Alfred John Momar N'Diaye (born 6 March 1990) 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 lea ...

who most recently played for

FC Noah Football Club Noah (), commonly known as Noah, is an Armenian professional football club based in Armavir. Founded in 2017 as FC Artsakh, they currently play in the Armenian Premier League. History The club was founded as FC Artsakh in 2017 an ...

as a

defensive midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

, who can also play as a

centre back In the sport of association football, a defender is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categ ...

. Born in France, he played for the Senegal national team.

Club career

Early career

Born in Paris, France, N'Diaye began his career with US Vandœuvre in

Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy (, literally ''Vandœuvre Lès, near Nancy, France, Nancy'') is a Communes of France, commune in the Meurthe-et-Moselle Departments of France, department in north-eastern France. Its inhabitants are called ''Vandopériens'' ...

. At the age of 14, he moved across the

arrondissement An arrondissement (, , ) is any of various administrative divisions of France, Belgium, Haiti, and certain other Francophone countries, as well as the Netherlands. Europe France The 101 French departments are divided into 342 ''arrondissem ...

to join the biggest club in the region, AS Nancy. Upon arrival, Alfred endured early struggles, but quickly gained noticed following his second season at the academy. In 2006, he signed his first professional contract.

Nancy

N'Diaye made his debut in the squad during the 2007–08 season in the

Coupe de la Ligue The Coupe de la Ligue (), known outside France as the French League Cup, was a knockout cup competition in French football organized by the Ligue de Football Professionnel. The tournament was established in 1993 and, unlike the Coupe de France ...

, at the age of 17, coming on as a halftime substitute for

Frédéric Biancalani Frédéric Biancalani (born 21 July 1974) is a French former professional footballer who played as a defender. Career Biancalani was born in Villerupt, France. He came from the youth academy at Nancy and played his first professional match in ...

in a 3–0 loss to

Lens A lens is a transmissive optical device that 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'') ...

. That was his only appearance that season as he would be relegated back to the reserves helping a young Nancy reserve squad barely avoid relegation. Following the season, N'Diaye earned promotion to the senior squad for the 2008–09 season. He was assigned the number 29 shirt and made his league debut in the opening match of the season against

Lille Lille (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city in the northern part of France, within French Flanders. Positioned along the Deûle river, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Prefectures in F ...

appearing as a substitute in a 0–0 draw. Two months later, he earned his first league start in a 1–1 draw against

Paris Saint-Germain Paris Saint-Germain Football Club, commonly referred to as Paris Saint-Germain () or simply PSG, is a French professional Association football, football club based in Paris. They compete in Ligue 1, the French football league system, top d ...

. His positive play earned him regular starts in the squad, including playing the full 90 minutes in the club's 3–0 upset victory over

Olympique de Marseille Olympique de Marseille (, ; , ), also known simply as Marseille, or by the abbreviation OM (, ), is a French professional Association football, football club based in Marseille which competes in Ligue 1, the French football league system, top f ...

at the

Stade Vélodrome The Stade Vélodrome (), known for sponsorship reasons as the Orange Vélodrome since June 2016, is a multi-purpose stadium in Marseille, France. It is home to the Olympique de Marseille football club of Ligue 1 since it opened in 1937, and has ...

and playing, on two occasions, 120 minutes of football in cup play against

Grenoble Grenoble ( ; ; or ; or ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of the Isère Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region ...

in the Coupe de la Ligue and

SO Romorantin Sologne Olympique Romorantin is a French association football team founded in 1930 as Stade Olympique Romoratinais. It is based in Romorantin-Lanthenay, Centre-Val de Loire, France and plays in the Championnat National 2. It plays at the Stade Ju ...

in the

Coupe de France The Coupe de France (), also known in English language, English as the French Cup or less commonly as the France Cup, is the premier Single-elimination tournament, knockout cup competition in French football organised by the French Football Fed ...

. In total, he made 27 appearances and collected 7 yellow cards.

Bursaspor

On 1 July 2011, Nancy confirmed on its website that the club had reached an agreement with Turkish club

Bursaspor Bursaspor Kulübü Derneği, commonly known as Bursaspor, is a Turkey, Turkish professional sports club based in the city of Bursa. Founded in 1963, the club is best known for its football team, which has a rich history in Football in Turkey, Turk ...

for the transfer of N'Diaye. The deal was finalised on 3 July for a reported fee of €2 million.

Sunderland

On 9 January 2013, it was announced that

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...

had completed the signing of N'Diaye for an undisclosed fee. He was given the number 4 shirt. On 12 January 2013, N'Diaye made his Sunderland debut at the

Stadium of Light The Stadium of Light is an all-seater football stadium in Sunderland, England, and the eighth and current home to Sunderland. With space for 49,000 spectators, the Stadium of Light is the ninth largest football stadium in England. The ...

in a match which they won 3–0 against

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Stratford, London, Stratford, East London, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English f ...

. He came on as a substitute for Adam Johnson and almost scored with his first touch in English Football as his shot went just wide. His full debut for Sunderland came against Wigan away, in which he produced a "wonderful" assist for Steven Fletcher to score and put them in front.

Eskişehirspor (loan)

On 28 July 2013 it was announced N'Diaye would join Turkish club Eskişehirspor on a season-long loan. On 28 January 2014, Eskişehirspor announced that N'Diaye's loan had been terminated by the club.

