Jobi McAnuff

Jobi McAnuff

Personal information
Full name	Joel Joshua Frederick McAnuff
Height	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Position(s)	Midfielder
Team information
Current team	Watford
Number	11
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 26 November 2006

Joel Joshua Frederick "Jobi" McAnuff (born November 9 1981 in Edmonton, England) is an Anglo-Jamaican professional footballer currently playing for Watford, in the Championship.

Club career

Early career

McAnuff started his career in the 2001-02 season with Division One side Wimbledon, where he played 104 games and scored 15 goals. He stayed there until Wimbledon's last ever season, 2003-04 (they would later become the Milton Keynes Dons), when he was snapped up in the winter transfer window by West Ham United. On February 2 2004, he started his short West Ham United career only playing 14 games and scoring 1 goal. He then left in the summer to join Cardiff City on August 12, 2004 where he stayed until the end of the 2004-05 season. He played 48 games and scored 3 goals and picked up numerous player of the month awards

Crystal Palace

McAnuff then moved to Crystal Palace in the summer of 2005. In his first season at Selhurst Park, he played 43 games and scored eightgoals and became a firm fans' favourite. When he scored, KC and the Sunshine Band's Give It Up could be heard around the ground with the words "Baby, give it up" replaced by "Jobi McAnuff".

His performances in the Championship understandably led to interest from a higher league and in the summer of 2006 he was linked with moves to Watford, Bolton Wanderers and Charlton Athletic, the latter managed by his former boss at Palace Iain Dowie. However, it was announced during the summer 2006 transfer window that he would stay at Crystal Palace, and play for the Eagles under new boss Peter Taylor.

Watford

After a less successful 2006/2007 campaign where he suffered several long-term injuries, McAnuff moved to a smaller club Watford in June 2007 in a deal worth an initial £1.75 million.

McAnuff endured a slow start to his Watford career and found himself out of the side for the early part of the season due to the [loan] arrival of young Middlesbrough winger Adam Johnson. After Johnson's loan ended prematurely in November Jobi was given another chance in the side and has since scored two important goals (the winner away at Preston and a last minute beauty to save a point at home to Cardiff) and has been one of Watford's star players in 2008. McAnuff recently produced his best performance in a Watford shirt against Hull in the first leg of the play-off semi finals, with his pace and dribbling skills causing the Hull defense constant preblems. Despite Jobi's fantastic display, some debatable refereeing decisions and poor defending cost The Hornets and they lost the match 2-0. They there then beaten 4-1 by Hull City at the KC stadium in the 2nd leg, deservedly sending them to Wembley.

International career

McAnuff has only one cap for Jamaica which he picked up in a friendly against Nigeria, in 2002. He is now retired from international football.

External links

• Jobi McAnuff profile at watfordfc.co.uk
• Jobi McAnuff at Soccerbase
• The Official Jobi McAnuff Site
• Highlights of Jobi's 2005-06 season