Lacina Traoré

Lacina Traoré

Traoré training with Anzhi Makhachkala in 2012
Personal information
Full name	Lacina Traoré[1]
Date of birth	(1990-08-20) 20 August 1990
Place of birth	Abidjan, Ivory Coast
Height	2.03 m (6 ft 8 in)
Playing position	Striker
Club information
Current club	Everton (on loan from Monaco)
Number	28
Youth career
2006–2007	ASEC Mimosas
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
2007–2008	Stade d'Abidjan	27	(19)
2008–2011	CFR Cluj	44	(14)
2011–2012	Kuban Krasnodar	38	(18)
2012–2014	Anzhi Makhachkala	29	(13)
2014–	Monaco	0	(0)
2014–	→ Everton (loan)	0	(0)
National team‡
2011	Côte d'Ivoire U23	5	(3)
2012–	Côte d'Ivoire	7	(4)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 19:03, 24 January 2014 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 13:28, 16 June 2013 (UTC)

Lacina Traoré (born 20 August 1990) is an Ivorian footballer who plays as a striker for Everton on loan from AS Monaco. He is nicknamed the “Gentle Giant”, due to his 6 ft 8in frame,^[2] Traoré is among the tallest professional footballers.

Club career

Early career

Traoré playing for Kuban Krasnodar.

Traoré began his career with Jean-Marc Guillou's football school ASEC Mimosas, before joining Stade d'Abidjan in 2006.^[3] He played in Abidjan until January 2008, when he joined the Romanian club CFR Cluj.^[4]

CFR Cluj

Traoré made his European debut with CFR, scoring a second goal in the first match of the 2009–10 UEFA Europa League group stage, against Copenhagen. He then scored another goal in the 3–2 loss home against Sparta Prague.^[5]

The following season for Traoré as he continued to be in the first team regular. Lacina Traoré scored his first league goal of the season and set up Cristian Bud in a Astra Giurgiu on 13 August 2010. Traoré received his first red card of his career after a brutal foul in the second half as Cluj lose 3–0 against CSMS Iași on 20 August 2010. On 15 November 2010, he scored his first brace of his career in a 3–0 win over Gloria Bistrița. In the 2010–11 UEFA Champions League group stage, Traoré scored one goal in the 2–1 win against Basel and one goal in the 1–1 draw against Roma (after hitting the post twice in Italy against the same team in the first match), both matches in group phase and home.^[5]

Kuban Krasnodar

Traoré playing for Anzhi in 2012.

In February 2011, Traoré transferred to Kuban Krasnodar in the Russian Premier League for a reported fee of €6 million.^[6] In the opening game of the season on 13 March 2011, Traoré made his debut, coming on as a substitute, in a 2–0 loss against Rubin Kazan. On 2 April 2011, Traoré scored his first league goal of the season and set up a goal for Vladislav Kulik in a 3–1 win over Spartak Moscow. On 10 June 2011, he scored his first brace in Russian Football and set up a goal for Gheorghe Bucur in a 3–2 win over Amkar Perm. By May, Traoré was voted player of the month by the club over his recent good performance.^[7]

Anzhi Makhachkala

Traoré training for the national team before his debut.

On 29 June 2012, Anzhi reported that they had signed Lacina Traoré for an undisclosed fee.^[8] Media reports estimated the transfer fee to be around €18 million.^[9]

Traoré scored his first goal for the club against former club Kuban Krasnodar on 22 July, scoring the winner for Anzhi in the 43' minute.^[10] In Anzhi's first European campaign in nine years, the club played its first match in the qualification round against AZ and scored in a 1–0. He would score another in the second leg and the club would eventually advanced to the Group Stage after a 5–0 win. He scored another goal, in Anzhi's 1–0 defeat of Liverpool on 8 November in a Europa League group stage game.^[11]

Monaco

On 4 January 2014, Traoré signed a four-and-a-half-year contract with Monaco.^[12][13]

Everton

He joined Everton on loan on 24 January 2014 until the end of the 2013–14 Premier League season.^[14]

International career

2011 CAF U-23 Championship

Traoré was involved in Ivory Coast's successful 2011 CAF U-23 Championship qualification campaign. Traoré scored against Liberia U23 in a 4-0 win. He was also named in the Ivory Coast squad for the final stage of the tournament, which acted as CAF's qualification for the Summer Olympics football tournament. Ivory Coast did not fair too well in the competition finishing third in the Group stage behind Egypt and Gabon. Traoré scored a consolation goal against Gabon in a 3-1 loss.^[15]

2013 CAF Africa Cup of Nations

Traoré was selected in the final squad for the Ivorians, playing in two games. He played for 68 minutes versus Tunisia before he was replaced by Didier Drogba and he had a 7 minute cameo versus Nigeria in the quarter final stage which ended the Ivorians' campaign following a 2-1 loss.^{[16] [17]}

Career statistics

As of 24 January 2014^[18]

Honours

CFR Cluj

• Liga I: 2009–10
• Cupa României: 2008–09^[20]
• Supercupa României: 2009, 2010^[21]

References

External links

• Lacina Traoré – FIFA competition record
• Lacina Traoré – UEFA competition record
• Lacina Traoré at National-Football-Teams.com
• Lacina Traoré profile at soccerway.com
• Lacina Traoré profile at romaniansoccer.ro
• Lacina Traoré profile at soccernet.espn.go.com

v t e Ivory Coast squad – 2013 Africa Cup of Nations 1 Barry 2 Koné 3 Boka 4 K. Touré 5 Zokora 6 Romaric 7 Razak 8 Kalou 9 Tioté 10 Gervinho 11 Drogba 12 Bony 13 Ya Konan 14 I. Traoré 15 Gradel 16 Yeboah 17 Tiéné 18 L. Traoré 19 Y. Touré 20 Lolo 21 Eboué 22 Bamba 23 Sangaré Coach: Lamouchi