Serge Gakpé

Serge Gakpé
	Gakpé in 2016
Personal information
Full name	Serge Gakpé
Date of birth	7 May 1987 (age 37)
Place of birth	Bondy, France
Height	1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s)	Winger, attacking midfielder
Team information
Current team	APEA Akrotiri
Number	87
Youth career
1995–2001	UMS Pontault-Combault
2001–2004	AS Monaco
Senior career*
Years	Team
2004–2005	Monaco B
2006–2011	Monaco
2010	→ Tours (loan)
2011–2015	Nantes
2012	→ Standard Liège (loan)
2015–2017	Genoa
2016	→ Atalanta (loan)
2017	→ Chievo (loan)
2017–2018	Amiens
2018–2019	Cercle Brugge
2019–2021	Apollon Limassol
2021–2022	Karmiotissa
2023–	APEA
International career
2002–2003	France U16
2003–2004	France U17
2004–2005	France U18
2005–2006	France U19
2007–2008	France U21
2009–2017	Togo
	*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 1 June 2022 (UTC)

Serge Gakpé (born 7 May 1987) is a professional footballer who plays as a right winger. Born in France, he played for France national teams at youth level before switching to the Togo national team.

Club career

Gakpé began his career playing for his local club UMS Pontault-Combault, whom AS Monaco share a partnership with. During his time in Pontault-Combault, he regularly attended sessions at the Clairefontaine academy. After being recommended to the Ligue 1 side by Pontault-Combault and Clairefontaine officials, he agreed to join the principality-based side in 2001.

Despite not having a professional contract, he joined the first-team squad following the winter break of the 2005–06 season, making his professional debut in a 1–1 draw against RC Lens on 22 January 2006. Not only did he start the match, but also scored his first professional goal, in the 7th minute.^[1] He went on to play in 13 more matches and added another goal to his tally as well.

Serge then signed his first professional contract on 4 January 2007, inking a three-year deal with the club.^[2] He later added another year to the contract, which tied him to Monaco until 2011.^[3] Over the next three seasons, his playing time increased, making 76 appearances and scoring 11 goals. His performances caught the attention of several prominent European clubs such as English sides Sheffield Wednesday, Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur, and Spanish club Barcelona.^[4]

Gakpé signed for Ligue 2 club FC Nantes on 28 January 2011. At the end of January 2012, it was announced that Gakpé had signed for Belgian club Standard Liège on a season-long loan. On 30 August 2014, he scored the only goal in the match, converting a penalty, against Montpellier HSC.^[5]

International career

Even though Gakpé holds French nationality and represented France at youth level, he chose to play for the Togo national team, and was called up for the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification match against Morocco on 6 September 2009.^[6]

In 2013 he played in all matches at 2013 Africa Cup of Nations when his team reached the quarter-finals.^[7]^[8]

International goals

Scores and results list Togo's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Gakpé goal.^[9]

List of international goals scored by Serge Gakpé
No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	4 September 2010	Botswana National Stadium, Gaborone, Botswana	Botswana	1–1	1–2	2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
2	11 November 2011	Estádio Lino Correia, Bissau, Guinea-Bissau	Guinea-Bissau	1–0	1–1	2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
3	17 June 2012	Stade de Kégué, Lomé, Togo	Kenya	1–0	1–0	2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
4	30 January 2013	Mbombela Stadium, Nelspruit, South Africa	Tunisia	1–0	1–1	2013 Africa Cup of Nations