# Ibrahima Traoré

Ibrahima Traoré (born 21 April 1988) is a former professional footballer who played as a left winger.
Coming through the youth system, Traoré began his senior career with French amateur club Levallois in 2005. He moved to Germany one year later, playing for Hertha BSC's reserve team Hertha BSC II. Following a season at FC Augsburg in 2009–10, Traoré joined VfB Stuttgart. He remained for four seasons, before moving to Borussia Mönchengladbach in 2014, where he played until the end of his career in 2021.
Born in France, Traoré was eligible to represent Guinea internationally through his father. He made his debut in 2010, and played for Guinea in three Africa Cup of Nations tournaments (2012, 2015 and 2019).

## Early life

Traoré was born in Villepinte, France, to a Guinean father and a Lebanese mother. He grew up in Guinea before returning to Paris at the age of 4. He grew up on the same street as Gabriel Obertan.

## Club career
### Early career

Traoré played youth football with Charenton and Levallois. He made his senior debut with Levallois in the Championnat de France Amateurs 2, before being transferred to German club Hertha BSC on 1 January 2007, making his Bundesliga debut for them on 9 December 2007, against 1. FC Nürnberg.

### FC Augsburg

On 5 March, Traoré began a trial with FC Augsburg, signing a two-year contract with them on 14 July 2009.

### VfB Stuttgart

In May 2011, it was announced that Traoré would move to VfB Stuttgart at the end of the 2010–11 season.
In December 2013, Traoré stated that he had turned down offers from a number of English clubs over the summer.

### Borussia Mönchengladbach

In April 2014, it was announced that Traoré would sign for Borussia Mönchengladbach at the start of the 2014–15 season.
On 8 August 2015, he marked his season debut by scoring in a 4–1 win at FC St. Pauli in the first round of the DFB-Pokal.
In May 2017, he signed a new contract with Borussia Mönchengladbach, lasting until 2021. He made his 100th competitive appearance for the club in October the following year, after coming on as a substitute in a 4–0 win over Mainz.

## International career

Traoré made his international debut for Guinea on 11 August 2010, against Mali. Guinea won the match 2–0, with Traoré scoring Guinea's second goal. In the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualification on 8 October 2011, Traoré scored in the last game of group B against Nigeria a last-second equalizer in the 90+12-minute, meaning Guinea's qualification for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations. In November 2014, concerns were raised about Traoré playing for Guinea due to the ongoing Ebola outbreak in West Africa.
He was selected to Guinea's squad for the 2015 African Cup of Nations and scored the team's equaliser in a 1–1 draw with Cameroon at the group stage. After the tournament, he took a break from international football, returning in March 2016.

## Career statistics
### International

Appearances and goals by national team and year :
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
| Guinea | 2010 | 4 | 0 |
| Guinea | 2011 | 5 | 1 |
| Guinea | 2012 | 9 | 2 |
| Guinea | 2013 | 4 | 1 |
| Guinea | 2014 | 7 | 3 |
| Guinea | 2015 | 4 | 1 |
| Guinea | 2016 | 6 | 0 |
| Guinea | 2017 | 1 | 0 |
| Guinea | 2018 | 2 | 0 |
| Guinea | 2019 | 7 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 49 | 8 |
    Scores and results list Guinea's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Traoré goal.
List of international goals scored by Ibrahima Traoré :
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
| 1 | 8 October 2011 | National Stadium, Abuja, Nigeria | Nigeria | 2–2 | 2–2 | 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
| 2 | 28 January 2012 | Stade de Franceville, Franceville, Gabon | Botswana | 4–1 | 6–1 | 2012 Africa Cup of Nations |
| 3 | 3 June 2012 | National Sports Stadium, Harare, Zimbabwe | Zimbabwe | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 4 | 9 June 2013 | Stade du 28 Septembre, Conakry, Guinea | Mozambique | 4–1 | 6–1 | 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 5 | 5 March 2014 | Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran | Iran | 2–0 | 2–1 | Friendly |
| 6 | 11 October 2014 | Stade Mohamed V, Casablanca, Morocco | Ghana | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
| 7 | 19 November 2014 | Stade Mohamed V, Casablanca, Morocco | Uganda | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
| 8 | 24 January 2015 | Estadio de Malabo, Malabo, Equatorial Guinea | Cameroon | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2015 Africa Cup of Nations |