Lamine Diarra Explained

Lamine Diarra
Upright:1.1
Birth Date:20 December 1983
Birth Place:Bignona, Senegal
Height:1.75 m
Position:Striker
Years1:2001–2003
Clubs1:Dakar UC
Years2:2003–2005
Clubs2:Jeanne d'Arc
Years3:2005–2007
Clubs3:Zrinjski Mostar
Caps3:27
Goals3:12
Years4:2007
Clubs4:Beira-Mar (loan)
Caps4:5
Goals4:0
Years5:2007–2012
Clubs5:Partizan
Caps5:112
Goals5:56
Years6:2010–2011
Clubs6:Al Shabab (loan)
Caps6:8
Goals6:3
Years7:2012–2017
Clubs7:Antalyaspor
Caps7:104
Goals7:38
Years8:2016
Clubs8:Göztepe (loan)
Caps8:14
Goals8:3
Years9:2017–2019
Clubs9:Elazığspor
Caps9:52
Goals9:18
Totalcaps:322
Totalgoals:130
Nationalyears1:2009
Nationalteam1:Senegal
Nationalcaps1:1
Nationalgoals1:0

Lamine Diarra (born 20 December 1983) is a Senegalese former professional footballer who played as a striker. He was capped once for Senegal at full level.

Nicknamed Black Mamba and Mamba Di,[1] [2] due to his speed and clinical finishing, Diarra is best remembered for his time at Partizan and Antalyaspor.

Club career

Early career

Born in Bignona, Diarra began his senior career with Dakar UC, becoming the Senegal Premier League top scorer with nine goals in the 2002–03 season.[3] He subsequently moved to Jeanne d'Arc, partnering Dame N'Doye on the team that reached the CAF Champions League semi-finals during the 2004 campaign.[4] Diarra was the team's highest scorer with six goals in the process.[5]

In the second half of 2005, Diarra was acquired by Bosnia and Herzegovina club Zrinjski Mostar. He was initially unable to play competitive football due to paperwork issues, which lasted for several months.[6] However, after obtaining the certificate, Diarra was cleared to debut for the club, making 13 league appearances and netting four goals in the second half of the 2005–06 season.[7] He improved his numbers in the fall of 2006, scoring nine goals in 17 games across all competitions. In early 2007, Diarra was loaned to Portuguese club Beira-Mar until the end of the season.[8]

Partizan

On 4 July 2007, Diarra signed a three-year contract with Partizan and was given the number 26 shirt.[9] Already that season, he became a mainstay of Partizan and part of the great trio of foreigners JucaMoreira – Diarra, which brought the club dominance in domestic competitions. He made his competitive debut for the side in a UEFA Cup qualifier against his former club Zrinjski Mostar, on 19 July, scoring a hat-trick in a 6–1 away victory.[10] On 16 April 2008, Diarra netted a brace in the Serbian Cup semi-final in what would be an eventual 3–2 away success over Red Star Belgrade.[11] He later bagged three goals in the competition's final, a 3–0 win over Zemun.[12] Throughout the league campaign, Diarra made 31 appearances and scored 12 goals, as Partizan won the title. He was also the team's overall top scorer with 20 goals in all competitions and signed a two-year extension to his contract.[13]

On 6 August 2008, Diarra scored his first goal of the season in a 2–0 home win over Inter Baku in the second leg of the UEFA Champions League second qualifying round.[14] He also netted a goal in a 2–1 victory over their crosstown rivals Red Star Belgrade on 5 October.[15] Diarra continued his good form by equalizing the score versus Sampdoria in the UEFA Cup group stage, on 24 October, however Partizan would go on to lose the game 2–1.[16] He made his 50th league appearance for Partizan on 7 March 2009, scoring the winning goal in a 1–0 win against Javor Ivanjica. In addition to helping the club defend the double, Diarra became the Serbian SuperLiga top scorer with 19 goals. He was also one of eight Partizan players named in the league's Best XI.[17] Thanks to his speed and goal-scoring skills, he earned himself the nickname "Black mamba" among Partizan fans.

