Francis Laurent (born 6 January 1986) is a French

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 last played for

FC Chambly Football Club Chambly Oise, commonly known as Chambly, is a French football club based in Chambly in the Hauts-de-France region. Their home stadium is the Stade des Marais in the town, and they compete in the Championnat National 2, the fourth ...

Career

Laurent started his career in his native France signing for

FC Sochaux FC may refer to: Businesses, organisations, and schools * Fergusson College, a science and arts college in Pune, India * Finncomm Airlines (IATA code) * FranklinCovey company, NYSE stock symbol FC * Frontier Corps, a paramilitary force in Pakis ...

where he made twelve appearances in his first season. He took the decision to pursue his career in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, moving to SV Eintracht, scoring four goals in 14 games. He then went on to sign for

1. FSV Mainz 05 1. Fußball- und Sportverein Mainz 05 e. V., usually shortened to 1. FSV Mainz 05, Mainz 05 () or simply Mainz (), is a German sports club, founded in 1905 and based in Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate. 1. FSV Mainz 05 play in the Bundesliga, the top ...

where his development as a player continued. Laurent signed a one-year contract with

Southend United Southend United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England. As of the 2022–23 season, the team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of English football. Southend are known as ...

on 28 August 2008, following an impressive trial. On 18 October 2008, he came off the bench for his first league appearance and scored the match winner in the 71st minute heading in Peter Clarke's cross. His contract was extended in December to a -year deal. Laurent left Southend at the end of the 2009–10 season. Laurent appeared as a trialist for

Coventry City Coventry City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Coventry, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. The team currently compete in the EFL Championship, Championship, the second tier of the English footbal ...

in a pre-season friendly against

West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pla ...

on 31 July 2010, making an appearance in the 57th minute. Laurent also had a pre season trials with

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games at ...

and

Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Caerdydd) is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1899 as R ...

, during which he scored a hat-trick in a reserve team fixture against

Llanelli Llanelli ("St Elli's Parish"; ) is a market town and the largest community in Carmarthenshire and the preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is located on the Loughor estuary north-west of Swansea and south-east of the county town, Carmarthen. ...

. Laurent returned to France and signed a short-term contract with AFC Compiègne on 1 October 2010. On 14 January 2011, he joined

Northampton Town Northampton Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Northampton, England. The team plays in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1897, the club competed in the Midland ...

on a free transfer until the end of the season, with an option to increase the deal until the end of next season. At the start of the 2011–12 season, Laurent joined

Conference National The National League, known as the Vanarama National League for sponsorship reasons, is the highest level of the National League System and fifth-highest of the overall English football league system. It is the highest league that is semi-profes ...

club Lincoln City in July 2011. On 8 June 2012, he seemed set for

Doxa Doxa (; from verb )Henry Liddell, Liddell, Henry George, and Robert Scott (philologist), Robert Scott. 1940.δοκέω" In ''A Greek–English Lexicon, A Greek-English Lexicon'', edited by Henry Stuart Jones, H. S. Jones and R. McKenzie. Oxford. ...

but instead joined

K.V.K. Tienen Koninklijke Voetbal Klub Tienen-Hageland is a Belgian association football club from the city of Tienen, Flemish Brabant. It is currently playing in the Belgian National Division 1, the third tier of Belgian football. History The club was ...

linking up with his former teammates Jean-Francois Christophe and Jean Arnaud.

References

External links

*
Lincoln City F.C. Official Archive Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Laurent, Francis 1986 births Living people Footballers from Paris French men's footballers Men's association football forwards FC Sochaux-Montbéliard players 1. FSV Mainz 05 players Southend United F.C. players Northampton Town F.C. players Lincoln City F.C. players Doxa Katokopias FC players English Football League players 2. Bundesliga players FC Chambly Oise players