Christian Kouamé
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Kouamé in 2024 | |||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Christian Michael Kouamé Kouakou | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 6 December 1997 | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Abidjan, Ivory Coast | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | |||||||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||||||
Current team | Aris | ||||||||||||||||
| Number | 31 | ||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
| –2015 | Prato | ||||||||||||||||
| 2014–2015 | → Sassuolo (loan) | ||||||||||||||||
| 2016 | → Internazionale (loan) | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 2015–2017 | Prato | 13 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2016–2017 | → Cittadella (loan) | 15 | (2) | ||||||||||||||
| 2017–2018 | Cittadella | 40 | (11) | ||||||||||||||
| 2018–2020 | Genoa | 49 | (9) | ||||||||||||||
| 2020 | → Fiorentina (loan) | 7 | (1) | ||||||||||||||
| 2020–2026 | Fiorentina | 104 | (7) | ||||||||||||||
| 2021–2022 | → Anderlecht (loan) | 31 | (8) | ||||||||||||||
| 2025 | → Empoli (loan) | 8 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2026– | Aris | 4 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| International career‡ | |||||||||||||||||
| 2019 | Ivory Coast U23 | 2 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2021 | Ivory Coast Olympic | 4 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2019– | Ivory Coast | 31 | (3) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 1 March 2026 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 6 September 2024 | |||||||||||||||||
Christian Michael Kouamé Kouakou (born 6 December 1997) is an Ivorian professional footballer who plays as a forward or winger for Super League Greece club Aris and the Ivory Coast national team.
Club career
Kouamé started playing football on the streets of Bingerville, a suburb of Abidjan, Ivory Coast. At the age of 16, he moved with other Ivorian teenagers to Italy to participate in trials with several clubs. Eventually he was signed by Prato and as still a minor at that time, grew up with an Italian foster family he is still close with.[1]
Prato
Kouamé made his professional debut in the Lega Pro for Prato on 6 September 2015 in a game against Pisa.[2]
Genoa
On 13 July 2018, he signed with Genoa for a fee of five million euros. After playing in Serie C and Serie B, he finally discovered Serie A, the top tier of Italian football.[3]
He scored his first goal in his first official match for Genoa, at home against Empoli on 26 August 2018 in Serie A. The match ended in a 2–1 victory for the Rossoblu. He netted his second goal on 10 November 2018, opening the scoring against Napoli, one of the league’s strongest sides. However, Napoli ultimately won the match 2–1, in a game made difficult by heavy rain that left the pitch barely playable.
Kouamé emerged as one of the revelations of the 2018–2019 season alongside his teammate Krzysztof Piątek, with whom he formed an effective partnership in a 3–5–2 system, occupying the two forward positions.
In November 2019, Kouamé suffered a serious injury while playing for the Ivory Coast under-23 team, tearing a ligament in his left knee, which sidelined him for several months.[4]
Fiorentina
In January 2020, Kouamé was announced to be joining Fiorentina on a loan deal until the end of the season, with an obligation to buy.[5] The move was officially completed on 31 January 2020.[6] He made his debut for Fiorentina on 8 July 2020, coming on as a substitute for Dušan Vlahović in a Serie A match against Cagliari Calcio, which ended in a 0–0 draw.
Loan to Anderlecht
On 21 August 2021, he joined Belgian club Anderlecht on a one-year loan from Fiorentina, with no option to buy.[7]
Kouamé made his first appearance for Anderlecht on 29 August 2021 in a league match against Genk. He came on as a substitute as his team lost 1–0. He made an immediate impact in his second match on 12 September against KV Mechelen, scoring his first two goals for the club in a 7–2 victory. On 30 November 2021, he recorded another brace, this time against RFC Seraing in the Belgian Cup. The match ended in a 3–3 draw before Anderlecht won the ensuing penalty shootout.
Loan to Empoli
On 3 February 2025, Kouamé was loaned to Empoli until the end of the season,[8] remaining in Serie A.[9][10] Five days later, he made his debut for the club in a home defeat against AC Milan, coming on as a substitute for Liam Henderson. On 29 March, he scored his first goal for Empoli, securing the 1–1 draw away at Como.[11]
Aris
On 6 January 2026, Kouamé joined Super League Greece club Aris for an undisclosed fee.[12]
International career
Kouamé debuted for the Ivory Coast U23s in a pair of 2019 Africa U-23 Cup of Nations qualification matches in March 2019.[13][14] He was called-up for the final tournament in November 2019,[15] suffering a knee injury.[16]
He made his debut for the Ivory Coast senior national team on 13 October 2019 in a friendly against DR Congo.[17]
Selected by coach Patrice Beaumelle,[18] Kouamé took part in his first international tournament at the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon, where the Ivory Coast were eliminated in the round of 16 by Egypt in a penalty shoot-out.
Kouamé scored his first goal for the Ivory Coast on 3 June 2022, in a match against Zambia. He started the game and contributed to his team’s 3–1 victory.
