M'Baye Hamady Niang (born 19 December 1994) is a 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 plays as a

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

for club

Auxerre Auxerre ( , ) is the capital of the Yonne department and the fourth-largest city in Burgundy. Auxerre's population today is about 35,000; the urban area (''aire d'attraction'') comprises roughly 113,000 inhabitants. Residents of Auxerre are r ...

. Born in France, he plays for the Senegal national team. He made his professional debut at the age of 16 in a league match for

Caen Caen (, ; nrf, Kaem) is a commune in northwestern France. It is the prefecture of the department of Calvados. The city proper has 105,512 inhabitants (), while its functional urban area has 470,000,Mario Balotelli Mario Balotelli Barwuah (; ''né'' Barwuah; born 12 August 1990) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Swiss Super League club Sion. Balotelli started his professional football career in 2005 at Lumezzane, before ...

. Internationally, he represented France at under-16, under-17 and under-21 levels, before opting to represent his ancestral Senegal internationally in October 2017.

Club career

Early career

Niang was born in

Meulan Meulan-en-Yvelines (; formerly just ''Meulan'') is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. It hosted part of the sailing events for the 1900 Summer Olympics held in neighboring Paris, and would d ...

, a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

in the

Yvelines Yvelines () is a department in the western part of the Île-de-France region in Northern France. In 2019, it had a population of 1,448,207.department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

of the

Île-de-France , timezone1 = CET , utc_offset1 = +01:00 , timezone1_DST = CEST , utc_offset1_DST = +02:00 , blank_name_sec1 = Gross regional product , blank_info_sec1 = Ranked 1st , bla ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

, to

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 � ...

ese parents. He began his football career at the age of seven playing for local club Basse-Seine Les Mureaux. Niang spent two years at the club before being spotted by amateur club

Poissy Poissy () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. It is located in the western suburbs of Paris, from the centre of Paris. Inhabitants are called ''Pisciacais'' in French. Poissy is one of ...

. After hearing of the player through

word of mouth Word of mouth, or ''viva voce'', is the passing of information from person to person using oral communication, which could be as simple as telling someone the time of day. Storytelling is a common form of word-of-mouth communication where one pe ...

, Niang was spotted by professional club

Caen Caen (, ; nrf, Kaem) is a commune in northwestern France. It is the prefecture of the department of Calvados. The city proper has 105,512 inhabitants (), while its functional urban area has 470,000, Glaize later stated that before scouting the player, he was informed that Niang was possibly a ''présu'', a player claiming to be younger than his actual date of birth. The claim was made primarily because of Niang's height, which stood at when he was 13 years old. Despite the claim, the scouts continued to pursue Niang, who was also being linked to other professional clubs in France, such as

Lille Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Pref ...

and

Paris Saint-Germain Paris Saint-Germain Football Club (), commonly referred to as Paris Saint-Germain, Paris, Paris SG or simply PSG is a professional football club based in Paris, France. They compete in Ligue 1, the top division of French football. As Fr ...

Caen

Niang joined Caen's youth academy at the age of 13 after excelling at a trial, in which he scored a

hat-trick A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wic ...

. He quickly ascended up the club's youth hierarchy and, by the age of 15, was already featuring with the club's under-19 team. Niang was described by the team's coach Philippe Tranchant as a player with "huge potential" while also stating "we've never seen a player like him at the club before". After spending the second part of the 2009–10 season with the under-19 team, Niang was promoted to the club's reserve team in the

Championnat de France amateur The Championnat National 2, commonly known as National 2 and formerly known as Championnat de France Amateur (CFA), is a football league competition. The league serves as the fourth tier of the French football league system behind Ligue 1, Ligue ...

, the fourth level of

French football Association football is the most popular sport in France. The French Football Federation (FFF, Fédération Française de Football) is the national governing body and is responsible for overseeing all aspects of association football in the cou ...

, ahead of the 2010–11 season. He made his reserve team debut on 14 August 2010 in a 0–0 draw with

Avranches Avranches (; nrf, Avraunches) is a commune in the Manche department, and the region of Normandy, northwestern France. It is a subprefecture of the department. The inhabitants are called ''Avranchinais''. History By the end of the Roman period, t ...