Betis

On 30 January 2014, N'Diaye joined Spanish side

Real Betis Real Betis Balompié, known as Real Betis () is a Spanish professional association football, football club based in Seville, Andalusia, Spain. It plays in La Liga, the Spanish football league system, top flight of Spanish football. It plays home ...

on loan for the remainder of the 2013–14 campaign. He appeared in 16 matches, as the

Andalusia Andalusia ( , ; , ) is the southernmost autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain, located in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomou ...

ns were relegated. On 22 August 2014,

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

N'Diaye signed a five-year deal with the ''Béticos''.

Villarreal

On 8 July 2016, N'Diaye signed a five-year contract with

Villarreal CF Villarreal Club de Fútbol, Sociedad Anónima Deportiva, S.A.D., usually abbreviated to Villarreal CF, is a Spanish professional association football, football club based in Villarreal, in the Province of Castellón, Castellón province of easte ...

also in the main category.

Hull City (loan)

On 31 January 2017, N'Diaye moved on loan to

Hull City Hull City Association Football Club is a professional association football club based in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. They compete in the , the second level of the English football league system. They play their home ...

for the remainder of the 2016–17

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

season. N'Diaye made his debut and scored the first goal in a home 2–0 victory over

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

. Despite impressing during his 15 games at the club, N'Diaye was unable to keep Hull in the Premier League.

Wolverhampton Wanderers (loan)

On 31 August 2017, the transfer deadline day of the 2017/18 summer transfer window, N'Diaye completed a last-gasp loan deal (with the option of a permanent move) to

English Championship The English Football League Championship, known simply as the Championship and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Bet Championship, is a professional association football league in England and Wales. Contested by 24 clubs, it is the highest divis ...

club

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club ( ), commonly referred to as Wolves, is a professional association football, football club based in Wolverhampton, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league s ...

. He made his debut for the club on 9 September 2017, coming on as a substitute in a 1–0 win against

Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Poplar, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east of ...

. He scored his first goal for the club on 23 September 2017 in a 2–1 win against

Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. It is the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. The town's population was 71,422 in 2021, while the wider boroug ...

after coming on as a substitute. He played 36 games for Wolverhampton Wanderers in all competitions, as he helped the club win the EFL Championship title and gain promotion to the Premier League.

Málaga (loan)

On 10 August 2018, N'Diaye moved on loan to

Málaga Málaga (; ) is a Municipalities in Spain, municipality of Spain, capital of the Province of Málaga, in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia. With a population of 591,637 in 2024, it is the second-most populo ...

for the 2018–19

Segunda División The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Segunda División, commonly known as Segunda División or La Liga 2, and officially known as LaLiga HyperMotion for sponsorship reasons, is the men's second professional association football division of the Spa ...

season.

Al-Shabab

On 30 August 2019, N'Diaye moved to Saudi club Al-Shabab FC on a three-year contract. On 24 August 2022, N'Diaye was released from his contract.

Noah

On 1 February 2024,

Armenian Premier League The Armenian Premier League (, known as the Armenian Fastex Premier League for sponsorship reasons) is the top association football, football competition in Armenia. From 1936 to 1991, the competition was held as a regional tournament within th ...

club

Noah Noah (; , also Noach) appears as the last of the Antediluvian Patriarchs (Bible), patriarchs in the traditions of Abrahamic religions. His story appears in the Hebrew Bible (Book of Genesis, chapters 5–9), the Quran and Baháʼí literature, ...

announced the signing of N'Diaye.

International career

Having played through the

France national youth football team The France national youth football team are the national under-21, under-20, under-19, under-18, under-17 and under-16 football teams of France and are controlled by the French Football Federation. The youth teams of France participate in tournam ...

s, he decided to play for Senegal national team and played his first senior international match in 2013. In May 2018 he was named in Senegal's 23-man squad for the

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

in Russia. N'Diaye played for Senegal in two group stage matches during the tournament, against

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

and

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

respectively.

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours

Wolverhampton Wanderers *

EFL Championship The English Football League Championship, known simply as the Championship and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Bet Championship, is a professional association football league in England and Wales. Contested by 24 clubs, it is the highest divi ...

: 2017–18

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:N'Diaye, Alfred 1990 births Living people Footballers from Paris French sportspeople of Senegalese descent French men's footballers Senegalese men's footballers Men's association football midfielders AS Nancy Lorraine players Bursaspor footballers Sunderland A.F.C. players Eskişehirspor footballers Real Betis players Villarreal CF players Ligue 1 players Süper Lig players Premier League players English Football League players La Liga players Saudi Pro League players Hull City A.F.C. players Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. players Málaga CF players Al Shabab FC (Riyadh) players FC Noah players France men's under-21 international footballers France men's youth international footballers Senegal men's international footballers Senegalese expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Spain Senegalese expatriate sportspeople in Spain Expatriate men's footballers in Turkey Senegalese expatriate sportspeople in Turkey Expatriate men's footballers in England Senegalese expatriate sportspeople in England Expatriate men's footballers in Saudi Arabia Senegalese expatriate sportspeople in Saudi Arabia Expatriate men's footballers in Armenia Senegalese expatriate sportspeople in Armenia 2015 Africa Cup of Nations players 2018 FIFA World Cup players 2019 Africa Cup of Nations players 21st-century French sportsmen 21st-century Senegalese sportsmen