What Happened To Yaya Sanogo?

Most football fans have forgotten about the short and very disappointing one and half year stint of Yaya Sanogo at Arsenal; the promising young lad who had a lot of expectations in his footballing career. So, what really happened to Yaya Sanogo after his Arsenal days? How did the young French player with so many prospects suddenly go extinct in the football world?

Yaya Sanogo Breakthrough Story

Yaya Sanogo started his football career with Auxerre at the age of 13 in 2006 playing as a striker. He joined Auxerre’s youth team before which he was at CO Les Ulis and immediately hit the ground running – scoring 25 goals and providing 17 assists in just 14 matches in his first season for the youth team. His insane form continued the following seasons attracting interest from top clubs at the age of 16.

It wasn’t until January 2010 that Sanogo made his professional debut for the first team against Sedan in a Coup de France tie and made his Ligue 1 debut in May 2010 against Lyon.

After this important breakthrough, you may still wonder; what really happened to Yaya Sanogo?

Sanogo Signs For Arsenal

In July 2013, 20-year-old Yaya Sanogo signed for Arsenal. Arsene Wenger saw potential in him during his days for Auxerre and decided to bring him to the Emirates and use him to achieve greater things at the club.

He was given the number 22 shirt which was previously worn by Francis Coquelin.

While on international duties with the France U21 team, Sanogo picked up an injury in September which kept him out for 5 months and missed 32 games in the same period for Arsenal.

He returned in February 2014 and made his full debut against Liverpool in a 2-1 win in the FA Cup and his Champions League debut four days later against Bayern Munich.

Sanogo won his first trophy with Arsenal in April 2014 when they faced Hull City in the final after being used as a substitute.

The 2013/14 season had come to an end and Sanogo was yet to register his first competitive goal for the Gunners although he later scored 4 goals against Benfica in the Emirates Cup albeit in a pre-season game.

The 2014/15 season had just begun and Sanogo hoped to have a better season this time around than the previous one. He finally scored his first competitive goal in November in a 2-0 win against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League group stage.

Sanogo’s Loan Spells

With only one goal scored so far in 20 games for Arsenal across one and half seasons coupled with long-term injuries, Arsenal decided to loan him to another Premier League club Crystal Palace in January 2015 for the rest of the season.

In his six months loan spell at Palace, Sanogo could only manage to score 1 goal in 11 games.

In July 2015, Sanogo moved to Ajax on a one-year loan. He could only play 6 games in his loan spell, precisely 82 minutes of football. Injuries didn’t help him as he was sidelined for two months with a groin injury. This time around, he couldn’t produce a single goal.

While still under contract with Arsenal, Sanogo completed his third loan move, this time to Charlton Athletic in February 2016, where he played 8 games and scored 3 goals.

Arsenal Releases Sanogo

The French man finally completed a permanent move to French side Toulouse after he was released by Arsenal in July 2017 on a 3-year deal. His 3-year stay at Toulouse saw him score 16 goals in 72 matches.

After he was released by Toulouse, things went from bad to worse as he was in search of a new club for 7 months.

He finally joined Huddersfield Town until the end of the 2020/21 season, managing only 9 appearances without a goal.

Yaya Sanogo went on another 7-month search for a new club after he was released by Huddersfield Town before joining Armenian side Urartu in January 2023.

Why Sanogo Didn’t Live Up To Expectations

Let’s give proper insight into what happened to Yaya Sanogo.

Yaya Sanogo’s career trajectory and the reasons for not living up to the high expectations placed upon him can be attributed to several factors.

While it’s challenging to pinpoint a single reason, here are a few possible factors that may have contributed to his difficulties:

Injuries: Sanogo struggled with various injuries throughout his career, which hampered his progress and limited his playing time. Frequent injuries can disrupt a player’s development, affect their confidence, and hinder their ability to establish themselves at the highest level.
Lack of consistency: Sanogo’s performances were often inconsistent. He displayed flashes of talent and potential but struggled to maintain consistent form over an extended period. Consistency is crucial for players to establish themselves and earn regular playing time at top clubs.
Technical limitations: While Sanogo possessed physical attributes such as height and strength, his technical abilities were often criticized. His touch, control, and finishing were not at the level expected of a top-tier striker. These technical limitations can impact a player’s effectiveness and limit their ability to succeed at the highest level.
Pressure and expectations: Sanogo was highly touted as a promising prospect during his time at Arsenal. The pressure and expectations that come with such a reputation can be overwhelming for a young player, affecting their confidence and performance. Some players struggle to handle the pressure and fail to live up to the hype surrounding their early career.

It’s important to note that football careers can be influenced by multiple factors, and individual circumstances can vary.

While these points provide some potential explanations for Sanogo’s struggles, it is always complex to analyze a player’s entire career and pinpoint a single reason for their perceived failure.

Conclusion

Most football fans forgot about Yaya Sanogo the moment he left Arsenal.

Yaya Sanogo’s story is indeed a sad one. From a huge prospect with great potential from Auxerre to struggling to get game time at Arsenal, completing multiple loan spells at different clubs and even struggling to find a new club.

Many reasons could be attributed to his failure but injuries is one thing that happened to Yaya Sanogo that killed his career.

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