 Gourcuff with Rennes in 2016 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Yoann Miguel Gourcuff[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 11 July 1986[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Ploemeur, France | ||
| Height | 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)[3] | ||
| Position(s) | Attacking midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1992–2001 | Lorient | ||
| 2001–2003 | Rennes | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2003–2006 | Rennes | 66 | (6) |
| 2006–2009 | AC Milan | 36 | (2) |
| 2008–2009 | → Bordeaux (loan) | 37 | (12) |
| 2009–2010 | Bordeaux | 32 | (6) |
| 2010–2015 | Lyon | 90 | (14) |
| 2015–2018 | Rennes | 49 | (7) |
| 2018–2019 | Dijon | 8 | (0) |
| Total | 318 | (47) | |
| International career | |||
| 2004–2005 | France U19 | 17 | (7) |
| 2006–2008 | France U21 | 18 | (4) |
| 2008–2013 | France | 31 | (4) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Yoann Miguel Gourcuff (born 11 July 1986) is a French former professional footballer who played mainly as an attacking midfielder. He could also be utilized as a withdrawn striker; he was described as a "playmaker of real quality", "an accomplished passer of the ball".[4][5] He was widely characterized as one of the most promising French youth talents of his generation.[6] His talent, playing style, tenacity on the pitch, technical skills, as well as precocious ability have drawn comparisons to Zinedine Zidane.[7][8][9]
Yoann Gourcuff is the son of Christian Gourcuff. In 2001, he followed in his father's footsteps and joined Rennes. After progressing through the youth ranks and making the senior team, Gourcuff quickly became a fan favorite among supporters and his individual achievements soon led to interest from clubs abroad, which resulted in a move to Italian club AC Milan. he achieved many club honours despite not being able to break into the starting eleven, which resulted in the player being sent on loan to Ligue 1 club Bordeaux. Following a successful season, in which Bordeaux captured the league and league cup double and Gourcuff attained several individual honours, he signed with the club permanently. Gourcuff was named Ligue 1 Player of the Year 2008–09 and the French Player of the Year for the 2009 calendar year.
In August 2010, he joined Olympique Lyonnais on a five-year contract. His five years at Lyon were characterized by persistent injury problems. He returned to his former club Rennes in 2015, where would he play for three seasons before signing for Dijon, the final club of his career. Having terminated his contract in January 2019, Gourcuff's retirement was confirmed by his father in October 2020.
Gourcuff was a French international, winning 31 caps. Prior to playing at senior level, he played on the under-19 team that won the 2005 UEFA European Under-19 Championship. Gourcuff made his senior national team debut in August 2008.[10] He scored his first international goal two months later against Romania.[11] Gourcuff made his first major tournament appearance for France at the 2010 FIFA World Cup. After joining the national team, he was inserted into the playmaker role, a position that was vacated and never filled following the retirement of Zidane in 2006.[12]
- ^ "FIFA World Cup South Africa 2010: List of Players: France" (PDF). FIFA. 12 June 2010. p. 10. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 October 2019.
- ^ "Gourcuff: Yoann Miguel Gourcuff: Player". BDFutbol. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
- ^ Gourcuff, Yoann. "Player Profile". Olympique Lyonnais. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
- ^ "Yoann Gourcuff: The new Zidane?". The Independent. UK. 27 January 2009. Retrieved 12 August 2009.
- ^ "Yoann Gourcuff ESPN Profile". ESPN. Archived from the original on 28 June 2011. Retrieved 28 February 2011.
- ^ "Ginola: Gourcuff is the best in a generation". ESPN. 19 October 2010. Archived from the original on 23 October 2012. Retrieved 21 October 2010.
- ^ "Yoann Gourcuff au Trophée Unfp". YouTube. 24 May 2009. Archived from the original on 25 June 2014. Retrieved 12 August 2009.
- ^ Jerome Pugmire (13 January 2014). "France's 'next Zidane' Gourcuff chasing past glory". The Washington Times. Retrieved 7 September 2016.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Tom Williams (9 July 2015). "What became of Yoann Gourcuff, the supposed successor to Zinedine Zidane?". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 September 2016.
- ^ "GOURCUFF Yoann". French Football Federation (in French). 12 August 2009. Archived from the original on 14 February 2011. Retrieved 12 August 2009.
- ^ "France v. Romania Match Report". Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 11 October 2008. Archived from the original on 14 October 2008. Retrieved 31 May 2010.
- ^ "TACTICAL OVERVIEW: France". 360 Football News. 8 June 2010. Archived from the original on 18 February 2016. Retrieved 11 June 2010.