A nugget from Abobo who has conquered Portugal and is set to dazzle the whole of European soccer. Ousmane Diomandé's start to the season is further confirmation of the interest shown in him by the big clubs.
Ousmane Diomandé's feat is to rise from the Ivorian 3rd division to the top of the Portuguese Liga between 2020 and 2023. Virtually a product of Olympic Sport d'Abobo in Abidjan, he played for the Ivorian club until he was spotted by FC Midtjylland.
Sporting Lisbon are now delighted with him, and were quick to sign him 6 months after his successful loan spell in Portugal's 2nd division, for around 8 million euros. The Danish club must have realized that the young Ivorian was progressing much faster than they had expected, and called him back from loan to meet the many offers for Ousmane Diomandé.
As a result, Sporting CP now boast the player desired by many of Europe's top clubs. What's more, he's performing even better, and the envy of other clubs is undiminished. Since his arrival at the end of the last winter transfer window, Ousmane Diomandé has quickly found his feet and made his way into the starting 11 of the Lisbon club.
Thanks to his impressive physique for his age, the right-handed defender is the law in duels. As his coach Ruben Amorim says: "Diomandé plays with both feet and is physically very strong. If clubs with an atypical style of play such as Manchester City are linked with the Ivorian, it's above all because beyond his first-team qualities as a defender, he shows technical ease when restarting play and keeping the ball under pressure. He is also a versatile right-sided defender.
The President of the Abobo club, Amza Gamal, is not worried about the 19-year-old defender's career: "I'm convinced that Ousmane Diomandé will continue to progress and become one of the best central defenders in the world."
Thanks to an impressive 2023, Ousmane Diomandé celebrated his first cap with Les Éléphants in September, before being shortlisted in the final list of top young talents to claim the Golden Boy award in December. However, he was not selected by CAF as one of the 10 nominees for the Best Young African Player award.
Recently, in October, the Ivorian international received his award for the best defender of the month in Portugal's Liga. This shows that he is starting the 23/24 season on the same footing as last season. All the more reason to attract the attention of top clubs for the coming mercato.
He is currently under contract until 2027, with a release clause of around 80 million euros.In the meantime, Côte d'Ivoire will have less to worry about in the defensive sector for the home leg of the AFCON.
