Laurent Franco Ciman (born 5 August 1985) is a Belgian former professional
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 as a
defender. He currently serves as an assistant coach for
CF Montréal
CF Montréal is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Montréal, Québec, Canada. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) in the Eastern Conference. Founded in 1992 as the Montreal Impact (french: Impact de Montréal, links=no), ...
in
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...
.
Club career
Charleroi
Ciman began his career in the youth system of
Charleroi
Charleroi ( , , ; wa, Tchålerwè ) is a city and a municipality of Wallonia, located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. By 1 January 2008, the total population of Charleroi was 201,593. and made his first team debut in 2004. His play with Charleroi attracted the interest of the top Belgian clubs.
Club Brugge
Ciman was transferred from
Charleroi
Charleroi ( , , ; wa, Tchålerwè ) is a city and a municipality of Wallonia, located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. By 1 January 2008, the total population of Charleroi was 201,593. to
Club Brugge
(), known simply as Club Brugge (in English also: ''Club Bruges''), is a Belgian professional football club based in Bruges, Belgium. It was founded in 1891 and its home ground is the Jan Breydel Stadium, which has a capacity of 29,062. in June 2008 and signed a three-year contract for the Belgian team, he was loaned to
Kortrijk
Kortrijk ( , ; vls, Kortryk or ''Kortrik''; french: Courtrai ; la, Cortoriacum), sometimes known in English as Courtrai or Courtray ( ), is a Belgian City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Regio ...
for the 2009–10 season.
Standard Liège
On 16 June 2010, he joined
Standard Liège
Royal Standard de Liège, commonly referred to as Standard Liège (; nl, Standard Luik ; german: Standard Lüttich ) or simply Standard in Belgium, is a Belgian professional football club based in the city of Liège.
They are one of the most ...
on a four-year contract. Upon joining Standard, Ciman established him as a starter and helped the club capture the
2010–11 Belgian Cup. He made 194 appearances for the club, scoring eight goals, before leaving the club in the winter of 2015.
Montreal Impact
Ciman signed a three-year deal with
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...
club
Montreal Impact on 22 January 2015. In his first season with the team, he was named
MLS Defender of the Year Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in th ...
. In July 2016, he was included in the roster for the
2016 MLS All-Star Game
The 2016 Major League Soccer All-Star Game, the 21st annual Major League Soccer All-Star Game, took place on July 28, 2016 (7:30 p.m. EDT, 4:30 p.m. local time) at Avaya Stadium, the home of the San Jose Earthquakes. The game was te ...
.
LAFC
On 12 December 2017, Ciman was traded to MLS expansion side
Los Angeles FC
Los Angeles Football Club, commonly referred to as LAFC, is an American professional Association football team based in Los Angeles. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The club ...
in exchange for
Raheem Edwards
Raheem Nathaniel Anfernee Edwards (born July 17, 1995) is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a left winger or wing-back for LA Galaxy in Major League Soccer.
Club career League1 Ontario
In 2014, Edwards joined the new League1 ...
and
Jukka Raitala.
Dijon
On 28 August 2018, Ciman joined
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 ...
club
Dijon FCO
Dijon Football Côte d'Or (; literally "Dijon Football Gold Coast"), commonly referred to as Dijon FCO or simply as Dijon, is a French football club based in Dijon. The club was founded in 1998 as a result of a merger between two local clubs in ...
on a two-year contract. The transfer fee paid to LAFC was reported as $500,000. Just 4 months later, Ciman had his contract at Dijon terminated by mutual consent.
Toronto FC
On 27 December 2018, he returned to MLS, signing with
Toronto FC
Toronto Football Club (commonly known as Toronto FC or TFC) is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matches at BMO ...
. Following the 2020 season, Toronto chose not to renew his contract.
International career
Ciman was a member of the Belgian squad which came fourth at the
2008 Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nati ...
.
Ciman also played for the
National U21 side and was called up by national coach
Georges Leekens
Georges Leekens (born 18 May 1949) is a Belgian football manager and former player. During his managerial career, he was in charge of four national teams: the Belgian, Tunisian, Algerian and Hungarian national football teams. He also managed ...
for the friendly match against
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
on 19 May 2010, during which he made his debut.