On 1 November 2009, Diarra made his 100th competitive appearance for the club in a league game versus Napredak Kruševac, which Partizan won 3–1. He subsequently scored the opening goal in an eventual 2–1 away victory against Red Star Belgrade on 28 November.[18] Diarra also netted the winning goal to give his team a 1–0 home win over Shakhtar Donetsk in the last game of the UEFA Europa League group stage on 16 December.[19] He later bagged a hat-trick in the final round of the domestic league on 16 May 2010, a 6–0 home win over Mladi Radnik to clinch their third consecutive title. During his third season at Partizan, Diarra appeared in 43 games and tallied 21 goals across all competitions.

Loan to Al Shabab

On 27 June 2010, it was announced that Diarra would be joining Al Shabab on a season-long loan.[20] He scored his first competitive goal for the club on 3 September in the second round of the UAE Pro League, a 2–0 away win over Dubai CSC. On 27 October, in a league game against Al Wahda, Diarra suffered a fracture in his lower left leg,[21] spending the rest of the season in the process of recovering. He failed to make any more appearances for Al Shabab, before returning to Partizan in June 2011.[22]

Return to Partizan

After completing his loan spell, Diarra returned to Serbia and made his first appearance back for Partizan in a 5–0 home win over Novi Pazar on 13 August 2011. He came on as a substitute in the 74th minute, receiving a standing ovation upon his introduction.[23] On 28 August, Diarra bagged a brace in a 3–0 home win over OFK Beograd.[24] He also netted two goals versus Jagodina on 17 March 2012, as Partizan won 4–0.[25] Two weeks later, Diarra scored a brace against Rad, becoming the league's joint all-time leading scorer with 52 goals.[26] He played his last match for Partizan on 20 May, scoring the team's only goal in a 1–0 home win over Metalac Gornji Milanovac, celebrating his fourth league title. In his four seasons at Partizan, Diarra made 151 official appearances and scored 75 goals across all competitions.

Antalyaspor

In the 2012 summer transfer window, Diarra signed a two-year contract with Turkish club Antalyaspor on a free transfer. He immediately established himself as the club's leading striker, scoring 13 league goals in his debut Süper Lig season, missing only one out of 34 matches. In the following 2013–14 campaign, Diarra appeared in all 34 league fixtures and scored 10 goals, as the club suffered relegation to the 1. Lig. He helped them win promotion back to the top flight after only one season, being the team's top scorer with 15 goals in 29 league appearances (plus one goal in three playoff games).

Loan to Göztepe

On 1 February 2016, Diarra was loaned to 1. Lig club Göztepe until the end of the 2015–16 season.[27] He scored three times in 14 league games, as the side finished 13th among 18 teams.

Later career

On 28 January 2017, Diarra signed with 1. Lig side Elazığspor on a one-and-a-half-year contract.[28]

International career

Diarra represented Senegal with the national under-23 team at the 2003 All-Africa Games. He scored one goal for the side in a 2–1 loss to Zambia, as they exited the tournament in the group stage.[29] Two months later in December, Diarra netted the second goal of a 2–0 home win over Egypt in the Olympic qualifiers.[30] However, Senegal failed to qualify for the final tournament.

On 14 October 2009, Diarra made his full international debut for Senegal after coming on as a 79th-minute substitute for Demba Ba in a 2–0 friendly loss to South Korea.[31]

Career statistics

Club

Club!rowspan="2"
SeasonLeagueNational CupLeague CupContinentalOtherTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Zrinjski Mostar2005–06Bosnian Premier League1340000134
2006–07Bosnian Premier League1481021179
Total271210213013
Beira-Mar (loan)2006–07Primeira Liga50110061
Partizan2007–08Serbian SuperLiga311245233720
2008–09Serbian SuperLiga2919411024322
2009–10Serbian SuperLiga2914431044321
2010–11Serbian SuperLiga00000000
2011–12Serbian SuperLiga231151002812
Total11256171022915175
Al Shabab (loan)2010–11UAE Pro League83111000104
Antalyaspor2012–13Süper Lig3313854118
2013–14Süper Lig3410754115
2014–151. Lig291500313216
2015–16Süper Lig8050130
Total1043820103112749
Göztepe (loan)2015–161. Lig14300143
Elazığspor2016–171. Lig12200122
2017–181. Lig17800178
2018–191. Lig23800238
Total5218005218
Career total322130402210241031390163

