Cédric Bakambu

Cédric Bakambu

Bakambu playing for Bursaspor in 2015
Personal information
Full name Cédric Bakambu
Date of birth (1991-04-11) 11 April 1991
Place of birth Vitry-sur-Seine, France
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Playing position Forward
Club information
Current team
 Villarreal
Number 17
Youth career
2000–2006 Ivry
2006–2010 Sochaux
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2010–2014 Sochaux 94 (18)
2014–2015 Bursaspor 27 (13)
2015– Villarreal 37 (14)
National team‡
2009 France U18 5 (1)
2009–2010 France U19 16 (4)
2010–2011 France U20 17 (3)
2015– DR Congo 9 (3)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 23 October 2016.

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 10:53, 05 June 2016 (UTC)

Cédric Bakambu (born 11 April 1991) is a Congolese professional footballer who plays as a forward for Spanish club Villarreal CF.

He made his professional debut for Sochaux in 2010, and played 107 official games for them over five seasons, scoring 21 goals. He then moved to Bursaspor for €1.8 million, finishing as top scorer as his team came runners-up in the Turkish Cup, before signing for Villarreal a year later.

Born in France, he represented that country up to under-20 level, totalling 8 goals in 38 games and winning the 2010 UEFA European Championship for the under-19s. In 2015, he made his senior debut for the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Club career

Sochaux

Born in Vitry-sur-Seine, Val-de-Marne, Bakambu began his career at local US Ivry at the age of 10 before transferring to FC Sochaux-Montbéliard four years later.[1]

On 1 May 2010, Bakambu played in the 2010 Coupe Gambardella Final and scored a goal for his team at the Stade de France. Sochaux, however, lost the match 4–3 on penalties.[2] He had previously scored a double in the team's 4–3 aggregate semi-final victory over FC Metz.[1]

Bakambu made his professional debut on 7 August 2010 in Souchaux's opening match of the Ligue 1 season against Arles-Avignon, appearing as an 83rd-minute substitute for Modibo Maïga in a 2–1 win at the Stade Auguste Bonal.[3] The following month, he signed his first professional contract agreeing to a three-year deal with the club until June 2013.[4]

On 17 September 2011, Bakambu scored his first professional goal, the first equaliser in a 2–2 draw at Lille OSC, eleven minutes after replacing Carlāo.[5] A year and nine days later, as a 66th-minute replacement for King Osanga, he scored twice in a 3–2 extra-time home win over Evian Thonon Gaillard F.C. in the third round of the Coupe de la Ligue.[6]

Bakambu scored seven goals in 31 appearances over the 2013–14 Ligue 1 season, in which Sochaux were relegated; this included two on 21 December in a 2–1 home win over Stade Rennais F.C..[7] Across the campaign, he was placed on the right wing by manager Hervé Renard until he would become sufficiently mentally mature for a centre-forward role.[8] On 23 March, he was sent off for handball in a 2–1 loss at A.S. Saint-Étienne.[9]

Bursaspor

On 1 September 2014, Bakambu left France for the first time, moving on a four-year transfer to Turkey's Bursaspor for a fee of €1.8 million and an annual salary of €800,000.[10] He made his debut in the Süper Lig twelve days later, replacing Ozan İpek in the 55th minute of a 2–1 win at Gençlerbirliği S.K.. His first goals for the "Green Crocodiles" came on 19 October, in either half of a 2–2 draw against Eskişehirspor at the Bursa Atatürk Stadium, and six days later he scored a first professional hat-trick in a 5–0 win at Balıkesirspor.[11] He finished his only league season in Bursa with 13 goals in 27 games.

In the season's domestic cup, Bakambu was the top scorer with eight goals in 12 games as his team reached the final before a 3–2 home loss to Galatasaray. This tally included trebles in a 5–0 win at Mersin İdmanyurdu on 27 January and a 3–0 victory over Fatih Karagümrük S.K. nine days later, both in the group stage.[12] As Galatasaray won the double, Bursaspor faced them in the 2015 Turkish Super Cup on 8 August, with Bakambu playing the whole of the 1–0 loss.

