Damien Albert René Perquis is a former professional footballer who last played for Gazélec Ajaccio. A defender, he represented France at youth level, before acquiring Polish citizenship and playing for Poland at senior level. He retired in June 2020, after an 18 year professional career.
Personal life
Perquis was born in Troyes, France. He is of Polish descent by way of his grandmother, Józefa Bierła. His Polish ancestors were from Strzyżewko, in central Poland. He is married, and has two children.
In 2005, he signed for Ligue 1 club AS Saint-Étienne as a free agent. In two seasons, he failed to impress with the club and was loaned to Sochaux. After some initial troubles, he finally found his form and became a regular in the starting line-up.
Sochaux
In 2008, Sochaux bought the player outright. He made a total of 146 appearances for the club, scoring eleven goals, before leaving the club in the summer of 2012.
In the summer of 2012, Perquis joined Real Betis in Spain. He suffered through various injury problems while in Spain, and was limited to 32 league matches in his three years with Betis.
Perquis was released by Betis and signed with Toronto FC of Major League Soccer on 26 January 2015. He mutually agreed to part ways with the club on 12 July 2016.
On 22 July 2016, Perquis signed a two-year deal with Nottingham Forest. On 27 August 2016, he scored his first goal for the club in a 3–1 home win against Leeds United. On 24 July 2017, Perquis and Nottingham Forest agreed to mutually terminate his contract at the club.
Gazélec Ajaccio
In 2017, he moved to Gazélec Ajaccio in the French third tier, where he played for two years.
International career
In December 2008, he declared his interest in playing for the Polish national team. Franciszek Smuda, manager of Poland, confirmed that information in July 2010. In January 2011, it was reported that Perquis had filed his citizenship application papers. However, his family had lost some required documents, and Smuda had to request that the Polish presidentBronislaw Komorowski approve his application. Perquis received Polish citizenship on 1 September 2011. On 6 September 2011, Perquis made his international debut during a 2–2 friendly draw against Germany in Gdańsk. He scored his first goal on 26 May 2012, in a 1–0 friendly win against Slovakia. He was selected to the final squad for the UEFA Euro 2012.
