Lacina Traoré facts for kids
Traoré with CSKA Moscow in 2016
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Lacina Emeghara Traoré | |||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 20 May 1990 | |||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Abidjan, Ivory Coast | |||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) | |||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Forward | |||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||
| 2006–2007 | ASEC Mimosas | |||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||
| 2007–2008 | Stade d'Abidjan | 47 | (18) | |||||||||||||
| 2008–2011 | CFR Cluj | 44 | (14) | |||||||||||||
| 2011–2012 | Kuban Krasnodar | 38 | (18) | |||||||||||||
| 2012–2014 | Anzhi Makhachkala | 29 | (13) | |||||||||||||
| 2014–2018 | Monaco | 25 | (4) | |||||||||||||
| 2014 | → Everton (loan) | 1 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2015 | → Monaco II | 1 | (1) | |||||||||||||
| 2016 | → CSKA Moscow (loan) | 14 | (5) | |||||||||||||
| 2017 | → Sporting Gijón (loan) | 8 | (2) | |||||||||||||
| 2017–2018 | → Amiens (loan) | 18 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2019 | Újpest | 9 | (3) | |||||||||||||
| 2019–2020 | CFR Cluj | 11 | (2) | |||||||||||||
| 2020–2021 | Bandırmaspor | 14 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2022 | Varzim | 5 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| Total | 264 | (80) | ||||||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||||
| 2011 | Ivory Coast U23 | 5 | (3) | |||||||||||||
| 2012–2015 | Ivory Coast | 13 | (4) | |||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | ||||||||||||||||
Lacina Emeghara Traoré (born May 20, 1990) is a former professional footballer from Ivory Coast. He played as a forward, which means he was a goal-scorer. People called him "The Big Tree" because he is very tall, standing at 1.98 meters (about 6 feet 6 inches). This makes him one of the tallest football players ever!
Club Career
Early Career
Lacina Traoré grew up in Abidjan, a city in Ivory Coast. He started playing football at a special school called ASEC Mimosas. In 2006, he joined another club, Stade d'Abidjan. He played there until January 2008. Then, he moved to Europe to play for a Romanian club called CFR Cluj.
Playing for CFR Cluj
Traoré started his European football journey with CFR. He scored his first goal in a big European game against Copenhagen. He also scored against Sparta Prague.
In the next season, Traoré became a regular player for CFR Cluj. He scored his first league goal of the season on August 13, 2010. He also scored two goals in one game against Gloria Bistrița. In the 2010–11 UEFA Champions League group stage, he scored against Basel and Roma.
Moving to Kuban Krasnodar
In February 2011, Traoré moved to Russia to play for Kuban Krasnodar. The club paid about €6 million for him. He played his first game on March 13, 2011.
On April 2, 2011, Traoré scored his first goal for Kuban Krasnodar. He said he scored it for the fans. He even scored two goals in one game against Amkar Perm. Fans voted him player of the month several times. In his first season, he played 39 games and scored 18 goals. People even compared him to another great Ivorian striker, Seydou Doumbia.
Joining Anzhi Makhachkala
On June 29, 2012, Traoré signed with Anzhi. The transfer fee was around €18 million. He was excited to help the club succeed.
He scored his first goal for Anzhi against his old team, Kuban Krasnodar. Anzhi also played in a European competition called the Europa League. Traoré scored against AZ and even against famous English club Liverpool. In his first season at Anzhi, he scored 17 goals in 38 games. A Russian newspaper called him Anzhi's best player that season.
In his second season, he started well by scoring against Lokomotiv Moscow. However, the club had financial problems. Anzhi decided to sell many of its players, including Traoré. He also had some injuries during this time.
Time at Monaco
On January 4, 2014, Traoré signed a four-and-a-half-year contract with Ligue 1 team Monaco in France. The transfer cost around $14 million.
Loan to Everton
After joining Monaco, Traoré was loaned to English club Everton on January 24, 2014. He scored his first goal for Everton in his very first game. It was an FA Cup match against Swansea City. Sadly, he got a hamstring injury soon after. This injury kept him out for most of the season. He only played one league game.
Back at Monaco
After his loan at Everton, Traoré returned to Monaco. The new manager, Leonardo Jardim, gave him a chance. But he got another hamstring injury, which made him miss the start of the season. His manager still believed in him. Traoré finally played for Monaco on October 17, 2014. He scored his first goal for Monaco on November 9.
On January 3, 2016, Traoré had an amazing game in the Coupe de France. He scored four goals for Monaco in a 10–2 win! He was even sent off (given a red card) at half-time, but still managed to score so many goals.
Loan to CSKA Moscow
On July 13, 2016, Traoré went back to Russia. He joined CSKA Moscow on loan for the 2016–17 season.
Loan to Sporting Gijón
On January 31, 2017, he moved to Spain. He signed a loan deal with Sporting Gijón until the end of the season. He made his debut in La Liga on February 5, 2017. He scored a goal in his first game for them, even though his team lost.
Loan to Amiens
On August 31, 2017, Traoré joined another French club, Amiens SC, on a season-long loan.
Later Career
In February 2019, Traoré moved to Hungary to play for Újpest FC. Later that year, on August 15, 2019, he returned to his old club, CFR Cluj, in Romania. He also played for Bandırmaspor in Turkey and Varzim in Portugal.
International Career
Lacina Traoré also played for his country, Ivory Coast.
Playing for Ivory Coast U23
Traoré helped the Ivory Coast Under-23 team in their journey to qualify for the 2012 Summer Olympics. He scored a goal against Liberia U23. He also scored against Gabon in the main tournament.
Playing for the Senior Team
Traoré was chosen to play for the main Ivory Coast national team in the 2013 CAF Africa Cup of Nations. He played in two games during this tournament. He played for 68 minutes against Tunisia. He also played for 7 minutes against Nigeria in the quarter-finals. Ivory Coast lost that game and was out of the tournament.
He was considered for the 2014 FIFA World Cup squad. However, the national team manager decided not to include him in the final team.
Personal Life
Lacina Traoré is a Muslim. He comes from a big family, with 16 brothers! Two of his brothers also became footballers. One brother, Messa, played in Romania. Another brother, Lajo Ménéné, also started his European career at CFR Cluj, just like Lacina.
Achievements
Lacina Traoré has won several important titles with his clubs and country.
Club
CFR Cluj
- Liga I: 2009–10, 2019–20
- Cupa României: 2008–09, 2009–10
- Supercupa României: 2009, 2010
International
Ivory Coast
- Africa Cup of Nations: 2015
Images for kids
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Traoré playing for Kuban Krasnodar
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Traoré playing for Anzhi in 2012
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Traoré training for the national team
See also
In Spanish: Lacina Traoré para niños
