| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Gaël Kakuta | ||
| Date of birth | 21 June 1991 | ||
| Place of birth | Lille, France | ||
| Height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) | ||
| Playing position | Winger / Forward | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Chelsea | ||
| Number | 44 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1998–1999 | US Lille-Moulins | ||
| 1999–2007 | Lens | ||
| 2007–2009 | Chelsea | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2009– | Chelsea | 6 | (0) |
| 2011 | → Fulham (loan) | 7 | (1) |
| 2011 | → Bolton Wanderers (loan) | 4 | (0) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2006–2007 | France U16 | 12 | (5) |
| 2007–2008 | France U17 | 14 | (3) |
| 2008–2009 | France U18 | 5 | (3) |
| 2009–2010 | France U19 | 13 | (4) |
| 2010–2011 | France U20 | 11 | (0) |
| 2011– | France U21 | 3 | (0) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 16:40, 10 December 2011. † Appearances (Goals). |
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Gaël Kakuta (born 21 June 1991) is a French footballer who plays for Premier League club Chelsea. He is a French youth international and has represented them at under-17, under-18, under-19 and under-20 levels,[1] scoring a total of 15 goals in 48 games throughout all levels.
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Kakuta first started playing football at the age of seven, after seeing his uncle play for the reserve team of Lille. He began his career with local club US Lille-Moulins. In his first match with the club, they lost 17–1, however, the defeat was not enough to put him off.[2] In 1999, he joined Lens as a youth player, and spent five years there.[3] In 2004, Kakuta was selected to attend the Centre de Préformation de Football in nearby Liévin, a training center exclusively for players brought up in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region. He spent two years at the center training there during the weekdays and playing with Lens on the weekends. One of his trainers at the facility was former Polish international Joachim Marx.[4] "The easiest way to describe him is a phenomenon," said Lens scout Marx. "I was director of a French Federation football school when I first worked with him. Between the ages of 13–15 you could see he had everything. "Perhaps one criticism was that he didn't try very hard sometimes in training – because he didn't need to! He could already do everything."
Kakuta moved to Chelsea in 2007 and became a key player for the youth team. He impressed at Chelsea after his first reserve game along side teammate Michael Ballack. The German international told journalists, "Go see the French lad, he is the star". Kakuta soon began to flourish earning the Academy Scholar of the Year award after his first season with Chelsea. He was also voted Academy Player of the Year after finishing as the top scorer in the youth side finishing his first Chelsea season with 12 goals in 24 appearances. This included a hat trick against Port Vale in the FA Youth Cup.[3]
For the 2008–09 season, Kakuta was given the opportunity to train with the first team, though he was still limited to playing with the club's reserve team. In February 2009, Kakuta saw his progress come to a shuddering halt when he suffered a double ankle fracture in a friendly against the Glenn Hoddle Academy. Kakuta missed six months returning to the team in August for a youth game against local side Queens Park Rangers. On 1 September 2009, Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti added Kakuta to his Champions League squad. Kakuta made his much anticipated Premier League debut during a home match against Wolverhampton Wanderers on 21 November 2009 as a substitute replacing Nicolas Anelka on the hour, impressing largely with his tricks, skills, pace and enthusiasm.[5] On 2 December 2009, he came on as a half-time substitute for Joe Cole during the quarter-final match of the League Cup against Blackburn Rovers losing on penalties when he missed the decisive penalty in the shoot-out.
On 8 December 2009, he made his Champions League debut against APOEL. He became the youngest Chelsea player to ever represent the club in the Champions League. He played 73 minutes before being substituted by Fabio Borini. The match ended in a 2–2 draw. Carlo Ancelotti was not satisfied with the team's performance but was very positive about the French youth international: "We had no intensity and no concentration, it was a very bad game from us. The only positive of the night was Gaël Kakuta. He played very well, he showed his fantastic talent. He trains very well everyday and will be the future of Chelsea."[6]
On 11 September 2010, he played his second Premier League game for Chelsea in a derby against West Ham United, coming on as a substitute for Nicolas Anelka in the 76th minute.[7] Kakuta also made an appearance in the Champions League match against MSK Zilina on 15 September 2010.[8] On 22 September, Kakuta started a match in the League Cup and coming off at halftime in a match which ended 4–3 to Newcastle. He then provided the assist for a seventh minute John Terry goal in a 2–0 win over Olympique Marseille.
On 21 December 2010, Kakuta signed a new four-and-a-half year contract with Chelsea, committing himself to the club until 2015.
On 25 January 2011, Kakuta had a medical at Fulham with a view to joining them on loan until the end of the season. Kakuta passed his medical on Wednesday, 26 January 2011 and joined Fulham for the rest of the 10/11 season. He was assigned the number 24 shirt. Since signing for The Cottagers, he has gone on to make 4 Barclays Premier League appearances for them. On 5 March 2011, Kakuta came on for Moussa Dembele on 78 minutes in their 3–2 win over Blackburn Rovers. On 9 April 2011 he started the game against Manchester United at Old Trafford, playing the full 90 minutes in attack alongside Bobby Zamora in a 2–0 defeat.[9] He scored his first goal for Fulham against Sunderland on 30 April 2011.