. In the team's ensuing match against Moulins, Niang scored the only goal for the team in a 1–1 draw. On 12 September, he scored both team goals in a 2–2 draw with the reserve team of professional club

Lorient Lorient (; ) is a town (''Communes of France, commune'') and Port, seaport in the Morbihan Departments of France, department of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in western France. History Prehistory and classical antiquity Beginn ...

. After becoming the team's top scorer after its first six matches, Niang began earning praise from the local media who began predicting when the player would be called up to the senior team. He was also linked to several clubs abroad such as Italian club

Juventus Juventus Football Club (from la, iuventūs, 'youth'; ), colloquially known as Juve (), is a professional Association football, football club based in Turin, Piedmont, Italy, that competes in the Serie A, the top tier of the Italian football leagu ...

and English clubs

Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...

and

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...

- who reportedly offered Caen €8 million for the player. On 18 February 2011, Niang signed his first professional

contract A contract is a legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties that creates, defines, and governs mutual rights and obligations between them. A contract typically involves the transfer of goods, services, money, or a promise to tran ...

agreeing to a three-year deal with Caen. He was called up the senior team for the first time on 23 April 2011 for the team's league match against

Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Par ...

that was played on the following day. Niang was assigned the

squad number In team sports, the number, often referred to as the uniform number, squad number, jersey number, shirt number, sweater number, or similar (with such naming differences varying by sport and region) is the number worn on a player's uniform, to ...

9 shirt and made his professional debut in the match appearing as a second-half substitute as the match ended in a 1–1 draw. At 16 years and 114 days, Niang's appearance in the match made him the youngest player ever to appear for Caen in the club's history. A week later, he made his first professional start in a 4–0 away win over

Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative c ...

. On 7 May, Niang scored his first professional goal in a 1–1 draw with

Lens A lens is a transmissive optical device which focuses or disperses a light beam by means of refraction. A simple lens consists of a single piece of transparent material, while a compound lens consists of several simple lenses (''elements''), ...

. The goal made him the second youngest player to score a goal in

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 ...

behind

Laurent Roussey Laurent Roussey (born 27 December 1961) is a French football manager and former player, who played as a striker. He was most recently manager of Lyon-Duchère. Career On 22 October 2013, Roussey joined FC Sion as manager for the third time. ...

. In the team's next match against

Rennes Rennes (; br, Roazhon ; Gallo: ''Resnn''; ) is a city in the east of Brittany in northwestern France at the confluence of the Ille and the Vilaine. Rennes is the prefecture of the region of Brittany, as well as the Ille-et-Vilaine department ...

, Niang appeared as a substitute and scored the equalizing goal four minutes after coming on. In the team's final league match of the season against

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...

, he converted the team's second goal, which put Caen 2–0 up. Marseille later scored two unanswered goals to draw the match 2–2. Niang finished the campaign with seven appearances, of which four were starts, and three league goals. Prior to the start of the 2011–12 season, Niang's professional contract became subject to debate after French newspaper ''

Le Parisien ''Le Parisien'' (; French for "The Parisian") is a French daily newspaper covering both international and national news, and local news of Paris and its suburbs. It is owned by LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE, better known as LVMH. Histor ...

'' revealed that his father did not agree to the signing of the contract. Due to Niang being a minor, it is required by

French law The Law of France refers to the legal system in the French Republic, which is a civil law legal system primarily based on legal codes and statutes, with case law also playing an important role. The most influential of the French legal codes is ...

that both parents of the player agree to the contract. Despite reportedly being present during the signing of the contract, Niang's father, through his lawyer, threatened to begin "a procedure for revocation of the contract". Despite the contract issues, Niang remained a Caen player and made his season debut on 13 August 2011 in a 2–1 win over

Sochaux Sochaux () is a commune in the Doubs department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in eastern France. Geography Sochaux lies east of Montbéliard, and southeast of Paris. Population Inhabitants are known as ''Sochaliens''. Economy Soc ...

