# Youssouf Fofana (French footballer)

Youssouf Fofana (born 10 January 1999) is a French professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Serie A club AC Milan and the France national team.

## Club career
### Strasbourg

Fofana began his career with various youth academies in Paris, before joining the youth academy of Strasbourg on 21 February 2017. He made his professional debut with Strasbourg in a 2–0 Ligue 1 loss to Lyon on 24 August 2018.

### Monaco

Fofana played his final game for Strasbourg on 25 January 2020, a 3–1 away win over Monaco. Four days later, he was signed by Monaco for €15 million, and made his debut on 1 February, playing 71 minutes of a 3–1 away defeat to Nîmes. On 25 November 2021, Fofana scored his first goal for Monaco, the winning goal in a 2–1 UEFA Europa League victory at home over Real Sociedad. He scored his first league goal with the club in a 4–2 home defeat to Troyes on 31 August 2022.

### AC Milan

On 17 August 2024, Fofana completed his move to Serie A club AC Milan, signing a four-year contract until 30 June 2028. He chose the kit number 29.
On 14 September 2024, Milan won 4–0 against Venezia in the Serie A. The second goal, a header following the corner kick, had initially been attributed to Matteo Gabbia prior to Fofana being credited with goal after a review.

## International career

Fofana was a youth international for France from under-19 to under-21 level.
On 15 September 2022, Fofana received his first call-up to the France national team for two UEFA Nations League matches against Austria and Denmark. In November, he was called up for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar by Didier Deschamps. At the tournament, he played in six of France's seven matches, starting the ones against Tunisia in the group stage (1–0 loss) and Morocco in the semi-finals (2–0 win). In the final against Argentina on 18 December, Fofana came on as a 96th-minute substitute in extra time for Adrien Rabiot. The game ended with a score of 3–3, and Argentina came out victorious on penalties.
On 18 November 2023, Fofana scored his first goal with France, the seventh goal of a 14–0 win over Gibraltar in UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying. In the following match against Greece, he scored in a goal from twenty-five metres out in a 2–2 draw.

## Style of play

Fofana usually plays as a box-to-box midfielder with primarily defensive duties. His main qualities are his physical strength, stamina, and the ability to press opponents to win back possession of the ball.

## Personal life

Youssouf Fofana was born on 10 January 1999 in Paris. He is of Malian and Ivorian descent.

## Career statistics
### Club

    As of match played 15 March 2025
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition :
| Club | Season | League | League | League | National cup | National cup | League cup | League cup | Europe | Europe | Other | Other | Total | Total |
| Club | Season | Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Strasbourg B | 2017–18 | National 3 | 29 | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 29 | 3 |
| Strasbourg B | 2018–19 | National 3 | 5 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 5 | 1 |
| Strasbourg B | Total | Total | 34 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 34 | 4 |
| Strasbourg | 2018–19 | Ligue 1 | 17 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | — | — | — | — | 22 | 3 |
| Strasbourg | 2019–20 | Ligue 1 | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 19 | 1 |
| Strasbourg | Total | Total | 30 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 41 | 4 |
| Monaco | 2019–20 | Ligue 1 | 7 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 7 | 0 |
| Monaco | 2020–21 | Ligue 1 | 35 | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 40 | 0 |
| Monaco | 2021–22 | Ligue 1 | 33 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | — | 9 | 1 | — | — | 46 | 1 |
| Monaco | 2022–23 | Ligue 1 | 36 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 10 | 0 | — | — | 47 | 2 |
| Monaco | 2023–24 | Ligue 1 | 32 | 4 | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 35 | 4 |
| Monaco | Total | Total | 143 | 6 | 13 | 0 | — | — | 19 | 1 | — | — | 175 | 7 |
| AC Milan | 2024–25 | Serie A | 27 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 10 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 41 | 1 |
| Career total | Career total | Career total | 234 | 14 | 17 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 32 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 291 | 16 |
* ↑ Includes Coupe de France, Coppa Italia
* ↑ Includes Coupe de la Ligue
* ↑ Appearances in UEFA Europa League
* ↑ Four appearances in UEFA Champions League, five appearances and one goal in UEFA Europa League
* ↑ Two appearances in UEFA Champions League, eight appearances in UEFA Europa League
* ↑ Appearances in UEFA Champions League
* ↑ Appearances in Supercoppa Italiana

### International

    As of match played 14 October 2024
Appearances and goals by national team and year :
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
| France | 2022 | 8 | 0 |
| France | 2023 | 7 | 2 |
| France | 2024 | 10 | 1 |
| Total | Total | 25 | 3 |
    Scores and results list France's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Fofana goal.
List of international goals scored by Youssouf Fofana :
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
| 1 | 18 November 2023 | Allianz Riviera, Nice, France | 14 | Gibraltar | 7–0 | 14–0 | UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying |
| 2 | 21 November 2023 | Agia Sophia Stadium, Athens, Greece | 15 | Greece | 2–2 | 2–2 | UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying |
| 3 | 26 March 2024 | Stade Vélodrome, Marseille, France | 17 | Chile | 1–1 | 3–2 | Friendly |

## Honours

Strasbourg
* Coupe de la Ligue: 2018–19
Monaco
* Coupe de France runner-up: 2020–21
AC Milan
* Supercoppa Italiana: 2024–25
France
* FIFA World Cup runner-up: 2022