On 13 May 2014, Ciman was named in Belgium's squad for the
2014 World Cup
The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil from 12 June to 13 July 2014, after the country was awarded the hosting righ ...
. He was unused in the tournament, in which Belgium reached the quarter-finals. In the next major tournament,
UEFA Euro 2016
The 2016 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2016 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2016) or simply Euro 2016, was the 15th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe o ...
he was also part of the squad. This time, he played in the opening game of the competition, a 2–0 defeat to
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
.
In May 2018, he was named as an alternate for Belgium’s
squad
In military terminology, a squad is among the smallest of military organizations and is led by a non-commissioned officer. NATO and US doctrine define a squad as an organization "larger than a team, but smaller than a section." while US Army do ...
for the
2018 World Cup
The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awarded the hosting righ ...
in
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
.
Coaching career
On February 24, 2021
CF Montréal
CF Montréal is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Montréal, Québec, Canada. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) in the Eastern Conference. Founded in 1992 as the Montreal Impact (french: Impact de Montréal, links=no), ...
announced Ciman as a new assistant coach for the club.
Personal
Ciman is married to Diana and has two children, a daughter named Nina and a son named Achille. His daughter has autism, and he moved to Montreal in 2015, as the city had better supports for his daughter than his native Belgium. He continued to live in the city even while playing for Toronto. In 2020, Ciman obtained Canadian Permanent Residency status, allowing him to be counted as a domestic player for MLS purposes.
Career statistics
International
Source:
:''Belgium score listed first, score column indicates score after each Ciman goal.''
Honours
Club Brugge
*
Bruges Matins
The Matins of Bruges ( nl, Brugse Metten) was the nocturnal massacre of the French garrison in Bruges and their supporters, a political faction in favour of French rule, on 18 May 1302 by the members of the local Flemish militia. It has been ...
: 2009
Standard Liège
*
Belgian Cup
The Belgian Cup (french: link=no, Coupe de Belgique; nl, Beker van België []; german: link=no, Belgischer Fußballpokal) is the main Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in Belgium, run by the Belgia ...
: 2010-11 Belgian Cup, 2010–11
Montreal Impact
*
CONCACAF Champions League
The CONCACAF Champions League, known officially as the Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League for sponsorship reasons, is an annual continental club football competition organized by CONCACAF. The tournament is contested by clubs from North Ameri ...
: Runner-up
2014–15
Toronto FC
*
MLS Eastern Conference:
2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
*
MLS Cup
The MLS Cup is the annual championship game of Major League Soccer (MLS) and the culmination of the MLS Cup Playoffs. The game is held in November and pits the winner of the Eastern Conference Final against the winner of the Western Conference ...
: Runner-up
2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
Individual
*
MLS All-Star
The Major League Soccer All-Star Game is an annual Association football, soccer game held by Major League Soccer featuring selected players from the league against an international club or selected players from Liga MX. MLS initially adopted a tr ...
:
2015
File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...
,
2016
File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...
,
2018
File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...
*
MLS Defender of the Year Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in th ...
:
2015
File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...
References
External links
Guardian Football*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ciman, Laurent
1985 births
Living people
People from Farciennes
Footballers from Hainaut (province)
Belgian footballers
Association football defenders
R. Charleroi S.C. players
Club Brugge KV players
K.V. Kortrijk players
Standard Liège players
CF Montréal players
Los Angeles FC players
Dijon FCO players
Toronto FC players
Belgian Pro League players
Major League Soccer players
Major League Soccer All-Stars
Ligue 1 players
Belgium under-21 international footballers
Olympic footballers of Belgium
Belgium international footballers
Footballers at the 2008 Summer Olympics
2014 FIFA World Cup players
UEFA Euro 2016 players
Belgian expatriate footballers
Belgian expatriate sportspeople in Canada
Belgian expatriate sportspeople in the United States
Belgian expatriate sportspeople in France
Expatriate soccer players in Canada
Expatriate soccer players in the United States
Expatriate footballers in France
Association football coaches
CF Montréal non-playing staff