. On 24 September, he scored his first goal of the campaign in a 4–2 away win over

Evian Evian ( , ; , stylized as evian) is a French company that bottles and commercialises mineral water from several sources near Évian-les-Bains, on the south shore of Lake Geneva. It produces over 2 billion plastic bottles per year. Today, Evia ...

. Niang's only other goal during the season came in the 1–1 draw away to Nancy.

Milan

Before the start of the 2012–13 season, it was reported that Niang had gone on trial with English clubs

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

, Everton and

Tottenham Tottenham () is a town in North London, England, within the London Borough of Haringey. It is located in the ceremonial county of Greater London. Tottenham is centred north-northeast of Charing Cross, bordering Edmonton to the north, Waltham ...

. On 27 August 2012, it was confirmed that Niang was in negotiations with Italian club

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

after arriving in the city and having dinner with club vice-president

Adriano Galliani Adriano Galliani (born 30 July 1944) is an Italian entrepreneur and football executive who is the CEO of club Monza. He is known for being former vice-chairman and CEO of AC Milan from 1986 to 2017, a period in the club's history known as t ...

. On the following day, the move was confirmed on Milan's official website. Niang signed a three-year contract, while the

transfer Transfer may refer to: Arts and media * ''Transfer'' (2010 film), a German science-fiction movie directed by Damir Lukacevic and starring Zana Marjanović * ''Transfer'' (1966 film), a short film * ''Transfer'' (journal), in management studies ...

fee was undisclosed. On 13 December 2012, in the

Coppa Italia The ("Italy Cup") is an annual knockout cup competition in Italian football organized by the FIGC until the 2009–10 season and the Lega Serie A ever since. History The beginning of the tournament was turbulent, due to the complexity of ...

5th Round game against

Reggina Reggina 1914 S.r.l., commonly referred to as Reggina, is an Italian football club based in Reggio Calabria. Founded in 1914, they currently play in Serie B, and play their home matches at the 27,763 seater Stadio Oreste Granillo. They are n ...

, Niang came on as a substitute and scored with the match ending in a 3–0 win. The goal in the 70th minute put Niang into the history books as the second-youngest goal scorer in Milan history at 17 years and 350 days. On his 18th birthday, Niang signed a contract extension with Milan, keeping him at the club until 2017.

Loans to Montpellier and Genoa

In January 2014, Niang joined

Montpellier Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of ...

on loan. He made 19 appearances, scoring 4 goals. In January 2015, Niang was loaned to fellow Italian club

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

in the transfer window for the remainder of the

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...

. He went on to score 5 goals in his 14 appearances with Genoa before being sent back to Milan following the injury he sustained.

Return to Milan

300px, Niang about to take a penalty kick during the Serie A Game AC Milan – Crotone in December 2016 Niang suffered a fractured

metatarsal The metatarsal bones, or metatarsus, are a group of five long bones in the foot, located between the tarsal bones of the hind- and mid-foot and the phalanges of the toes. Lacking individual names, the metatarsal bones are numbered from the med ...

when Milan faced

Bayern Munich Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), also known as FC Bayern (), Bayern Munich, or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. It is best known for its professional men's football team, which pla ...

in the pre-season Audi Cup tournament, causing him to miss the start of 2015–16 season. He returned to the field in a 0–0 draw against

Atalanta Atalanta (; grc-gre, Ἀταλάντη, Atalantē) meaning "equal in weight", is a heroine in Greek mythology. There are two versions of the huntress Atalanta: one from Arcadia, whose parents were Iasus and Clymene and who is primarily known ...

. He then scored his first brace in Serie A for Milan as the team cruised past

Sampdoria Unione Calcio Sampdoria, commonly referred to as Sampdoria (), is an Italian professional football club based in Genoa. The club was formed in 1946 from the merger of two existing sports clubs whose roots can be traced back to the 1890s, ...

with a 4–1 win on 28 November 2015 at the

San Siro Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, commonly known as San Siro, is a football stadium in the San Siro district of Milan, Italy, which is the home of A.C. Milan and Inter Milan. It has a seating capacity of 80,018, making it one of the largest stadiums in ...

