29 March 2003 Mikheil Meskhi Stadium, Tbilisi, Georgia Georgia|1990}} 1–0 2–1 UEFA Euro 2004 qualifying
4. 30 April 2003 Lansdowne Road, Dublin, Republic of Ireland Norway}} 1–0 1–0 International Friendly
5. 6 September 2003 Lansdowne Road, Dublin, Republic of Ireland Russia}} 1–0 1–1 UEFA Euro 2004 qualifying
6. 18 November 2003 Lansdowne Road, Dublin, Republic of Ireland Canada}} 1–0 3–0 International Friendly
7. 1 March 2006 Lansdowne Road, Dublin, Republic of Ireland Sweden}} 1–0 3–0 International Friendly
8. 8 February 2011 Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Republic of Ireland Wales}} 2–0 3–0 2011 Nations Cup

Club career

Blackburn Rovers

Born in Ballyboden, County Dublin, Ireland, Duff joined Blackburn Rovers as a trainee in 1996 after playing for Leicester Celtic, Lourdes Celtic and St. Kevin’s Boys as a schoolboy in Dublin. He made his Blackburn debut at the age of 18 against Leicester City on the final day of the 1996–97 season for which he won the Man of the match award. In his first full season (1997–98) he scored four goals. Blackburn were relegated the following season.

Duff helped Blackburn achieve promotion back to the Premier League in 2001 and then win the League Cup in 2002, beating Tottenham Hotspur 2–1 at the Millennium Stadium. Following the 2002 World Cup, Duff signed a new four-year contract with Rovers, though press reports had suggested that he was to change clubs. Despite injury problems in the 2002–03 season, he finished as Rovers’ top goalscorer with 11 league goals, which helped his team finish 6th and qualify for the UEFA Cup.

Chelsea

In the run up to the 2003–04 season, Chelsea made a series of bids for Duff, with a £17 million offer, eventually triggering a release clause in the player’s contract. Duff chose to move to West London in July. His first season at Chelsea was plagued by injury, and he missed the latter stages of the season, including the UEFA Champions League semi-finals. Duff scored six goals that season. He was instrumental in securing for Chelsea the club’s highest league finish for 49 years as well as the Champions League run, but the season ultimately ended trophyless and with the sacking of manager Claudio Ranieri.