| Wilfried Gnonto | |
| Fullname: | Degnand Wilfried Gnonto |
| Birth Date: | 5 November 2003 |
| Birth Place: | Verbania, Italy |
| Height: | 1.72 m |
| Currentclub: | Leeds United |
| Clubnumber: | 29 |
| Youthyears1: | 2008–2010 |
| Youthclubs1: | Baveno |
| Youthyears2: | 2010–2012 |
| Youthclubs2: | Suno |
| Youthyears3: | 2012–2020 |
| Youthclubs3: | Inter Milan |
| Years1: | 2020–2021 |
| Clubs1: | Zürich II |
| Caps1: | 3 |
| Goals1: | 2 |
| Years2: | 2020–2022 |
| Clubs2: | Zürich |
| Caps2: | 65 |
| Goals2: | 9 |
| Years3: | 2022– |
| Clubs3: | Leeds United |
| Caps3: | 61 |
| Goals3: | 11 |
| Nationalyears1: | 2018–2019 |
| Nationalteam1: | Italy U16 |
| Nationalcaps1: | 10 |
| Nationalgoals1: | 1 |
| Nationalyears2: | 2019–2020 |
| Nationalteam2: | Italy U17 |
| Nationalcaps2: | 10 |
| Nationalgoals2: | 5 |
| Nationalyears3: | 2021 |
| Nationalteam3: | Italy U18 |
| Nationalcaps3: | 1 |
| Nationalgoals3: | 0 |
| Nationalyears4: | 2021–2022 |
| Nationalteam4: | Italy U19 |
| Nationalcaps4: | 10 |
| Nationalgoals4: | 5 |
| Nationalyears5: | 2023– |
| Nationalteam5: | Italy U21 |
| Nationalcaps5: | 7 |
| Nationalgoals5: | 5 |
| Nationalyears6: | 2022– |
| Nationalteam6: | Italy |
| Nationalcaps6: | 13 |
| Nationalgoals6: | 1 |
| Club-Update: | 22:21, 10 August 2024 (UTC) |
| Nationalteam-Update: | 26 March 2024 |
Degnand Wilfried Gnonto (pronounced as /it/; born 5 November 2003) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a winger for club Leeds United and the Italy national team.
Gnonto was born in Verbania, Italy, in 2003 to Ivorian parents and he grew up in Baveno, where he attended a liceo classico before switching to pursue secondary education at a liceo scientifico.[1] [2]
A youth product of Inter Milan since the age of nine, Gnonto joined Swiss club Zürich on 23 April 2020.[3] Gnonto made his professional debut with Zürich as a substitute in a 4–1 away Swiss Super League win over FC Vaduz on 24 October 2020, and assisted his team's final goal.[4] He scored his first professional goal on 21 May 2021, once again in a 4–1 league home win over FC Vaduz, after replacing Antonio Marchesano in the second half.[5]
In his second season, he won the 2021–22 Swiss Super League title with the club, with four games remaining.[6]
On 2 September 2022, Gnonto joined Leeds United on a five-year deal for an undisclosed fee.[7] He made his Premier League debut on 29 October, in Leeds’ 2–1 win against Liverpool at Anfield, coming on as a 72nd-minute substitute for Jack Harrison and opening the action that led to the winning goal by Crysencio Summerville.[8] On 5 November, he again replaced Harrison in the second half of the league match against Bournemouth, eventually assisting Summerville for his second consecutive winning goal.[9]
On 4 January 2023, Gnonto scored his first Premier League goal for Leeds, a 28th minute opener in a 2–2 home draw against West Ham United.[10] Two weeks later he scored a brace for Leeds in an FA Cup third round replay against Cardiff City at Elland Road, a volley within the first minute and a goal scored in the 36th minute in a 5–2 win.[11]
On 8 February 2023, he scored less than a minute into Leeds' 2–2 draw with Manchester United, following a pass from Patrick Bamford.[12] In doing so, he became the youngest overseas player to score at Old Trafford in a Premier League fixture.[13]
In August 2023, Gnonto refused to play for Leeds in an attempt to force a transfer away from the club, following Leeds' relegation to the EFL Championship at the end of the 2022–23 season:[14] he then returned to training and officially apologized to manager Daniel Farke at the end of the month.[15] On 26 August, in his first game since his return, Gnonto scored a goal in a 4–3 away league win over Ipswich Town.[16]
In the 2023–24 season, Gnonto, an almost-constant regular on the right wing in Farke’s starting XI, had a run of form that saw him net seven goals from February to mid-March 2024.[17] [18] On 16 May, he set up a goal in Leeds's 4–0 win over Norwich City in the EFL Championship play-off semi-final, which allowed them to advance to the final against Southampton at Wembley Stadium.[19] [20]