. In January 2016, it was reported that Milan had rejected a €16 million bid from English club

Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city lies on the River Soar and close to the eastern end of the National ...

for Niang. On 31 January, he scored the final goal in the ''

Derby della Madonnina The Derby della Madonnina, also known as the Derby di Milano (Milan Derby, in English), is a derby football match between the two prominent Milanese clubs, Internazionale and A.C. Milan. It is called ''Derby della Madonnina'' in honour of one of ...

'' against

Internazionale Football Club Internazionale Milano, commonly referred to as Internazionale () or simply Inter, and colloquially known as Inter Milan in English-speaking countries, is an Italian professional football club based in Milan, Lombardy. Inter is ...

, helping Milan triumph 3–0, then scoring again in a 2–0 defeat of

Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...

three days later and at home against

Udinese Udinese Calcio, commonly referred to as Udinese, is a professional Italian football club based in Udine, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, that currently plays in Serie A. It was founded on 30 November 1896 as a sports club, and on 5 July 1911 as a fo ...

, reaching his personal goal scoring record in a single season. However, he was involved in a car accident in March 2016, which kept him out of the season for almost 2 months. He returned for Milan as a substitute during the final few minutes against

in the

final on 21 May 2016, which was won by Juventus by a scoreline 1–0. Niang started the first game of the season for Milan in the 2016–2017 campaign in

Serie A The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Coppa ...

against

Torino F.C. Torino Football Club (), commonly referred to as Torino or simply Toro, is an Italian professional football club based in Turin, Piedmont. They currently play in Serie A. Founded as ''Foot-Ball Club Torino'' in 1906, Torino are among the mos ...

, which Milan won 3–2. He started the subsequent game against

Napoli Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

on 27 August 2016, which Milan lost 4–2 away from home. Niang managed to get on the scoresheet, but was sent off in the 87th minute for trying to grab

Pepe Reina José Manuel "Pepe" Reina Páez (; born 31 August 1982) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for La Liga club Villarreal. The son of famed Barcelona and Atlético Madrid goalkeeper Miguel Reina, Pepe Reina began his ca ...

while he was trying to offload the ball.

Loan to Watford

After suffering a drop in his performance, in January 2017, Niang was sent on loan to

English Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Fo ...

team

Watford Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, a ...

. He made his league debut on 31 January 2017 as a starter in a 1–2 away win against

. On 4 February 2017, Niang scored his first goal for

in a 2–1 home win against

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Bru ...

. Niang also assisted

Troy Deeney Troy Matthew Deeney (born 29 June 1988) is an English professional footballer who plays as a striker for and captains club Birmingham City. Deeney started his professional career at Walsall. He spent a brief spell on loan with Southern Leag ...

's goal in that match.

Torino

On 31 August 2017, Niang signed for

Torino Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. T ...

on a season-long loan deal with obligation to buy.

Rennes

On 31 August 2018, Niang joined

in Ligue 1 on a season-long loan from Torino.

2018–19 season

Niang scored his first goal for his new club in a 1–1 draw with

on 30 September. He opened the scoring for Rennes against

Olympique Lyonnais Olympique Lyonnais (), commonly referred to as simply Lyon () or OL, is a men and women's French professional football club based in Lyon in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. The men play in France's highest football division, Ligue 1. Founded in 1950, th ...

in the semi-finals of

Coupe de France The Coupe de France, formerly known as the Coupe Charles Simon, is the premier knockout cup competition in French football organized by the French Football Federation (FFF). It was first held in 1917 and is open to all amateur and profession ...

on 2 April 2019 as they were eventual 3–2 winners after a back and forth game to secure their first appearance in the final since 2014. the Niang converted his penalty kick as Rennes upset league champions PSG in the

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...

of the competition on 27 April, as the club won the cup for the first time since 1971. On 24 May 2019, the final day of the 2018–19 Ligue 1 campaign, Niang scored twice to bring his league tally to 11 goals on the season, as Rennes defeated

3–1. Five days later, Rennes signed Niang on a permanent deal for a reported fee of €15 million.