International

Honours

Partizan

Individual

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Full focus crucial for derby game . partizan.rs . 31 October 2013 . 1 December 2013.
  2. Web site: Kakav Drogba, 'Mamba Di' je zakon! . sr . sportske.net . 29 November 2013 . 1 December 2013.
  3. Web site: Senegal 2002/03 . . 18 July 2018.
  4. Web site: Jeanne d'Arc into last four . BBC . 17 October 2004 . 18 July 2018.
  5. Web site: African Club Competitions 2004 . . 18 July 2018.
  6. Web site: SENEGALAC DIARRA NAPOKON PLEMIĆ! . bs . blog.dnevnik.hr . 10 November 2005 . 1 March 2019.
  7. Web site: 2005/06 . bs . hskzrinjski.ba . 1 March 2019.
  8. Web site: Lamine Diarra até final da época em Aveiro . pt . oln.pt . 31 January 2007 . 1 March 2019.
  9. Web site: Potpisali Diarra i Sikimić . sr . partizan.rs . 4 July 2007 . 12 January 2011.
  10. Web site: Partizan deklasirao Zrinjski – 6:1! . sr . b92.net . 19 July 2007 . 26 March 2011.
  11. Web site: Partizan u finalu Lav kupa . sr . sportskacentrala.com . 16 April 2008 . 18 July 2018.
  12. Web site: Het-trik Dijare za jubilarni pehar Partizana . sr . blic.rs . 8 May 2008 . 24 February 2011.
  13. Web site: Diarra produžio ugovor! . sr . partizan.rs . 21 June 2008 . 12 January 2011.
  14. Web site: Classy Partizan seal progress . UEFA . 6 August 2008 . 18 July 2018.
  15. Web site: Dijara i Žuka za pobedu Partizana . sr . b92.net . 5 October 2008 . 12 July 2011.
  16. Web site: Dessena decider breaks Sampdoria spell . UEFA . 23 October 2008 . 24 February 2011.
  17. Web site: Izabran najbolji tim Jelen Super lige Srbije! . sr . partizan.rs . 28 May 2009 . 24 February 2011.
  18. Web site: Partizan sa desetoricom bolji od Zvezde . sr . sportskacentrala.com . 28 November 2009 . 18 July 2018.
  19. Web site: Partizan bow out with Shakhtar scalp . UEFA . 16 December 2009 . 12 January 2011.
  20. Web site: Diarra i zvanično potpisao za Al Shabab Al Arabi Club . sr . partizan.rs . 27 June 2010 . 1 July 2010.
  21. Web site: Dijara: Biću spreman za Partizan . sr . novosti.rs . 10 November 2010 . 18 July 2018.
  22. Web site: Dijara: Lepo je vratiti se u Partizan, odbranićemo duplu krunu . sr . blic.rs . 14 June 2011 . 18 July 2018.
  23. Web site: Partizanova petarda Novom Pazaru, ovacije Dijari . sr . blic.rs . 13 August 2011 . 28 August 2011.
  24. Web site: Dva gola Dijare za ubedljivu pobedu . sr . b92.net . 28 August 2011 . 28 August 2011.
  25. Web site: Dijara: Biće golova...ako Bog da . sr . mondo.rs . 18 March 2012 . 18 July 2018.
  26. Web site: Dijara izjednačio rekord Kaluđerovića . sr . blic.rs . 31 March 2012 . 29 September 2018.
  27. Web site: Lamine Diarra Göztepe'mizde . tr . goztepe.org.tr . 1 February 2016 . 4 February 2016.
  28. Web site: Elazığspor, Diarra ile 1.5 yıllık sözleşme imzaladı . tr . Hürriyet . 28 January 2017 . 18 July 2018.
  29. Web site: African Games 2003 . . 18 July 2018.
  30. Web site: SA dominate in Olympic qualifiers . BBC . 20 December 2003 . 18 July 2018.
  31. Web site: Diarra debitovao . sr . partizan.rs . 17 October 2009 . 12 January 2011.