Villarreal

Bakambu in action for Villarreal in December 2015.

On 19 August 2015, Spanish side Villarreal CF announced the signing of Bakambu on a five-year contract.[13] He made his La Liga debut four days later, replacing Léo Baptistão in the 61st minute of a 1–1 draw at Real Betis in the first game of the season; on the 28th he came on for the same player and scored two goals in the closing minutes of the fixture against RCD Espanyol at Estadio El Madrigal, to secure a 3–1 victory for the "Yellow Submarine".[14]

Bakambu played his first game in European competition on 17 September, again as a substitute in a 2–1 loss at SK Rapid Wien in the group stage of the season's UEFA Europa League. On 22 October, he scored his first goals in the tournament, a first-half double in a 4–0 home win over FC Dinamo Minsk;[15] he added another two the following 10 March against Bayer 04 Leverkusen in the first leg of the last 16 (2–0 win, same aggregate).[16] In the quarter-finals, he scored twice in each leg of a 6–3 aggregate win over Sparta Prague.[17] He was one of four strikers named in the competition's Squad of the Season,[18] and his 9 goals put him only one behind the top scorer, Athletic Bilbao's Aritz Aduriz.[19]

International career

Bakambu was a French youth international and has represented the country at both under-18 and under-19 level. He was a part of the team that won the 2010 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship on home soil. On 18 July, he scored twice in a 4–1 opening win over the Netherlands in Caen, and the 2–1 winner against Croatia in the semi-finals nine days later, also at the Stade Michel d'Ornano.[20] He was also part of the team that came fourth at the 2011 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Colombia, opening a 2–0 win over Mali in the last group game in Cali.[21]

In March 2015, he opted to represent DR Congo at senior level.[22] On arrival in Kinshasa he was greeted by fans with banners of him, later reflecting "I hadn't even played a match yet they made banners for me. It's really something else. It was through football that I discovered my country."[23]

He was first called up in June ahead of a friendly against Cameroon on the 9th,[24] and started that match, a 1–1 draw at the Stade Charles Tondreau in Mons, Belgium.[25]

On 26 March the following year, Bakambu scored his first international goal, opening a 2–1 win over Angola at the Stade des Martyrs with a penalty, in qualification for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations.[26] He added two more on 5 June, in a 6–1 win away to Madagascar.[27]

Personal life

Born in France to parents from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Bakambu said "I grew up with both cultures and I am very proud of that. I think it's something that enriches you."[23]

Bakambu and international teammate Dieumerci Mbokani were at Brussels Airport when it was struck by terror attacks in March 2016; both escaped unharmed.[23]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 15 May 2016[28]
Club Season League Cup[nb 1] Europe[nb 2] Total
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Sochaux 2010–11 9020—110
2011–12 21320—233
2012–13 33853—3811
2013–14 31740—357
Total 9418133—10721
Bursaspor 2014–15 2713128—3921
2015–16 —10—10
Total 2713138—4021
Villarreal 2015–16 3412311395022
Total 3412311395022
Career total 14941291613919662
  1. ↑ Includes Coupe de France, Coupe de la Ligue, Turkish Cup, Turkish Super Cup
  2. ↑ Includes UEFA Europa League

