| Pierre Lees-Melou | |
| Full Name: | Pierre Lees-Melou[1] |
| Birth Date: | 25 May 1993 |
| Birth Place: | Langon, France |
| Height: | 1.85 m |
| Position: | Attacking midfielder |
| Currentclub: | Brest |
| Clubnumber: | 20 |
| Youthyears1: | 1998–2003 |
| Youthclubs1: | Pierre Monsoise |
| Youthyears2: | 2003–2009 |
| Youthclubs2: | Bordeaux |
| Youthyears3: | 2009–2010 |
| Youthclubs3: | Langon |
| Years1: | 2010–2012 |
| Clubs1: | Langon |
| Caps1: | 2 |
| Goals1: | 0 |
| Years2: | 2012 |
| Clubs2: | Mérignac-Arlac |
| Years3: | 2013–2015 |
| Caps3: | 50 |
| Goals3: | 13 |
| Years4: | 2015–2017 |
| Clubs4: | Dijon |
| Caps4: | 48 |
| Goals4: | 9 |
| Years5: | 2017–2021 |
| Clubs5: | Nice |
| Caps5: | 119 |
| Goals5: | 16 |
| Years6: | 2021–2022 |
| Clubs6: | Norwich City |
| Caps6: | 33 |
| Goals6: | 1 |
| Years7: | 2022– |
| Clubs7: | Brest |
| Caps7: | 61 |
| Goals7: | 9 |
| Club-Update: | 10:55, 28 June 2024 (UTC) |
Pierre Lees-Melou (born 25 May 1993) is a French professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for club Brest.
Born in Langon, Gironde, Lees-Melou started his career with in the Championnat de France Amateur 2 before sealing a move to Dijon in 2015. He played 16 games (split equally between starts and substitute appearances) as they earned promotion from Ligue 2 in his first season, while also playing in the fifth division with the reserve team. He scored his first two professional goals in April in wins over Clermont and Paris FC, and assisted the opening goal against Ajaccio that earned promotion on the final day.[2]
In the 2016–17 Ligue 1, Lees-Melou scored 7 goals in 32 games as the team survived in 16th place. On 27 August, he came off the bench to score the final goal of a 4–2 comeback win at home to Lyon.[2]
In June 2017, Lees-Melou signed a four-year deal with Nice, worth around €5 million.[3] He made his debut on 26 July, starting in the third qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League, a 1–1 home draw with Ajax.[4] After being eliminated in the play-offs by Napoli, the team competed in the UEFA Europa League, and he played all but one game in a run to the last 32.[2]
In September 2020, having played over 100 games for Nice, Lees-Melou's contract was extended for one year.[5] His four season-stay ended with 140 games and 18 goals.[2]
On 13 July 2021, Lees-Melou signed a three-year deal with Norwich City for a fee of under £6 million, ahead of the team's return to the Premier League.[6] He scored his first goal the following 10 April, opening a 2–0 home win over relegation rivals Burnley; after the game, striker Teemu Pukki said that he would be crucial for the rest of the season.[7]
On 23 July 2022, Lees-Melou signed for Ligue 1 side Brest on a three-year contract with an option for a further year. Norwich City received a reported €2.3 million transfer fee and a 10% sell-on clause.[8] In November 2023, he extended his contract with Brest until June 2027.[9]
In February 2024, he was named Ligue 1 player of the month.[10] A month later, he was invited by French national coach Didier Deschamps for the friendly matches in March; however, he declined the call-up, stating that "the step is too high."[11] He was eventually named in the Team of the Year for the 2023–24 season, producing the highest number of possessions won in over 269 occasions. By the end of that season, Brest secured a third-place finish in the league and first ever qualification to the UEFA Champions League.[12]
| Season | League | National cup | League cup | Europe | Total | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| 2013–14 | CFA 2 | 24 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 24 | 3 | ||||
| 2014–15 | CFA 2 | 26 | 10 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 26 | 10 | ||||
| Total | 50 | 13 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 50 | 13 | |||||
| Dijon B | 2015–16 | CFA 2 | 7 | 2 | — | — | — | 7 | 2 | ||||
| Dijon | 2015–16 | Ligue 2 | 16 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 18 | 2 | ||
| 2016–17 | Ligue 1 | 32 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 34 | 7 | |||
| Total | 48 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 52 | 9 | ||||
| Nice | 2017–18 | Ligue 1 | 34 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 47 | 5 | |
| 2018–19 | Ligue 1 | 30 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 31 | 2 | |||
| 2019–20 | Ligue 1 | 26 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | — | 29 | 6 | |||
| 2020–21 | Ligue 1 | 29 | 4 | 2 | 1 | — | 2 | 0 | 33 | 5 | |||
| Total | 119 | 16 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 13 | 0 | 140 | 18 | |||
| Norwich City | 2021–22 | Premier League | 33 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 37 | 1 | ||
| Brest | 2022–23 | Ligue 1 | 32 | 5 | 2 | 1 | — | — | 34 | 6 | |||
| 2023–24 | Ligue 1 | 29 | 4 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 31 | 4 | ||||
| Total | 61 | 9 | 4 | 1 | — | — | 65 | 10 | |||||
| Career total | 318 | 50 | 13 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 13 | 0 | 351 | 53 | |||
Individual
February 2024[15]