Geoffrey Kondogbia


Geoffrey Edwin Kondogbia is a professional footballer who plays for Spanish club Valencia CF and the Central African Republic national team as a defensive midfielder. He can also play as a central defender or left back.
He started his career at Lens, then signed with Sevilla at the age of 19. In 2013 he was bought by Monaco for €20 million, and then by Inter Milan for €31 million two years later.
Kondogbia earned 57 caps for France across its youth levels, before making his debut for the senior team in 2013. In August 2018, he was cap-tied to the Central African Republic by switching his allegiance, and made his debut for its national team in an official match shortly after.

Club career

Lens

Kondogbia was born in Nemours, Seine-et-Marne of Central African descent, joining RC Lens' youth system at the age of 11. On 11 April 2010 he signed his first professional contract, agreeing to a four-year deal. He made his debut in Ligue 1 on 21 November, appearing as a late substitute against Olympique Lyonnais.
Kondogbia spent the 2011–12 season in Ligue 2 after the Sang et Or's relegation. He scored his only official goal for the team on 13 April 2012, netting the opener in a 3–0 success at Tours FC.

Sevilla

On 24 July 2012, Kondogbia signed with Spanish club Sevilla FC for an undisclosed fee, believed to be in the region of €3 million. He first appeared in La Liga on 15 September, replacing goalscorer Piotr Trochowski in the 82nd minute of the 1–0 defeat of reigning champions Real Madrid, at the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán Stadium. He scored his first goal for the Andalusians on 28 January 2013, heading home the first for his team in an eventual 3–0 home derby win against Granada CF.
In Sevilla's semi-final second leg tie of the Copa del Rey against eventual winners Atlético Madrid, on 27 February 2013, Kondogbia picked up a red card as his team ended the match with nine men in the 2–2 home draw, and fell to a 3–4 aggregate loss.

Monaco

Kondogbia returned to the French top division on 31 August 2013, signing a five-year contract with newly promoted AS Monaco FC worth a reported €20 million. He contributed with 26 games and one goal in his first season, helping the club finish second and return to the UEFA Champions League after one decade.
In the Champions League round-of-16's first leg, on 25 February 2015, Kondogbia put his team ahead at Arsenal in an eventual 3–1 win.

Inter Milan

On 22 June 2015, Inter Milan announced that they had signed Kondogbia on a five-year deal for an initial fee of €31 million, subject to a medical, beating a reported €40m bid from city rival A.C. Milan. He scored his first goal for his new team on 8 November, the only away against Torino FC. On 14 February of the following year, he was sent off at the conclusion of a bad-tempered 1–2 loss at ACF Fiorentina for sarcastically applauding the referee; he received a two-match ban.
In June 2016, the Serie A club announced the total cost of Kondogbia was €40.501 million.

Valencia

On 21 August 2017, Valencia CF announced that they reached an agreement with Internazionale for the loan of Kondogbia until 30 June 2018, with an option to make the deal permanent. The deal was part of a loan exchange, with João Cancelo moving in the other direction. He scored on his debut six days later, playing the full 90 minutes and helping to a 2–2 away draw against Real Madrid.
On 24 May 2018, Valencia redeemed the buyout clause of Kondogbia and the player signed a four-year contract.

International career

France

Kondogbia was selected to the French squad for the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup. In the nation's first group match against Ghana, on 21 June, he scored the opening goal in an eventual 3–1 victory, being chosen by some publications as man of the match for his all-around performance. He netted for the second time in the tournament against hosts Turkey in the round-of-16, leading to a 4–1 victory.
Kondogbia made his debut for the senior team on 14 August 2013 at the age of 20, playing 63 minutes in a 0–0 friendly draw away to Belgium.

Central African Republic

As all five matches he played for France at senior level were not official, Kondogbia was never cap-tied and was thus still eligible to represent the Central African Republic, for which he qualified through his parents. He received an official call on 31 August 2018 and made his debut on 12 October, starting and acting as captain in a 0–4 away loss to Ivory Coast in a 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier. On 18 November in the same competition, he scored an added-time equaliser in a 2–2 draw away to Rwanda.

Personal life

Kondogbia's older brother, Evans, is also a footballer. He spent most of his career in Belgium, and represented the Central African Republic internationally.

Career statistics

Club

International

International goals

No.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.18 November 2018Stade Huye, Butare, Rwanda2–22–22019 Africa Cup of Nations qualification

Honours

Valencia
France U20