| Kanga Akalé | |
| Full Name: | Kanga Gauthier Akalé[1] |
| Birth Date: | 7 March 1981 |
| Birth Place: | Abidjan, Ivory Coast |
| Height: | 1.78 m |
| Position: | Central midfielder |
| Years1: | 1997–1998 |
| Clubs1: | Stella Club |
| Caps1: | 17 |
| Goals1: | 6 |
| Years2: | 1998–1999 |
| Clubs2: | Sion |
| Caps2: | 25 |
| Goals2: | 6 |
| Years3: | 1999–2003 |
| Clubs3: | FC Zürich |
| Caps3: | 68 |
| Goals3: | 8 |
| Years4: | 2003–2007 |
| Clubs4: | Auxerre |
| Caps4: | 126 |
| Goals4: | 20 |
| Years5: | 2007–2011 |
| Clubs5: | Lens |
| Caps5: | 67 |
| Goals5: | 5 |
| Years6: | 2007–2008 |
| Clubs6: | → Marseille (loan) |
| Caps6: | 19 |
| Goals6: | 1 |
| Years7: | 2008–2009 |
| Clubs7: | → Recreativo Huelva (loan) |
| Caps7: | 26 |
| Goals7: | 0 |
| Years8: | 2011–2012 |
| Clubs8: | Lekhwiya |
| Caps8: | 2 |
| Goals8: | 0 |
| Years9: | 2012 |
| Clubs9: | Panetolikos |
| Caps9: | 9 |
| Goals9: | 0 |
| Years10: | 2012–2013 |
| Clubs10: | Arles-Avignon |
| Caps10: | 4 |
| Goals10: | 0 |
| Totalcaps: | 363 |
| Totalgoals: | 46 |
| Nationalyears1: | 2003–2010 |
| Nationalteam1: | Ivory Coast |
| Nationalcaps1: | 35 |
| Nationalgoals1: | 3 |
Kanga Gauthier Akalé (born 7 March 1981) is an Ivorian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.
Whilst at Auxerre he helped them win the Coupe de France in both 2003 and 2005, playing in both finals.[2] [3] In June 2007, Akalé signed a four-year contract with RC Lens for an undisclosed transfer fee, and he was loaned to Marseille in January 2008, then Recreativo de Huelva. Originally a striker, he started playing as a central midfielder or left winger. He is described as a pacey player with top technical abilities.
In 2011, Akalé joined Qatari club Lekhwiya SC to cover for injured striker, and countryman Bakari Koné. He made his debut in the 2011 Qatari Stars Cup on 11 November, and scored a hat-trick against Al Rayyan in a 3–1 win.[4]
On 31 January 2012, Akalé signed a six-month contract with Greek club Panetolikos F.C.[5] About three months after becoming a free agent, on 24 October 2012, Akalé joined French Ligue 2 side Arles-Avignon on a two-year contract.[6]
He has 35 caps for the national team, and was called up to the 2006 World Cup.
Akalé holds both Ivorian and French nationalities.[7] His son Aaron is a youth international for France.[8] [9]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Continental | Total | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||||
| Stella Club | 1998 | Ligue 1 (Ivory Coast) | 17 | 6 | 17 | 6 | ||||||||
| Sion | 1998–99 | Nationalliga A | 25 | 6 | – | 25 | 6 | |||||||
| FC Zürich | 1999–2000 | Nationalliga A | 6 | 0 | – | 2 | 0 | 8 | 0 | [10] | ||||
| 2000–01 | 16 | 2 | – | 1 | 0 | 17 | 2 | |||||||
| 2001–02 | 28 | 1 | – | 0 | 0 | 28 | 1 | |||||||
| 2002–03 | 18 | 5 | – | 7 | 4 | 25 | 9 | |||||||
| Total | 68 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 4 | 78 | 12 | – | |||
| Auxerre | 2002–03 | Ligue 1 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 0 | ||
| 2003–04 | 23 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 31 | 4 | ||||
| 2004–05 | 31 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 51 | 5 | ||||
| 2005–06 | 31 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 35 | 4 | ||||
| 2006–07 | 35 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 44 | 10 | ||||
| Total | 126 | 20 | 11 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 24 | 2 | 171 | 23 | – | |||
| Lens | 2007–08 | Ligue 1 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 15 | 3 | ||
| 2009–10 | 28 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 2 | ||||
| 2010–11 | 30 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 31 | 3 | ||||
| Total | 67 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 81 | 8 | – | |||
| Marseille (loan) | 2007–08 | Ligue 1 | 19 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 1 | ||
| Recreativo de Huelva (loan) | 2008–09 | La Liga | 26 | 0 | 2 | 1 | – | 0 | 0 | 28 | 1 | |||
| Lekhwiya | 2011–12 | Qatar Stars League | 2 | 0 | – | 2 | 0 | |||||||
| Panetolikos | 2011–12 | Super League Greece | 9 | 0 | 9 | 0 | ||||||||
| Arles-Avignon | 2012–13 | Ligue 2 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 6 | 0 | |||
| Career total | 363 | 46 | 22 | 2 | 14 | 0 | 40 | 9 | 439 | 57 | – | |||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ivory Coast | 2002 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2003 | 5 | 0 | ||
| 2004 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2005 | 4 | 1 | ||
| 2006 | 12 | 2 | ||
| 2007 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 2008 | 8 | 0 | ||
| Total | 35 | 3 | ||
Scores and results list the Ivory Coast's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Akalé goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 June 2006 | Bondoufle, France | 3–0 | Friendly | ||||
| 14 June 2008 | Gaborone, Botswana | 1–1 | 2010 FIFA World Cup Qualification |
Ivory Coast