Mohamed-Ali Cho

Mohamed-Ali Cho
Cho with Real Sociedad in 2023
Personal information
Full name Mohamed-Ali Cho[1]
Date of birth (2004-01-19) 19 January 2004 (age 20)[1]
Place of birth Stains, France
Height 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)[1]
Position(s) Forward
Team information
Current team
 Nice
Number 25
Youth career
2010–2011 Chantilly
2011–2015 Paris Saint-Germain
2015–2020 Everton
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2020 Angers B 1 (0)
2020–2022 Angers 53 (4)
2022–2024 Real Sociedad 30 (1)
2024– Nice 28 (3)
International career‡
2019 England U16 2 (0)
2022 France U19 3 (2)
2023– France U20 6 (1)
2021– France U21 7 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 19:05, 1 December 2024 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 23:00, 25 March 2024 (UTC)

Mohamed-Ali Cho (born 19 January 2004) is a French professional footballer who plays as a forward for Ligue 1 club Nice. Born in France and raised in England, Cho previously represented England as a youth international before switching his allegiance to France.

Early life

Cho was born in France to an Ivorian father and a French mother of Moroccan origin and moved to England at one week old, where his family worked in London.[2] He spent his childhood moving between England and France several times. Cho briefly returned to France at age 6 to play in Chantilly's and then Paris Saint-Germain's academy, before returning to England at age 11.[3]

Club career

Angers

A youth product of Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and Everton, Cho signed his first professional contract with Angers on 2 May 2020.[4] In doing so, he became the second youngest player to sign a professional contract in France (behind Eduardo Camavinga).[5] Angers planned to initially use him in the reserve teams, but he quickly became part of the first team.[6] He made his professional debut with Angers in a 2–0 Ligue 1 loss to Bordeaux on 30 August 2020.[7] He was one of the 10 youngest players to play in the top European leagues during the season.[8] He started his first match for Angers in the cup on 11 February 2021, in a 2–1 win against Rennes.[9] He made his first league start on 17 April 2021 against Rennes.[10]

Real Sociedad

On 15 June 2022, it was announced that Cho had signed a five-year deal with La Liga side Real Sociedad.[11] The transfer fee paid to Angers was reportedly in the region of €12 to €15 million.[12] On 21 December, he scored his first goal at the club in a 5–0 away win over CD Coria in the Copa del Rey second round.[13] On 4 June 2023, he scored his first La Liga goal in a 2–1 victory over Sevilla.[14]

Nice

On 8 January 2024, Cho returned to France, signing a four-and-a-half-year contract with Ligue 1 club OGC Nice, for a reported transfer fee of €12 million.[15][16]

International career

Born in France, raised in England, and of Ivorian and Moroccan descent, Cho is eligible for all four national teams. He was a youth international for England with two caps for the England U16s.[4][17] He has also played for the England U15s.[18] In early 2021, Cho said that he hadn't decided on who to represent internationally, stating: "I am well aware of the options I have and we will see later".[19] He switched to represent the France U21s in April 2021.[20]

Career statistics

As of 1 December 2024[21]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National Cup Europe Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Angers B 2020–21 National 2 1 0 — — — 1 0
Angers 2020–21 Ligue 1 21 0 2 0 — — 23 0
2021–22 Ligue 1 32 4 1 0 — — 33 4
Total 53 4 3 0 — — 56 4
Real Sociedad 2022–23 La Liga 19 1 1 1 4[a] 0 — 24 2
2023–24 La Liga 11 0 1 0 4[b] 0 — 16 0
Total 30 1 2 1 8 0 — 40 2
Nice 2023–24 Ligue 1 17 1 3 1 — — 20 2
2024–25 Ligue 1 11 2 0 0 4[a] 1 — 15 3
Total 28 3 3 1 4 1 — 35 5
Career total 112 8 8 2 12 1 0 0 132 11
  1. ^ a b Appearances in UEFA Europa League
  2. ^ Appearances in UEFA Champions League

References

  1. ^ a b c "Mohamed-Ali Cho". Real Sociedad. Retrieved 2 August 2022.
  2. ^ "PSG's Mbappe may feel old when facing new Angers prodigy Cho". USA TODAY.
  3. ^ "Mohamed-Ali Cho: Everton must have regrets over record-breaking Ligue 1 golden boy". Everton News. 11 December 2020.
  4. ^ a b "Mohamed-Ali Cho signe pro !". Angers SCO. 2 May 2020.
  5. ^ "Mohamed-Ali Cho, round 1". sofoot.com (in French). 10 September 2021. Retrieved 9 October 2021.
  6. ^ "Mohamed-Ali Cho, a generation 2004 player in Ligue 1 next season?".
  7. ^ "Angers SCO vs. Bordeaux - 30 August 2020 - Soccerway". Soccerway.
  8. ^ Watson, Ian (15 January 2021). "Ex-Everton and Chelsea kids among 10 youngest players in Euro leagues".
  9. ^ "ANGERS SCO VS. RENNES 2 - 1". Soccerway.
  10. ^ "Compositions d'Angers-Rennes: Jérémy Doku et Mohamed-Ali Cho titulaires". L'ÉQUIPE.
  11. ^ "Explosividad para el ataque" [Explosiveness for the attack] (in Spanish). Real Sociedad. 15 June 2022. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  12. ^ "Official | Mohamed-Ali Cho signs for Real Sociedad". Get French Football News. 15 June 2022. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  13. ^ "CD Coria 0–5 R. Sociedad". as.com. 21 December 2022.
  14. ^ "Real Sociedad 2 - 1 Sevilla | Football". The Guardian. 4 June 2023.
  15. ^ "Welcome, Mohamed-Ali Cho!". OGC Nice. 8 January 2024. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
  16. ^ "Nice: Mohamed-Ali Cho s'est engagé jusqu'en 2028 (off)" [Nice: Mohamed-Ali Cho is committed until 2028 (off)]. OneFootball (in French). 8 January 2024. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
  17. ^ "England 3 - 3 Republic of Ireland | 2019 - U16 Mens Friendlies | 999945880 | Football Association of Ireland". www.fai.ie.
  18. ^ Lantheaume, Romain (31 August 2020). "Angers : Mohamed-Ali Cho, un record en L1, et un avenir avec le Maroc ?". Afrik-Foot.
  19. ^ "Angers : Mohamed-Ali Cho met le Maroc et la Côte d'Ivoire en salle d'attente". Afrik-Foot. 15 February 2021.
  20. ^ "Angers Sco. Mohamed-Ali Cho sélectionné en équipe de France espoirs". 4 November 2021.
  21. ^ "M. Cho". Retrieved 30 August 2021.