2019–20 season

Niang scored his team's equalizer as Rennes again stunned PSG with a 2–1 win in the second matchday of the 2019–20 Ligue 1 season. He scored both of his side's goals, after assists from Brazilian winger

Raphinha Raphael Dias Belloli (born 14 December 1996), known as Raphinha, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a winger for La Liga club Barcelona and the Brazil national team. He began his career in with Avaí, but left for Portugues ...

, in a 2–1 defeat of

Angers Angers (, , ) is a city in western France, about southwest of Paris. It is the prefecture of the Maine-et-Loire department and was the capital of the province of Anjou until the French Revolution. The inhabitants of both the city and the prov ...

on 7 December.

Loan to Al-Ahli

On 7 February 2021, Niang joined

Al-Ahli Saudi FC Al-Ahli Saudi Football Club ( ar, النادي الأهلي السعودي) is a Saudi Arabian professional football club based in Jeddah, that competes in the second division of Saudi Arabian football, following their relegation from the Saud ...

on a six-month loan deal with an option to buy.

Auxerre

On 16 August 2022, Niang signed with

for one season, with an option to extend.

International career

Niang is a France youth international, having represented his nation at under-16, under-17, under-21 level. In December 2009, he earned his first international call-up at under-16 level under coach Patrick Gonfalone for friendly matches against

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

. Niang made his youth international debut in the first match against Belgium in a 4–1 win. In the second match against Belgium held two days later, he scored the only goal in a 1–0 win. Niang returned to the under-16 team in January 2010 to participate in the 2010 edition of the Aegean Cup in

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

. In the competition, he appeared in all four matches France contested. He scored two goals; both in group stage victories over the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

and

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

. France won the competition after defeating the hosts 3–1 in the final to become the competition's two-time defending champions. Afterwards, Niang failed to earn a call-up under Gonfalone at under-16 level, which resulted in the player missing the

Montaigu Tournament The Montaigu Tournament (french: Tournoi de Montaigu) is an international association football competition that is contested by under-16 national teams and clubs. The tournament is also known as Mondial Minimes. The games are held in stadiums lo ...

. At under-17 level, Niang was among Gonfalone's first call-ups and made his debut at a European tournament in

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

in the team's opening group stage match against the hosts. In first round qualification for the 2011 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship, he appeared in all three group stage matches as France finished the round in the second place behind

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 ...

. Despite appearing in the team's first eight matches, Gonfalone did not call Niang up again for the under-17 team. He, subsequently, missed both the UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship and

2011 FIFA U-17 World Cup The 2011 FIFA U-17 World Cup was the fourteenth tournament of the FIFA U-17 World Cup, and the eleventh played since the change in age limits from under 16s to Under 17s in 1991. It was held in Mexico with games being played amongst various venues ...

. Due to being born in France to

ese parents, Niang is eligible to represent the Senegal national team at international level. In May 2011,

ese media reported that Niang was named to the Senegal under-23 team to participate in 2011 CAF U-23 Championship qualification matches in June 2011. After this report was deemed inaccurate, in July 2011, it was reported that Niang had announced his desire to represent Senegal at senior international level. Later that month, he was named to the

squad to face

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...

in August. On 4 August, Niang distanced himself from the reports and re-affirmed his desire to represent France at international level. He later stated, "First, I never said that I had chosen Senegal or France. The only words I have spoken is that, for now, I prefer the French youth teams." On the same day after reaffirming his decision to represent France, Niang bypassed three international levels and was called up to the France under-21 team by coach

Erick Mombaerts Erick Mombaerts (born 21 April 1955) is a French Association football, football manager and former player. Playing career Mombaerts is a youth product of INF Vichy. He went on to play for US Nœux-les-Mines, Nœux-les-Mines and Montluçon Footb ...

to participate in a three-day training camp at the Clairefontaine academy. In September 2011, he was called up for the second consecutive time by Mombaerts for a 2013 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship qualification match against

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

on 2 September and a friendly against

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

on 5 September. He made his under-21 debut in the qualifier against Latvia appearing as a substitute in the 72nd minute. After 15 minutes on the field, Niang scored his first goal for the team. France won the match 3–0. In November 2012, Niang was banned from representing the French national team until 31 December 2013 for visiting a

nightclub A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...

while breaking a night time

curfew A curfew is a government order specifying a time during which certain regulations apply. Typically, curfews order all people affected by them to ''not'' be in public places or on roads within a certain time frame, typically in the evening and ...

