Putting the focus on those players who have had long and well-travelled careers in the game, but only made a brief stop off at Molineux.
This week, we feature the career of a French striker who also turned out for Celtic, West Ham United and Middlesbrough having come through at Arsenal – Jeremie Aliadiere.
Before Wolves
A graduate of the esteemed Clairefontaine academy, having grown up on the outskirts of Paris, Jeremie Aliadiere made the move from France to England when he was just 16 years old as he signed for Arsenal.
Having spent two years in the Gunners academy, the striker progressed into the first-team, making his debut in a 2-0 win over Grimsby Town in the 2001/02 League Cup before his Premier League bow arrived against Fulham later that year, as he replaced fellow Frenchman Thierry Henry in a 4-1 victory. The appearance was his only league outing that season, meaning he was not eligible for a medal as Arsenal claimed the top flight title.
His first senior goal followed in the third game of the subsequent campaign, as he came off the bench late on in Arsenal’s 5-2 win over West Bromwich Albion at Highbury to put the game beyond doubt for his side. He would have to wait for another five years before he would net in the Premier League again as he didn’t appear again in red and white during the remainder of the 2002/03 season.
The Frenchman was a key part of Arsenal’s League Cup run the following year, as he scored against Rotherham United before notching a brace against Wolves. He added a fourth goal in the cup when he found the net against West Brom before his run ended again future club Boro in the semi-finals. Following 10 outings in the Premier League, which earnt him a winners’ medal, Aliadiere also enjoyed an FA Cup debt in the semi-finals against Manchester United and an assist on his first Champions League appearance in a 5-1 win over Inter Milan at the San Siro.
After injury affected his 2004/05 season, Aliadiere joined Celtic the following year as he looked for regular first-team football having been sat behind Henry and Dennis Bergkamp in the Arsenal pecking order – although his time at Celtic Park saw him make just two substitute appearances against Artmedia Bratislava in the Champions League. Just a month later, his year-long loan was picked up by West Ham United, but injury affected his time across London, with the striker making eight appearances, but starting just once.
Wolves career
Aliadiere moved to a third club during 2005/06 after West Ham terminated his loan, as the Frenchman moved up to the Black Country to join Championship Wolves until the end of the season, with the club offering him his first run of games in his senior career.
After joining Glenn Hoddle’s side in February, the striker played a part in every match for the rest of the campaign, coming off the bench for the final 10 minutes of Wolves’ 1-0 win away at Burnley, before helping the Old Gold to another single-goal win as a sub, having been fouled in the box against Ipswich Town at Molineux for Kenny Miller to dispatch the spotkick.
Aliadiere made it three Wolves wins from his first three outings for the club, when he started in a front three alongside Carl Cort and Miller away at Hull City, and the striker opened the scoring inside 30 minutes which set up a 3-2 victory. He went on to start the next 11 games for Wolves, scoring his second goal for the club in a 1-1 draw at Molineux against Watford.
Wolves picked up 23 points from his 14 games for the club, as the team pushed for a place in the Championship play-offs, but despite losing just 11 times that season, a season of 19 draws saw the team miss out as they ended up in seventh position.
After Wolves
Aliadiere returned to Arsenal after his four months at Molineux, but was again mainly used in the League Cup, scoring another brace in the competition as the Gunners knocked out West Brom. He would also find the net in the quarter-final win over Liverpool and in the second leg of the semi-final against north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur. But Arsenal would ultimately lost the final to Chelsea, with Aliadiere having played the opening 80 minutes.
His Arsenal career would eventually end in the summer of 2007, with the forward having played just over 50 times for the club, and scoring nine goals in all competitions, as he joined Gareth Southgate’s Middlesbrough in June 2007, being one of seven summer signings by the then-Premier League side, which also included current Wolves head coach Gary O’Neil.
He would score his first Premier League goal since 2002 in October to help Boro draw level at Old Trafford against Man United, before his team would go on to lose the game 4-1, but he would end the season by netting in the final day 8-1 victory over Manchester City.
His time at the Riverside was blighted by injury and after Aliadiere scored just twice in 29 top flight games the following season, Middlesbrough were relegated, before he followed that up with four goals in the Championship. After leaving the club following the end of his contract, he played a reserve game for West Ham, in which he injured his knee ligaments, although Boro offered the striker use of their training facilities to overcome the injury.
After a move to Blackpool collapsed, Aliadiere started training with Arsenal while he looked for a new club, which eventually arrived in the summer of 2011, as he returned to France and joined Lorient – a move which was set up by his Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger. Although he underwhelmed in his first year in Ligue 1, the striker scored 15 times in 31 league outings the following season.
Two years in Qatar would follow for the Frenchman, before he returned to Lorient to play out the last season of his career, as he scored his 65th and final goal in a 1-0 win over Lille. Aliadiere’s 17-year career came to an end in 2018, having made 299 professional appearances.
This article originally featured in Wolves' official 2023/24 matchday programme. Last season's programmes are still available to purchase online through retailers Curtis Sports.
