# Vakoun Issouf Bayo

Vakoun Issouf Bayo (born 10 January 1997) is an Ivorian professional footballer who plays as a forward for EFL Championship club Watford on loan from Serie A side Udinese, and the Ivory Coast national team. He is nicknamed The Crow.

## Club career
### Dunajská Streda

Bayo joined Dunajská Streda in March 2018. He made his Slovak league debut against Slovan Bratislava on 18 March 2018.

### Celtic

Bayo moved to Scottish Premiership club Celtic in January 2019. He was left out of the Celtic squad for the later stages of the 2018–19 UEFA Europa League, with the club only able to register three of their four January window signings. He made his debut for Celtic against Kilmarnock on 17 February 2019, coming on as a late substitute shortly before Scott Brown scored a late winner.

#### Toulouse (loan)

On 12 August 2020, Bayo signed for French club Toulouse, on a one-year loan, with an additional option to buy.

### Gent

On 9 July 2021, Bayo signed for Belgian First Division A club Gent on a four-year deal.

### Charleroi

On 22 December 2021, Bayo agreed to join Charleroi on loan until the end of the season, with an option to buy. On 16 May 2022, Charleroi confirmed that they had exercised the option to purchase and had signed Bayo on a contract until 2026 after a successful loan spell that saw him score eleven goals in sixteen matches.

### Watford

On 2 July 2022, Bayo joined EFL Championship club Watford on a five-year deal.

### Charleroi (loan)

On 30 January 2023, Bayo rejoined Charleroi on loan until the end of the season.

### Udinese

On 29 August 2024, Bayo signed a four-season contract with Udinese in Italy, and was loaned back to Watford for the rest of the 2024–25 season.

## Career statistics

    As of 12 March 2025
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition :
| Club | Season | League | League | League | National cup | National cup | League cup | League cup | Other | Other | Total | Total |
| Club | Season | Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Étoile du Sahel | 2015-16 | CLP-1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 4 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| Étoile du Sahel | 2016–17 | CLP-1 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | – | – | 9 | 0 |
| Étoile du Sahel | Total | Total | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 15 | 0 |
| Dunajská Streda | 2017–18 | Slovak Super Liga | 9 | 4 | 0 | 0 | – | – | – | – | 9 | 4 |
| Dunajská Streda | 2018–19 | Slovak Super Liga | 16 | 10 | 3 | 5 | – | – | 4 | 3 | 23 | 18 |
| Dunajská Streda | Total | Total | 25 | 14 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 32 | 22 |
| Celtic | 2018–19 | Scottish Premiership | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Celtic | 2019–20 | Scottish Premiership | 8 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 16 | 2 |
| Celtic | Total | Total | 9 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 17 | 2 |
| Toulouse (loan) | 2020–21 | Ligue 2 | 31 | 10 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 36 | 13 |
| Gent | 2021–22 | Belgian First Division A | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 3 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| Charleroi (loan) | 2021–22 | Belgian First Division A | 16 | 11 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 16 | 11 |
| Watford | 2022–23 | Championship | 24 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 25 | 4 |
| Watford | 2023–24 | Championship | 39 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | — | — | 42 | 7 |
| Watford | Total | Total | 63 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | — | — | 67 | 11 |
| Udinese | 2024–25 | Serie A | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 |
| Watford (loan) | 2024–25 | Championship | 33 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 34 | 10 |
| Charleroi (loan) | 2022–23 | Belgian First Division A | 10 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 10 | 3 |
| Career total | Career total | Career total | 201 | 60 | 11 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 18 | 4 | 234 | 74 |
* ↑ Includes appearances in Slovak Cup, Scottish Cup, Coupe de France, Belgian Cup, FA Cup
* ↑ Includes Scottish League Cup, EFL Cup
* ↑ Appearance(s) in CAF Confederation Cup
* ↑ Appearance(s) in UEFA Europa League
* ↑ One appearance in UEFA Champions League and four appearances in UEFA Europa League
* ↑ Appearance(s) in Ligue 1 relegation/promotion play-offs
* ↑ Appearance(s) in UEFA Europa Conference League

## Honours

Celtic
* Scottish Premiership: 2018–19, 2019–20