David Datro Fofana

David Datro Fofana (born 22 December 2002) is an Ivorian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Süper Lig club Göztepe, on loan from Premier League club Chelsea, and the Ivory Coast national team.

David Datro Fofana

Personal information
Full name	David Datro Fofana[1]
Date of birth	(2002-12-22) 22 December 2002 (age 21)[1]
Place of birth	Ouragahio, Ivory Coast
Height	1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)[2]
Position(s)	Forward
Team information
Current team	Göztepe (on loan from Chelsea)
Number	99
Youth career
2018–2019	Abidjan City
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2019–2021	Abidjan City
2019–2020	→ AFAD (loan)
2021–2022	Molde	42	(15)
2023–	Chelsea	3	(0)
2023–2024	→ Union Berlin (loan)	12	(1)
2024	→ Burnley (loan)	15	(4)
2024–	→ Göztepe (loan)	2	(1)
International career‡
2023–	Ivory Coast U23	3	(1)
2019–	Ivory Coast	3	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 21:10, 5 October 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 16 July 2023

Club career

Early career

Fofana began his career in the Ivory Coast with Abidjan City, before joining AFAD on loan in 2019.^[3] He was heavily scouted by French, Belgian and Norwegian clubs.^[4] On 2 February 2021, Fofana signed a professional contract with Norwegian club Molde on a free transfer, signing for four years.^[5] He debuted with Molde in a 3–3 UEFA Europa League tie with Hoffenheim on 18 February 2021, scoring his side's third goal in the 74th minute.^[6]

Chelsea

On 28 December 2022, it was announced that Fofana would join English Premier League side Chelsea on 1 January 2023.^[7] On 8 January 2023, Fofana came off the bench to make his Chelsea debut in a 4–0 loss to Manchester City in the FA Cup.^[8]

Loan to Union Berlin

On 11 July 2023, Chelsea announced that Fofana would join Bundesliga side Union Berlin on a season-long loan. ^[9] He was recalled by Chelsea on 11 January 2024.^[10]

Loan to Burnley

Two days after returning to Chelsea, Fofana was loaned to fellow Premier League club Burnley until the end of the season.^[11][12] On 3 February 2024, he scored his first goals for Burnley by netting a brace in a 2–2 draw against Fulham.^[13] On 21 May 2024, Burnley confirmed the player was returning to Chelsea.^[14]

Loan to Göztepe

On 13 September 2024, Fofana was loaned to newly-promoted Turkish club Göztepe until the end of the 2024–25 season.^[15][16]

International career

Fofana made his international debut with the Ivory Coast national team in a 2–0 CHAN 2020 loss to Niger on 22 September 2019.^[17] On 22 March 2023, Fofana was the captain of the Ivory Coast's U23 national team in a friendly game against Morocco U23, which Ivory Coast won 3–2.^[18]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 11 May 2024^[1]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National cup[a]		League cup		Europe		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Molde	2021	Eliteserien	18	0	3	1	—		5[b]	1	26	2
	2022	Eliteserien	24	15	5	3	—		10[c]	4	39	22
	Total		42	15	8	4	—		15	5	65	24
Chelsea	2022–23	Premier League	3	0	1	0	—		0	0	4	0
Union Berlin (loan)	2023–24	Bundesliga	12	1	1	0	—		4[d]	1	17	2
Burnley (loan)	2023–24	Premier League	15	4	—		—		—		15	4
Career total			72	20	10	4	0	0	19	6	101	30

1. Includes Norwegian Cup, FA Cup, DFB-Pokal
2. Three appearances and one goal in UEFA Europa League, two appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League
3. Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League
4. Appearances in UEFA Champions League

International

As of match played 19 November 2022^[19]

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Ivory Coast	2019	1	0
	2022	2	0
Total		3	0

Honours

Molde

• Eliteserien: 2022
• Norwegian Cup: 2021–22

References

1. David Datro Fofana at Soccerway
2. "David Datro Fofana: Overview". Premier League. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
3. Sang, Kiplagat (22 December 2022). "Datro Fofana: Six quick facts about Chelsea's Ivory Coast wonderkid". goal.com. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
4. Ould-Saada, Arilas Berg (11 February 2021). "Fransk klubb bød 10 mill. for afrikansk stjerneskudd - Molde fikk ham «gratis»". VG (in Norwegian).
5. "David Fofana er nå klar for Molde FK". Molde.
6. "Molde vs. Hoffenheim - 18 February 2021". Soccerway.
7. "David Datro Fofana agreement". Chelsea F.C. 28 December 2022. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
8. Aarons, Ed (13 January 2023). "David Datro Fofana: Chelsea player's first club claim Molde 'stole' him". The Guardian.
9. "David Fofana leaves Chelsea on loan". www.chelseafc.com. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
10. "David Fofana recalled from Union Berlin loan". www.chelseafc.com. 11 January 2024. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
11. "Fofana joins Burnley on loan". Chelsea FC. 13 January 2024. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
12. "Fofana checks in at Turf Moor". Burnley FC. 13 January 2024. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
13. "Burnley 2–2 Fulham". BBC Sport. 3 February 2024.
14. "CLUB CONFIRM RETAINED LIST | BurnleyFC". www.burnleyfootballclub.com. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
15. "David Fofana completes loan move". 13 September 2024. Retrieved 13 September 2024.
16. "David Datro Fofana Göztepe'mizde" (in Turkish). Göztepe. 13 September 2024. Retrieved 13 September 2024.
17. Football, CAF-Confedération Africaine du. "CHAN 2020 : le Niger barre la route à la Côte d'Ivoire". CAFOnline.com.
18. "@DatroDavid". Twitter. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
19. "David Datro Fofana". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 28 December 2022.

External links

• Profile at the Chelsea F.C. website
• David Datro Fofana at Soccerway
• Molde FK profile^{[permanent dead link‍]}
• David Datro Fofana at National-Football-Teams.com
• David Datro Fofana – UEFA competition record (archive)