Who is Leeds United target Josuha Guilavogui? Career to date, statistics and more after Elland Road appearance — YEP 22/10/14
By Harry Mail
Leeds United are still open to bolstering their ranks,
despite the transfer window being shut
Josuha Guilavogui has emerged as a free agent option for
Leeds United recently. The 34-year-old, who is a former France international,
is available following his exit from Mainz 05 at the end of last season.
His contract with the Bundesliga outfit officially expired
in late June and he has since been weighing up his options. The fact he is
unattached at the moment means the Whites are able to sign him outside of the
transfer window. Leeds are looking at signing a free agent midfielder following
injuries to Ethan Ampadu and Ilia Gruev. Guilavogui appeared at Elland Road on
Friday night as he watched the win over Sheffield United from the stands. Here
is a everything you need to know about him....
Where is Leeds United target Guilavogui from?
Leeds-linked Guilavogui was born to Guinean parents in
Ollioules in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of Southeastern France. The
town has a population of 14,011.
Where did he start his career?
The midfielder started his career with spells as a youngster
at La Marine Toulon and Toulon. He spent five years with the latter before
heading out the exit door as a teenager.
Big break at AS Saint-Étienne
Saint-Étienne landed him in 2005 and he initially played for
their B team. The Ligue 1 side are a sleeping giant in France and have won the
title on 10 occasions in the past. However, they haven’t had their hands on the
trophy since 1981.
Guilavogui broke into their first-team in 2009 under the
guidance of Christophe Galtier. He went on to make 108 appearances in all
competitions and scored nine goals.
Dream La Liga move
Atletico Madrid swooped for him in 2013 and he penned a
long-term five-year contract with the La Liga giants. As per Transfermarkt,
they paid the equivalent of £8.4million for his services.
He wasn’t able to make an impact in Spain though and
struggled to get into Diego Simeone’s team. He was therefore loaned out to
Saint-Étienne and Wolfsburg before he was given the green light to join the
latter on a permanent basis.
Finding a home at Wolfsburg
Guilavogui really found his feet in Germany and made the
Volkswagen Arena his home. He spent nine years in total there and played 181
matches altogether, finding the net on eight occasions.
The now-veteran also had a brief temporary stint back in
France with Bordeaux during the 2021/22 campaign and made 15 outings. They have
since dropped into National 2 Group B and have Andy Carroll up front.
Last season
Guilavogui cut ties with Wolfsburg in the summer of 2023.
They decided not to extend his stay and he was subsequently snapped up by
Mainz.
His previous club finished 13th in the table last term. They
turned to former Bristol Rovers player Bo Henriksen earlier this year and he
kept them up with ease.
What now?
Leeds are weighing up a potential swoop and the player would
give them more competition and depth in the middle of the park. Daniel Farke
has a few injury issues in that department with Ethan Ampadu and Ilia Gruev
currently sidelined.
Guilavogui is vastly experienced and could plug a gap for
the Whites on a short-term basis. He has never played in England before but has
tasted life in the top flight in France, Spain and Germany.