This is an accepted version of this page Marouane Chamakh (French: [maʁwan ʃamak]; Arabic: مروان الشماخ; born 10 January 1984) is a former professional footballer who played as a forward.

He is described as a prototypical target man and is noted for his "link-up play", "tall stature" and "excellent heading ability".

[6][7] Chamakh, who was born and raised in France, chose to play international football for Morocco due to his Moroccan parents.

Chamakh eventually decided to sign with Bordeaux due to the club's infrastructure and training facilities and also because of the close proximity to his family.

He appeared in 17 matches and scored six goals as the team finished first in their group, thus earning promotion to the Championnat de France amateur.

He spent the first half of the 2002–03 campaign playing in the fourth division, but following the winter break, was called up to the senior team by manager Élie Baup.

Chamakh made his professional debut on 19 January 2003 in the team's Coupe de la Ligue match against Metz.

In the 2003–04 season, he was promoted to the senior team permanently by new manager Michel Pavon and made his first professional league start on 1 November 2003 in a 1–0 win over Marseille.

[17] Upon returning from his one-game suspension, Chamakh developed into a regular starter for the club, scoring goals in consecutive matches against Metz and Montpellier.

[20] In September 2004, Chamakh scored goals in back-to-back matches against Bastia and Derby de la Garonne rivals Toulouse.

His playing time up front was further hampered by the arrival of striker Fernando Cavenaghi, who had a prolific season scoring 15 goals in only 23 appearances.

[28] Following the winter break, Blanc decided to use both Chamakh and Cavenaghi in the attack with influential playmaker Yoann Gourcuff acting in support.

It was the former who developed a consistent partnership with Gourcuff, and Chamakh responded by scoring eight league goals in the second half of the season.

He began the season claiming his fifth trophy on 25 July 2009 as Bordeaux won the Trophée des Champions in a 2–0 victory over Guingamp.

In the same match, he won a penalty when he was fouled by Ian Evatt, which Andrey Arshavin subsequently converted in a 6–0 win for Arsenal.

[54] Following the international break, Chamakh continued his solid form, scoring the winning goal in a 2–1 victory over Birmingham City.

[55] Three days later, he scored his eighth goal in nine Champions League matches against Ukrainian club Shakhtar Donetsk in a 5–1 rout.

[62] On 20 February, Chamakh played the entire match in Arsenal's 1–1 draw with Leyton Orient in the FA Cup.

[65] On 30 October 2012, Chamakh made his first start since January, scoring two goals to help Arsenal recover from a 4–0 disadvantage and defeat Reading 7–5 in extra time and advance to the quarter-finals of the League Cup.

[70] On 10 August 2013, Ian Holloway announced the signing of Chamakh on a one-year deal from Arsenal to Crystal Palace.

[72] On 9 November 2013, Chamakh was given a standing ovation by the home fans at Selhurst Park whilst being substituted, despite not scoring, impressing with his work rate and attitude against Everton.

On 14 December 2013, he scored his third goal in three matches against Chelsea in a 2–1 away loss; he received a standing ovation for "working his socks off literally" when replaced on the 88th minute.

[80] He made his debut for the club on 19 October as a second-half substitute in place of Rickie Lambert during a 1–1 draw with Sheffield Wednesday.

Prior to representing Morocco, he played for the under-19 team of France and made his debut on 12 February 2003 in a friendly match against the Czech Republic.

In 2008, Chamakh was selected to participate in his third consecutive Africa Cup of Nations and was held scoreless in the competition as Morocco were again eliminated in the group stage.

[91] After going scoreless for six months at international level, on 4 June 2011, Chamakh scored the second goal in a 4–0 win over Algeria in qualification for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations.

Chamakh was excluded from Morocco's squad for the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, with coach Rachid Taoussi explaining that the striker had not been playing enough club football to be considered.

[92] Chamakh was born in Tonneins, a small town near the Garonne River, to Moroccan parents, and was raised in the nearby commune of Aiguillon.

His father, El Mostafa Chamakh, was a former footballer in Morocco and played for club Difaâ Aïn Sbaâ in Casablanca.

[10] While pursuing his career as a professional footballer, Chamakh was equally adept off the field earning good grades in school.