Gnonto represented Italy at under-17 level in the 2019 FIFA U-17 World Cup; he was one of the team's key players, scoring three goals en-route to the quarter-finals, where Italy lost out 2–0 to eventual champions Brazil.[21] [22] His opening individual goal in Italy's 2–1 win over Mexico in their second group match – which allowed them to advanced to the round of 16 – was later named the "Goal of the Tournament."[23] [24] His other two goals came in Italy's opening group match, a 5–0 win over Solomon Islands.[25]
In May 2022, after being called by Roberto Mancini to join a training camp for the Italy national team, Gnonto was included in the final 30-player Azzurri squad for the 2022 Finalissima.[26] [27] On 4 June 2022, Gnonto made his senior debut for Italy in a UEFA Nations League game against Germany, coming on as a substitute and providing an assist in a 1–1 home draw.[28] On 14 June, in Italy's fourth group match, he scored his first international goal in a 5–2 away loss to Germany, to become the youngest goalscorer for Italy, aged 18 years and 222 days, breaking the previous record held by Bruno Nicolè since 1958.[29]
In June 2023, Gnonto was included in Italy's squad for the 2022–23 UEFA Nations League Finals.[30] On 18 June, Gnonto started in Italy's 3–2 win over Netherlands in the third-place match of the tournament, contributing to Davide Frattesi's goal, who scored after the former's shot was blocked.[31]
Gnonto is a quick, agile, and technically gifted forward, with a low centre of gravity, who is known for his dribbling ability and close control at speed.[32] [33] [34] He has also stood out for his work-rate on the pitch.[35] Although he is a right-footed player, who is often used as a left winger, a position which allows him to drift out wide, take on opponents, and strike at goal,[36] [37] he is able to play anywhere across the front line, courtesy of his ability to use either foot, and has also been used as a second striker, or even as a right winger, or striker on occasion.[33] [38] [39] [40] Despite his diminutive stature (standing at 1.72m/5 ft 7 in), he possesses significant elevation and physical strength, which allows him to retain the ball under pressure.[32] [37] His qualities and playing style have led him to be compared to English winger Raheem Sterling in the media; Gnonto has also cited his idol, Argentine footballer Lionel Messi, as a major influence.[39] [41] Martin Hardy of The Times also likened Gnonto to compatriot Paolo Di Canio in 2024.[38]
Considered to be a promising young player in the media, in 2020, he was named one of the "Next Generation 2020: 60 of the best young talents in world football" by The Guardian.[42] [43]
| Season | League | National cup | League cup | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Zürich II | 2020–21 | Swiss Promotion League | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | 2 | 1 | 5 | 3 | ||||
| Zürich | 2020–21 | Swiss Super League | 26 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 26 | 1 | ||||
| 2021–22 | Swiss Super League | 33 | 8 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | 36 | 10 | |||||
| 2022–23 | Swiss Super League | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 5 | 1 | — | 12 | 1 | ||||
| Total | 65 | 9 | 4 | 2 | — | 5 | 1 | — | 74 | 12 | |||||
| Leeds United U21 | 2022–23 | — | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||||||
| Leeds United | 2022–23 | Premier League | 24 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 28 | 4 | |||
| 2023–24 | Championship | 36 | 8 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | 44 | 9 | |||
| 2024–25 | Championship | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 1 | ||||
| Total | 61 | 11 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | 74 | 14 | ||||
| Career total | 129 | 22 | 11 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 155 | 29 | |||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Italy | 2022 | 8 | 1 | |
| 2023 | 5 | 0 | ||
| Total | 13 | 1 | ||
Italy score listed first, score column indicates score after each Gnonto goal.[44]
Zürich