Bakary Soumaré

Bakary Soumaré ( born September 9, 1985 in Bamako ) is a Malian football player who is since July 2012 at Philadelphia Union under contract. He is also held by the French citizenship. His preferred position is central defense.

Career

Youth

Soumaré spent most of his childhood in Paris before he was confirmed in 2002 as a youth inclusion in the football squad La Salle Academy in New York City. After moving to the team from the University of Virginia in 2005 - for which, however, he was only in the following year came to significant periods of time - to Soumaré played in the focus of U.S. professional teams. In MLS SuperDraft, a kind of talent exchange the American professional league, signed him in January 2007, the Chicago Fire SC as second of all available players.

Professional career

So Soumaré began his professional career with the Chicago Fire SC in Major League Soccer, for his achievements in the season of 2008 he was nominated for election as a defender of, but not to win this. In the same year was the Malian part of the All-Star selection in the league, total, he completed within three seasons, 62 league games for the club. As a result of a dispute with coach Denis Hamlett during halftime of a league game came in August 2009 to the break between Soumaré and Chicago Fire. A few days after this incident changed Soumaré to U.S. Boulogne in the French Ligue 1, the transfer fee was rumored € 1-1.5 million. There he was promoted to captain and played two and a half years in the first and second division, where he completed 77 league games. In January 2012 he was loaned for the rest of the season at the Karlsruher SC, which in the case of the class obtaining in addition possessed a purchase option. Soumaré, the Boulogne problems in handling the newly hired coach was said to have decided, despite concrete offers of other second division - Fortuna Dusseldorf vs FC Ingolstadt - for the change at that table last. After he failed the Karlsruher SC in the relegation against SSV Jahn Regensburg and relegation, he moved back to the Major League Soccer, where he will contest in 2012 at Philadelphia Union this season to end.

National

Out of gratitude towards the United States, where it was only made ​​possible for him to become a professional footballer, Soumaré originally planned aground for their national team. However, one needs to gain U.S. citizenship, have lived in the U.S. for a certain time; it took too long for him. So he decided to follow it to compete for his home country of Mali. For the Malian national football team Soumaré graduated since 2009 thus thirteen internationals.