Didier Otokoré (born 26 March 1969 in

Gagnoa Gagnoa is a city in south-central Ivory Coast. It is the seat of both Gôh-Djiboua District and Gôh Region. It is also the seat of and a sub-prefecture of Gagnoa Department. Gagnoa is also a commune. In the 2014 census, the city had a population ...

) is a retired Ivorian

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who played mostly as an

attacking midfielder A midfielder is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As #Cent ...

. Best known for his spell with

AJ Auxerre Association de la Jeunesse Auxerroise (), commonly known as AJ Auxerre or simply Auxerre (), is a French football club based in the commune of Auxerre in Burgundy. The club was founded in 1905 and currently plays in Ligue 1, the first division o ...

, he spent most of his career in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Club career

Otokoré was signed at just 16 by

, going on to finish his football grooming in the club's youth system, under first-team coach

Guy Roux Guy Marcel Roux (; born 18 October 1938) is a French former football player and manager known for being in charge of AJ Auxerre for more than 40 years and for leading the team to national and worldwide prominence. Managerial career A native of C ...

. Never an undisputed starter during his six years in the main squad (tops 23

Ligue 1 Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...

matches in 1989–90, mostly as a substitute), he did manage to be relatively used. Also during that season, but in the

UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...

, he arguably had his most memorable performance for the club, scoring twice in a 3–1 win at

NK Dinamo Zagreb Građanski nogometni klub Dinamo Zagreb ( en, Dinamo Zagreb Citizens' Football Club, link=yes, italics=yes), commonly referred to as GNK Dinamo Zagreb or simply Dinamo Zagreb (), is a Croatian professional football club based in Zagreb. Dinamo ...

, after a 0–1 home loss. Otokoré then split 1993–94 with

FC Sochaux-Montbéliard Football Club Sochaux-Montbéliard (; commonly referred to as FCSM or simply Sochaux) is a French association football club based in the city of Montbéliard. The club was founded in 1928 and currently plays in Ligue 2, the second tier of Frenc ...

and

AS Cannes Association Sportive de Cannes Football (; commonly referred to as AS Cannes or simply Cannes) is a French association football club based in Cannes. The club was formed 1902 as a sports club and currently plays in the Championnat National 3, ...

, returning two years later to Auxerre, without any impact. After a couple of seasons in the second level with

CS Louhans-Cuiseaux Louhans-Cuiseaux Football Club is a football club located in Louhans, France. History The club was founded in 1970 as ''Club Sportif Louhans Cuiseaux 71'' after the merger of ''Club Sportif Louhannais'' (founded in 1916) and ''Club de Cuiseaux' ...

, he took his game to the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

, then returned in 2000 to

, with amateurs FC Bourg-Peronnas, retiring in 2001.

International career

After he had already lived for the requested years in France, Otokoré was eligible to represent

internationally, being summoned for its '' Espoirs'' in February 1988; however, a judicial battle between both Football Federations ensued, and the player ended up playing for the

Ivory Coast Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire, officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital is Yamoussoukro, in the centre of the country, while its largest city and economic centre is ...

; in his first match, at the

1988 African Cup of Nations The 1988 African Cup of Nations was the 16th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the soccer championship of Africa ( CAF). It was hosted by Morocco, who replaced original host Zambia. Just like in 1986, the field of eight teams was split into tw ...

, on March 16, against

Zaire Zaire (, ), officially the Republic of Zaire (french: République du Zaïre, link=no, ), was a Congolese state from 1971 to 1997 in Central Africa that was previously and is now again known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Zaire was, ...

, he played 60 minutes, being immediately sent home afterwards. Otokoré also represented his nation at the 1992 edition.

Personal life

Otokoré is married to Safia Otokoré, a French politician.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Otokore, Didier 1969 births Living people Ivorian footballers Men's association football midfielders Stade d'Abidjan players Ligue 1 players Ligue 2 players AJ Auxerre players FC Sochaux-Montbéliard players AS Cannes players En Avant Guingamp players Louhans-Cuiseaux FC players Al Wasl F.C. players Fujairah FC players Ivory Coast men's international footballers 1988 African Cup of Nations players 1992 African Cup of Nations players Ivorian expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in France Football Bourg-en-Bresse Péronnas 01 players UAE Pro League players Expatriate footballers in the United Arab Emirates Africa Cup of Nations-winning players People from Gagnoa UAE First Division League players