International

As of 5 June 2016[29]
DR Congo
YearAppsGoals
201530
201643
Total73

Honours

International
Individual

References

  1. 1 2 "Rencontre avec... Cédric Bakambu : "mon objectif, la Ligue 1"" [Meeting with... Cédric Bakambu: "my objective, Ligue 1"]. Top Mercato (in French). 13 July 2010. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  2. ↑ "Sochaux v. Metz Match Report". French Football Federation (in French). 1 May 2010. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  3. ↑ "Sochaux v. Arles-Avignon Match Report". French Football Federation (in French). 7 August 2010. Retrieved 7 August 2010.
  4. ↑ "Trois signatures professionnelles". FC Sochaux-Montbéliard (in French). 2 September 2010. Retrieved 2 September 2010.
  5. ↑ "Lille accroché par Sochaux" [Lille held by Sochaux] (in French). RTL. 17 September 2011. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  6. ↑ "Sochaux-Evian Thonon : 3-2" (in French). Eurosport. 26 September 2012. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  7. ↑ "BAKAMBU CLINCHES PRECIOUS WIN FOR SOCHAUX". 21 December 2013. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  8. ↑ "RISING STAR: CÉDRIC BAKAMBU". Ligue 1. 29 January 2014. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  9. ↑ Maussion, Florian (24 March 2014). "L'ASSE bat Sochaux et flirte de nouveau avec le podium" (in French). Eurosport. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  10. ↑ "Bakambu Bursaspor'a transfer oldu" [Bakambu transferred to Bursaspor] (in Turkish). Eurosport. 1 September 2014. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  11. ↑ "Balıkesirspor 0 - 5 Bursaspor" (in Turkish). Hurriyet. 25 October 2014. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  12. ↑ "Bursaspor Karagümrük'ü Bakambu'yla Geçti" (in Turkish). Haberler. Eurosport. 5 February 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  13. ↑ "El Villarreal CF ficha a Cédric Bakambu" [Villareal CF signs Cédric Bakambu]. villarealcf.es (in Spanish). Villareal CF. 19 August 2015. Retrieved 19 August 2015.
  14. ↑ "Cedric Bakambu scores twice to lift Villarreal over Espanyol". Sports Illustrated. 28 August 2015. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
  15. ↑ "Bakambu at double as Villarreal beat Dinamo". UEFA. 22 October 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  16. ↑ "Villarreal 2 Bayer Leverkusen 0: Bakambu at the double". FourFourTwo. 10 March 2016. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  17. ↑ Lancaster, Rob (14 April 2016). "Sparta Prague 2-4 Villarreal (agg 3-6): Bakambu shines again as Yellow Submarine sail through". Goal.com. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
  18. 1 2 "UEFA Europa League Squad of the Season". UEFA. 20 May 2016.
  19. ↑ "Statistics". UEFA. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
  20. ↑ "Hosts France celebrate Caen success". UEFA. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  21. ↑ "U20: Cameroon through as Mali out". BBC Sport. 6 August 2011. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  22. ↑ Cédric Bakambu. "L'heure est Venue de Répondre Présent à ma Première Sélection chez Mes Léopards de la RDC" [The time has come to answer "Present" to my first call for my Leopards of the DRC] (in French). Twitter.
  23. 1 2 3 "What makes Villarreal's Cédric Bakambu special". UEFA. 12 April 2016. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
  24. ↑ "RDC : CÉDRIC BAKAMBU REJOINT LES LÉOPARDS" [DRC: CÉDRIC BAKAMBU JOINS LES LÉOPARDS] (in French). Africa Top Sports. 7 June 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  25. ↑ Kaffa, David (9 June 2015). "Eliminatoires CAN 2017: RDC et Cameroun se neutralisent en amical" [2017 ACN qualifiers: DRC and Cameroon cancel each other out in friendly] (in French). RFI. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  26. ↑ "CAN 2017 : La RD Congo se relance contre l'Angola" [2017 ACN: DR Congo get back on track again against Angola] (in French). Afrik-Foot. 26 March 2016. Retrieved 8 April 2016.
  27. ↑ "CAN 2017 : l'équipe de RD Congo est presqu'au Gabon" [ACN 2017: the DR Congo team is nearly in Gabon] (in French). RFI. 5 June 2016. Retrieved 5 June 2016.
  28. ↑ "Congo DR - C. Bakambu". soccerway.com. Soccerway. Retrieved 19 August 2015.
  29. ↑ Cédric Bakambu at National-Football-Teams.com
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