On 28 December 2023, he was included in the squad of twenty-seven Ivorian players selected by Jean-Louis Gasset to compete in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.[19]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 27 December 2025[20]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | Europe | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Prato | 2015–16 | Lega Pro | 13 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 15 | 0 | ||
| Cittadella (loan) | 2016–17 | Serie B | 15 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | 16 | 2 | |
| Cittadella | 2017–18 | Serie B | 40 | 11 | 4 | 1 | — | 3 | 1 | 47 | 13 | |
| Cittadella total | 55 | 13 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 63 | 15 | ||
| Genoa | 2018–19 | Serie A | 38 | 4 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 39 | 4 | ||
| 2019–20 | 11 | 5 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 12 | 5 | ||||
| Total | 49 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 51 | 9 | ||
| Fiorentina (loan) | 2019–20 | Serie A | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 7 | 1 | ||
| Fiorentina | 2020–21 | Serie A | 33 | 1 | 3 | 1 | — | — | 36 | 2 | ||
| 2022–23 | 28 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 12[b] | 1 | — | 43 | 5 | |||
| 2023–24 | 23 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 12[b] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 38 | 2 | ||
| 2024–25 | 18 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8[c] | 1 | — | 27 | 1 | |||
| 2025–26 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2[c] | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | |||
| Fiorentina total | 111 | 8 | 10 | 1 | 34 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 155 | 11 | ||
| Anderlecht (loan) | 2021–22 | Belgian Pro League | 31 | 8 | 5 | 5 | — | — | 36 | 13 | ||
| Empoli (loan) | 2024–25 | Serie A | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 9 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 267 | 38 | 24 | 7 | 34 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 329 | 48 | ||
- ^ Includes Coppa Italia, Belgian Cup
- ^ a b Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League
- ^ a b Appearances in UEFA Conference League
International
Scores and results list Ivory Coast's tally first.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 June 2022 | Charles Konan Banny Stadium, Yamoussoukro, Ivory Coast | Zambia | 2–0 | 3–1 | 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
| 2 | 24 March 2023 | Stade de la Paix, Bouaké, Ivory Coast | Comoros | 1–0 | 3–1 | |
| 3 | 20 November 2023 | National Stadium, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania | Gambia | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification |
Honours
Fiorentina
- Coppa Italia runner-up: 2022–23[21]
- UEFA Europa Conference League runner-up: 2022–23,[22] 2023–24
Ivory Coast U23
- Africa U-23 Cup of Nations runner-up: 2019[23]
Ivory Coast
References
- ^ "Football KOUAME Christian - Tokyo 2020 Olympics". olympics.com. Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Archived from the original on 22 July 2021. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
- ^ "Game Report by Soccerway". Soccerway. 6 September 2015.
- ^ "Kouamé signed with Genoa". Retrieved 13 July 2018.
- ^ "Genoa (Serie A) : rupture d'un ligament croisé du genou gauche pour la perle Christian Kouamé". lequipe.fr (in French). 17 November 2019..
- ^ "KOUAME COMPLETES FIORENTINA MOVE" (Press release). Fiorentina. 31 January 2020. Archived from the original on 31 January 2020. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
- ^ "Kouamé-Fiorentina, è ufficiale". corrieredellosport.it (in Italian). 31 January 2020..
- ^ "Anderlecht se fait prêter Christian Kouamé (officiel)". Football 365 (in French). 21 August 2021. Retrieved 21 August 2021..
- ^ "Christian Kouamé è un nuovo calciatore azzurro" [Christian Kouamé is a new Empoli footballer] (in Italian). Empoli FC. 3 February 2025. Retrieved 3 February 2025.
- ^ "Kouame ceduto all' Empoli". 3 February 2025. Retrieved 3 February 2025.
- ^ "Christian Kouamé è un nuovo calciatore azzurro". 3 February 2025. Retrieved 3 February 2025.
- ^ "Serie A: Como-Empoli 1-1 - Calcio - Ansa.it". Agenzia ANSA (in Italian). 29 March 2025. Retrieved 29 March 2025.
- ^ "Kouame ceduto all' Aris" (in Italian). ACF Fiorentina. 6 February 2026. Retrieved 6 February 2026.
- ^ Marc, ALLA Jean (14 March 2019). "CAN U23 : Nicolas Tié, Kouamé Christian, Guiagon Parfait… les surprises du chef Kamara". Mondialsport.net.
- ^ "CAF - Competitions - Qualifiers of Total U-23 Africa Cup of Nations - Match Details". www.cafonline.com.
- ^ "Ivory Coast under-23 secure release of striker Kouame". BBC Sport. 1 November 2019.
- ^ "Ivory Coast striker Christian Kouame leaves U-23 Nations Cup with knee injury". BBC Sport. 16 November 2019.
- ^ "Ivory Coast v DR Congo game report". ESPN. 13 October 2019.
- ^ "La Côte d'Ivoire avec Ghislain Konan (Reims) Habib Maïga (Metz) et Sébastien Haller (Ajax) pour la CAN". lequipe.fr. 23 December 2021..
- ^ Ouest-France (28 December 2023). "CAN 2024. La liste officielle de la Côte d'Ivoire pour la Coupe d'Afrique des Nations". Ouest-France.fr (in French). Retrieved 29 December 2023.
- ^ Christian Kouamé at Soccerway
- ^ Mackenzie, Alasdair (24 May 2023). "Fiorentina 1-2 Inter Milan - Lautaro Martinez scores double as the Nerazzurri defend Coppa Italia". Eurosport. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
- ^ Stone, Simon (7 June 2023). "Fiorentina 1–2 West Ham United: Jarrod Bowen goal decides Europa Conference League final". BBC Sport. Retrieved 7 June 2023.
- ^ "CAN U23 "Egypte 2019" : Voici les Eléphants sélectionnés | Fédération Ivoirienne de Football". Archived from the original on 22 October 2020. Retrieved 3 January 2020.
- ^ Stevens, Rob (11 February 2024). "Nigeria 1–2 Ivory Coast". BBC Sport. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
External links
- Profile at the ACF Fiorentina website (in Italian)
- Christian Kouamé at WorldFootball.net
- Christian Kouamé at National-Football-Teams.com