Lamine-Gueye Koné (born 1 February 1989), known as Lamine Koné, 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 plays as a

centre-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categories: centre-backs, full-backs, sweepers ...

. Born in France, he plays for the Ivory Coast national team.

Club career

Early career

Koné began his career with local youth clubs in the

Île-de-France The Île-de-France (; ; ) is the most populous of the eighteen regions of France, with an official estimated population of 12,271,794 residents on 1 January 2023. Centered on the capital Paris, it is located in the north-central part of the cou ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

. In 2003, he joined the second division club

LB Châteauroux La Berrichonne de Châteauroux (), commonly referred to as La Berrichonne or simply Châteauroux, is a Football in France, French association football club based in Châteauroux. The football team is a part of a sports club that consists of seve ...

and, after three years in the club's youth academy, was promoted to the senior team for the 2005–06 season. Koné made his professional debut on 27 April 2007 in a league match against

Montpellier Montpellier (; ) 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 France, department of ...

. He spent three more years at the club amassing over 70 appearances.

Lorient

On 30 July 2010, Koné joined Lorient on a four-year contract. The transfer fee was priced at €1 million. He signed a new three-year contract on 23 July 2013. He was signed as a replacement for

Laurent Koscielny Laurent Koscielny (born 10 September 1985) is a French former professional footballer who played as a centre back. He is currently the sporting director of Ligue 2 club Lorient. Born in Tulle, Koscielny began his football career playing for a ho ...

who had moved to

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 ...

. Koné made 139 appearances, scoring seven goals over six seasons at Lorient.

Sunderland

On 27 January 2016, Koné signed for

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 ...

club

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 ...

for an undisclosed fee until 2020. This followed a protracted transfer saga that had previously broken down twice, and had seen Lorient threaten Sunderland with legal action for initially pulling out of a deal. On 13 February, Koné played a big part in securing a vital win for the ''Black Cats'' against

Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...

. From an 82nd-minute corner, Koné rose up for a header and as the ball headed towards the goal,

David de Gea David de Gea Quintana (; born 7 November 1990) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Fiorentina. Considered one of the best keepers of his generation, he is known for his reflexes and shot-stopping capabilitie ...

and Anthony Martial got in a tangle before the ball eventually went in off the back of the Spanish goalkeeper for an own goal. Koné followed this up with two goals against Everton on 11 May 2016 in a 3–0 victory that saved Sunderland from relegation. After telling new manager David Moyes that he wanted to leave the club in August, Koné had a change of heart and eventually signed a new five-year contract on 14 September 2016.

Loan to Strasbourg

On 1 August 2018, Koné joined

Ligue 1 Ligue 1 (; ), officially known as Ligue 1 McDonald's France, McDonald's for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in France and the highest level of the French football league system. Administered by the Ligue de ...

side

Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...

on a season-long loan. Strasbourg were also given the option to sign the centre-back permanently at the end of the season.

Strasbourg

On 1 June 2019, following a successful loan stint, Koné joined Strasbourg permanently from Sunderland for an undisclosed fee. In June 2021 he left Strasbourg on a free transfer due to his contract expiring.

Lausanne-Sport

On 8 November 2021, Koné signed for Lausanne-Sport on a free transfer, four months after his release from Strasbourg.

Le Mans

On 16 January 2023, Koné joined

Le Mans Le Mans (; ) is a Communes of France, city in Northwestern France on the Sarthe (river), Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the Provinces of France, province of Maine (province), Maine, it is now the capital of ...

in the third-tier

Championnat National The Championnat National (), commonly referred to as simply National or Division 3, is the third division of the French football league system behind Ligue 1 and Ligue 2. Contested by 18 clubs, the Championnat National operates on a system of ...

International career

Koné was born in France to Ivorian parents. He is a former French youth international who has played at the under-17, under-18, under-19, and under-20 levels. Koné played with the latter team at the

2009 Mediterranean Games The 2009 Mediterranean Games, officially the XVI Mediterranean Games () and commonly known as Pescara 2009, was a multi-sport event held in Pescara, Italy, from 26 June to 5 July 2009. It was governed by the International Committee of Mediterran ...

and the

2010 Toulon Tournament The 2010 Toulon Tournament was the 38th edition of the Toulon Tournament and began on 18 May and ended on 27 May 2010. Chile were the defending champions. Participant teams * * * * * * * * Venues The matches were played in these communes: *A ...

. He switched to the Ivory Coast national team and made his debut in a 4–1 loss to

Cameroon Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon, is a country in Central Africa. It shares boundaries with Nigeria to the west and north, Chad to the northeast, the Central African Republic to the east, and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the R ...

in 2014.

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours

Strasbourg *

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 ...

: 2018–19

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kone, Lamine 1989 births Footballers from Paris French sportspeople of Ivorian descent Living people Ivorian men's footballers French men's footballers France men's youth international footballers Ivory Coast men's international footballers Men's association football central defenders LB Châteauroux players FC Lorient players Sunderland A.F.C. players RC Strasbourg Alsace players FC Lausanne-Sport players Le Mans FC players Ligue 1 players Ligue 2 players Championnat National players Championnat National 2 players Premier League players English Football League players Swiss Super League players Competitors at the 2009 Mediterranean Games 2017 Africa Cup of Nations players Mediterranean Games competitors for France Ivorian expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in England Ivorian expatriate sportspeople in England Expatriate men's footballers in Switzerland Ivorian expatriate sportspeople in Switzerland 21st-century French sportsmen