Gbato Seloh Samuel

Gbato Seloh Samuel
Samuel in training with FC Seoul in 2025
Personal information
Date of birth (2006-08-01) 1 August 2006
Place of birth Seoul, South Korea
Height 1.74 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position Forward
Team information
Current team
FC Seoul
Number 28
Youth career
2019–2024 FC Seoul
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2025– FC Seoul 3 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Gbato Seloh Samuel (Korean: 바또 사무엘; 1 August 2006) is a South Korean professional footballer who plays as a forward for FC Seoul.

Early life

Samuel was born on 1 August 2006 in Seoul, South Korea, to Ivorian refugee parents.[1] Growing up, he regarded Ivory Coast international Didier Drogba as his football idol and attended Osan Middle School in South Korea and Osan High School in South Korea.[2]

Career

As a youth player, joined South Korean the youth academy of South Korean side FC Seoul and played for the club's under-15 team before being promoted to their under-18 team in 2022. Ahead of the 2025 season, he started his senior career with them as their first homegrown foreign player.[2]

Style of play

Samuel plays as a forward and is left-footed. South Korean news website Insight wrote in 2025 that he " has been in the spotlight since his youth for his outstanding athletic ability and explosive speed".[3]

References

  1. ^ "'제2의 드록바' 꿈꾸는 19살 코트디부아르 소년 사무엘 ('이웃집 찰스')" [Samuel, 19-year-old Ivorian boy who dreams of being the 'next Drogba' ('Neighbor Charles')] (in Korean). Nate. 9 July 2024. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  2. ^ a b "'Korea is my home': Two young footballers and questions of nation and identity". Korea JoongAng Daily. 12 February 2025. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  3. ^ "이번에 FC서울에 '콜업'된 축구 유망주 바또 사무엘의 유창한 한국말 수준 (+소개 영상)" [The level of fluency in Korean of Bato Samuel, a promising soccer player who was recently called up to FC Seoul (+ introduction video)] (in Korean). Insight. 3 January 2025. Retrieved 16 February 2025.