Senegal

On 7 October 2017, Niang made his debut with

against

Cape Verde , national_anthem = () , official_languages = Portuguese , national_languages = Cape Verdean Creole , capital = Praia , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , demonym ...

, in

2018 FIFA World Cup qualification The 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification process was a series of tournaments organised by the six FIFA confederations to decide 31 of the 32 teams which would play in the 2018 FIFA World Cup, with Russia qualifying automatically as hosts. All 210 ...

match won 2–0. In May 2018 he was named in Senegal's 23 man

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 FIFA World Cup The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national Association football, football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awa ...

in Russia. On 19 June 2018, he scored a goal against

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

Controversies

At the beginning of the 2012–13 season, Niang was stopped by the police in

for driving without a

driver's license A driver's license is a legal authorization, or the official document confirming such an authorization, for a specific individual to operate one or more types of motorized vehicles—such as motorcycles, cars, trucks, or buses—on a public ...

. It was reported that Niang told the

Carabinieri The Carabinieri (, also , ; formally ''Arma dei Carabinieri'', "Arm of Carabineers"; previously ''Corpo dei Carabinieri Reali'', "Royal Carabineers Corps") are the national gendarmerie of Italy who primarily carry out domestic and foreign polic ...

police that he was teammate

Bakaye Traoré Bakaye Traoré (born 6 March 1985) is a former professional footballer who played as a central midfielder for Amiens SC and AS Nancy in France, for A.C. Milan in Italy, and for Kayseri Erciyesspor and Bursaspor in Turkey. Born in France, he was ...

, an act which he subsequently denied. In February 2014, while playing for Montpellier on loan, Niang crashed his Ferrari into a tree and was sentenced to a suspended 18-month jail sentenced for an alleged hit-and-run accident which left 11 others injured. The player was also charged with endangering people's lives and driving without a licence. In March 2016, Niang had been involved in a car crash over the weekend, though it was made clear he was not under the influence of alcohol. Milan confirmed that Niang has suffered an injury to the capsular ligament in his left ankle, as well as bruising to his left shoulder following a car accident.

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Scores and results list Senegal's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Niang goal.''

Honours

Milan *

Supercoppa Italiana The Supercoppa Italiana ( en, Italian Super Cup) is an annual football match contested by the winners of the Serie A and the Coppa Italia in the previous season. If the same team wins both the Serie A and Coppa Italia titles in the previous seaso ...

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 ...

Rennes *

: 2018–19 Senegal *

Africa Cup of Nations The Africa Cup of Nations referred to as AFCON (french: Coupe d'Afrique des Nations, sometimes referred to as CAN, or TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons), and sometimes as African Cup of Nations, is the main internati ...

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 ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Niang, M'baye 1994 births Living people People from Meulan-en-Yvelines French sportspeople of Senegalese descent Senegalese footballers French footballers Footballers from Yvelines Association football forwards Association football wingers Senegal international footballers France under-21 international footballers France youth international footballers 2018 FIFA World Cup players 2019 Africa Cup of Nations players Stade Malherbe Caen players A.C. Milan players Montpellier HSC players Genoa C.F.C. players Watford F.C. players Torino F.C. players Stade Rennais F.C. players Al-Ahli Saudi FC players FC Girondins de Bordeaux players AJ Auxerre players Ligue 1 players Serie A players Premier League players Saudi Professional League players French expatriate footballers Senegalese expatriate footballers Senegalese expatriate sportspeople in Italy French expatriate sportspeople in Italy Expatriate footballers in Italy Senegalese expatriate sportspeople in England French expatriate sportspeople in England Expatriate footballers in Saudi Arabia Senegalese expatriate sportspeople in Saudi Arabia French expatriate sportspeople in Saudi Arabia Expatriate footballers in England