Captain and mainstay of RC Lens, Ivorian international Seko Fofana wins the 2022 edition of the Marc-Vivien Foé prize, awarded to the best African Ligue 1 player of the season by France 24 and RFI. Indispensable and decisive in the Lensois midfield, he has established himself as one of the most successful midfielders in the championship.
It is the RC Lens particle accelerator. Ivorian international Seko Fofana, who has been on the screen throughout the season, was awarded the prize for the best African player in Ligue 1 by RFI and France 24. This distinction rewards an impressive midfielder from regularity and generosity, which chained, day after day, performances of very high flight.
Seko Fofana will have been one of the main players in the very good season of the northern club, ranked in the first part of the table for the second consecutive season, two years after its promotion to Ligue 1.
Indispensable and decisive with 8 goals scored in 35 league games (the most prolific season of his career), the Ivorian fully meets the hopes placed in him from an early age.
Born in Paris on May 7, 1995, he took his first steps at Paris FC between 2004 and 2010, before joining the Lorient training center (2010 to 2013), where he was trained by Julien Stéphan, the current coach of RC Strasbourg. Although rocked by the philosophy of play of Christian Gourcuff, at the time coach of the first team, he refused, for lack of having had his chance in Ligue 1, to sign his first professional contract with the Merlus.
Recruited at 18 by Manchester City
In the sights of Manchester City, who spotted him in the matches played with the U16 and U17 of the Blues, he joined the English club in 2013, at the age of 18, and became the first young player to leave FC so early. Lorient.
The career choice is daring. But after having first joined a youth team, Seko Fofana quickly joined the pro group, where he rubbed shoulders with leading players such as his compatriot and idol Yaya Touré, Spanish world champion David Silva, French international Samir Nasri or the formidable Argentinian striker Sergio Agüero. He listens carefully to the advice of his prestigious coaches, such as Manuel Pellegrini or Roberto Mancini.
But Seko Fofana will not play any match with the first team. He continued his apprenticeship with the reserve, under the orders of the Frenchman Patrick Vieira.
His performances attracted Fulham, then in the Championship (English second division), which welcomed him on loan (2014-2015). The following season, he finally discovered the high level and Ligue 1 thanks to a new loan, this time in Corsica, in the ranks of Sporting Club de Bastia (2015-2016).
A first experience in Ligue 1 in Corsica
The club finished in an honorable tenth place, and Seko Fofana, who had a good season by participating in 32 matches, caught the eye of Udinese. The Serie A club, specializing in the recruitment of promising young shoots, convinces City to give up their hope against a check for 3.5 million euros.
It is with this Italian club (2016 to 2020) that Seko Fofana, who decides to play for the Ivorian selection (6 caps), stabilizes and crosses one by one the levels which separate him from the very high level. Four full seasons in a difficult and resolutely tactical championship.
On the strength of this experience, Seko Fofana decides to return to France, despite an offer from Atalanta Bergamo, which nevertheless offers one of the most shimmering footballs in Europe.
If he was announced several times at OM, it was at Lens, freshly promoted to Ligue 1 and who paid 10 million euros (a club record) to hire him, that he signed a contract in August. 2020. Linked until 2024 with the Artois, he quickly became one of the club’s key players with his Congolese teammate Gaël Kakuta, who won the 2021 Marc-Vivien Foé prize. Quickly adopted by the public at the Bollaert stadium, he imposes itself as a major player in the championship.
“I’ve seen groups of them, but they’re the best group I’ve been to. The last time I experienced that was with the youngsters at City,” he told So Foot, in May 2021. Seko Fofana is so invested in his club that he refused to defend the Ivorian colors during the last CAN, to devote himself to French competitions. A decision that earned him a lot of criticism in Côte d’Ivoire, even if he will certainly be keen to compete in CAN-2023, organized on the land of the Elephants.
In the meantime, while he is once again in the sights of the big European clubs, the future of the Lensois captain may lie elsewhere than in the north of France. The opportunity for him to discover the Champions League?
NB: Seko Fofana was appointed by a jury composed of nearly 100 journalists specializing in French and African football from a list of 12 players previously established by the sports services of RFI and France 24.
Since 2011, the trophy for the best African League player 1 bears the name of Marc-Vivien Foé in tribute to the Cameroonian player who died suddenly during a match at the Gerland stadium in Lyon, June 26, 2003. Players who have worn the colors of a team are eligible for the Marc-Vivien Foé prize. African National and having played at least 15 league matches 1 this season.
• Winners of previous editions
2021: Gaël Kakuta (DR Congo)
2020 : Victor Osimhen (Nigeria)
2019: Nicolas Pépé (Ivory Coast)
2018: Karl Toko-Ekambi (Cameroon)
2017: Jean Michaël Seri (Ivory Coast)
2016 : Sofiane Boufal (Maroc)
2015 : André Ayew (Ghana)
2014: Vincent Enyeama (Nigeria)
2013 : Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Gabon)
2012: Younes Belhanda (Maroc)
2011: Gervinho (Ivory Coast)
2010: Gervinho (Ivory Coast)
2009: Marouane Chamakh (Maroc)