On 31 August 2011 Kakuta joined Bolton Wanderers on loan until 1 January 2012. He made his debut in the Carling Cup third round tie at Aston Villa on 20 September and scored in a 2–0 win,[10] but it wasn't until 22 October that he made his first league appearance when coming on as a second half substitue for Martin Petrov in a 2-0 home loss to Sunderland. Kakuta's stay was considered an unsuccessful one, where he only made six appearances in total. He went back to Chelsea on 31 December 2011.
On 3 September 2009, it was announced by the FIFA Dispute Resolution Chamber,[11] that Kakuta would be banned for four months and be fined €780,000 due to a breach of contract with his old club Lens in order to sign for Chelsea in the summer of 2007. Chelsea were also banned from signing any players in the next two transfer windows due to their involvement in inducing the player to break his contract at Lens, meaning they would have been unable to buy or sell players until January 2011. Further to this they received a €130,000 fine, payable to RC Lens.[3]
The club stated that they would "mount the strongest appeal possible" and described the behavior of FIFA as "extraordinarily arbitrary decision". Chelsea believed "the sanctions are without precedent to this level and totally disproportionate to the alleged offense and the financial penalty imposed".[12] Chelsea appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, who subsequently lifted the sanctions on the club and the player after ruling that Kakuta did not have a valid contract with Lens, and therefore could not have breached it. Chelsea's transfer ban was suspended later in the same year, and was lifted in February 2010.[13]
Kakuta is a French youth international and has represented his country at all levels. He has scored a total of 15 goals in 45 maches from under-16 level up to the under-20 level.[14] With the under-16 team, he scored on his debut in a 1–1 draw against the Republic of Ireland.[15] In the Tournoi de Val-de-Marne, Kakuta netted two goals in the competition against Italy and Portugal.[16][17] On 15 March 2007, he was one of five players who scored a goal in the team's 5–0 thrashing of Poland in Saint-Aubin-lès-Elbeuf.[18] Kakuta finished the under-16 campaign making 12 appearances and converting five goals.
With the under-17 team, Kakuta was a regular selection of coach Francis Smerecki. He made debut with the team on 4 October 2007 in a 1–1 draw against Switzerland.[19] In qualification for the 2008 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship, Kakuta scored a goal in the team's 6–0 thrashing of Albania in the first qualifying round.[20][21] In the Elite Round, he was clinical in the team's final group stage match against Russia scoring a double in a much-needed 3–1 victory. The win assured the team a place in the UEFA-sanctioned tournament.[22][23] In the tournament, he went scoreless, but contributed to the team's finals appearance converting the 3rd penalty for France in their 4–3 penalty shootout victory over Turkey in the semi-finals.[24] In the final, France were defeated 4–0 by Spain.[25][26] With the under-18 team, Kakuta only made 5 appearances, but scored three goals, which included a brace against the Republic of Ireland in the Tournio de Limoges and the lone goal in the team's 1–0 win over Turkey in a match that was played at the Stade Mayol.[27][28]
Despite the FIFA investigation into his transfer, on 2 September 2009, Kakuta was selected to the under-19 squad, for the first time, to participate in the 2009 edition of the Sendaï Cup, held in Japan. In the opening match against the hosts, he scored two goals. At the 2010 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship, which France hosted, Kakuta scored the opening goal in the team's opening group stage match against the Netherlands. France won the match 4–1.[29] Kakuta also scored against Croatia in the semi-finals. The goal drew the match at 1–1 and France went on to win 2–1.[30] In the final, France came from behind against Spain to win the title 2–1 with Kakuta providing the assist for the winner scored by Alexandre Lacazette.[31] On 2 August 2010, Kakuta was awarded the Golden Player award for his performances at the tournament.[32]
Due to France's victory at the UEFA Under-19 championship, the nation qualified for the 2011 FIFA U-20 World Cup, which merited under-20 team appearances for Kakuta. He made his debut with the team on 7 October 2010 in a friendly match against Portugal, which ended 3–3.[33] Kakuta, subsequently, appeared in three more matches with the team during the 2010–11 campaign and, on 10 June 2011, was named to the 21-man squad to participate in the U-20 World Cup. He made his debut in the competition on 30 July 2011 in the team's 4–1 defeat to the hosts Colombia.[34]
Kakuta lives in Cobham, Surrey with his mother and older brother. Didier Drogba is understood to have made Kakuta his protégé when he first came to England.[2]
| Club Performance | League | Cup | League Cup | Continental | Total | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Club | Season | Apps | Goals | Assists | Apps | Goals | Assists | Apps | Goals | Assists | Apps | Goals | Assists | Apps | Goals | Assists |
| England | Premier League | FA Cup | League Cup1 | Europe | Total | |||||||||||
| Chelsea | 2009–10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 2010–11 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 0 | 2 | |
| Chelsea total | 6 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 16 | 0 | 2 | |
| Fulham (loan) | 2010–11 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 0 |
| Fulham total | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 0 | |
| Bolton Wanderers (loan) | 2011–12 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 0 |
| Bolton Wanderers total | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 0 | |
| Career total | 17 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 29 | 2 | 2 | |
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