Arsenal cult icon Yaya Sanogo finds new club after nearly a YEAR unemployed with Amazon team formed just six years ago
FORMER Arsenal striker Yaya Sanogo has been tasked with an Amazon delivery... after joining a club in the Brazilian rainforest.
The Frenchman had been without a club since leaving Chinese side Qingdao Red Lions last autumn.
2
But Sanogo, who won the 2014 FA Cup with Arsenal, has now signed a nine-month deal with Brazilian second-tier club Amazonas FC.
Founded under six years ago, they are based at Manaus in rural northwestern Brazil.
The capital city of Amazonas state, with a two million population, it lies by the Amazon river in the heart of the world famous rainforest.
The club has made a dismal start to its new season, losing three and drawing one of its opening four games.
But president Weslley Couto announced to Brazilian media that he has pulled off a coup by securing Sanogo 's signature.
The Paris-born striker made 20 Arsenal appearances, scoring one goal.
He also had spells with Crystal Palace, Charlton and Huddersfield as well as playing for Ajax, Auxerre and Toulouse.
Sanogo bizarrely joined Armenian side Urartu for the 2023-24 season before moving to China.
He scored seven goals in 19 games for Qingdao, but was not offered a new deal.
The globe-trotting frontman will now ply his trade in a sixth different country.
Viktor Gyokeres responds as he is asked if he 'likes London' amid Arsenal transfer links
Sanogo said last November: "I'm now out of contract, and I am open to anything.
"I've enjoyed being in China, but let's see what project I will go for.
"I have had a number of phone calls, and the omens are good - especially from clubs in Europe.
"I hope to get fixed up soon. I've not set myself a definite target - I just want to enjoy myself and have fun.
"With all the struggles I have had in my career, that is truly my aim now."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Metro
an hour ago
- Metro
Arsenal urged to sign Man City star after £36m Rayan Cherki transfer
Arsenal have been urged to make a move for Phil Foden following Rayan Cherki's move to Manchester City. City have significantly strengthened ahead of the Club World Cup with the signings of Cherki, Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Ait-Nouri. Cherki arrives at City in a €42.5 million (£36.1m) deal from Lyon following an impressive season in Ligue 1. The 21-year-old also caught the eye with his first two senior appearances for France's national side last week. Cherki primarily played on the right side of Lyon's attack which raises questions over Foden's place in the City team under Pep Guardiola. Wake up to find news on your club in your inbox every morning with Metro's Football Newsletter. Sign up to our newsletter and then select your team in the link we'll send you so we can get football news tailored to you. City are already looking to sell Jack Grealish this summer but former Chelsea, Marseille and Republic of Ireland striker Tony Cascarino believes Foden may also be on the move. When asked if he believes Arsenal would make a move for Grealish, Cascarino told talkSPORT: 'No, I think Foden's way more likely. 'Obviously Arteta worked at Man City with Phil Foden and for whatever reason, I'm sure we'll find out down the line, Phil Foden just hasn't been the player we know him to be this season. More Trending 'From where he was the Football Writers' Player of the Year the season before, his performances this year have just not justified that. 'But all what's happening at City and all the spending that's gone on, I wouldn't be surprised if Foden is allowed to go somewhere. 'Whether City let him go Arsenal, I don't know, but they let Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko go there. 'If Arsenal could get him, I think Arteta would really consider that, yeah.' For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. MORE: Jack Grealish posts update after being axed from Man City Club World Cup squad MORE: Emiliano Martinez responds to Manchester United transfer approach MORE: Andy Robertson makes decision on leaving Liverpool for Atletico Madrid
Daily Mirror
an hour ago
- Daily Mirror
Florian Wirtz idolised Chelsea flop as Liverpool close in on £116m transfer
Incoming Liverpool star Florian Wirtz will have a lot of pressure to succeed after arriving as the most expensive Premier League player for £116.5m and his former ex-team-mates have been discussing when he burst onto the scene Florian Wirtz will be hoping to have a bigger impact on the Premier League in Liverpool red than his boyhood hero Marko Marin did wearing Chelsea blue. The champions' British record signing grew up idolising Marin when he first started showing his potential playing alongside older boys at Grun-Weiss Brauweiler, the junior club on the outskirts of Cologne where his dad Hans-Joachim acts as both the chairman and his youngest son's agent. When the Bosnia-born German international moved to Stamford Bridge from Werder Bremen in the summer of 2012 in a deal worth £6.5million, big things were expected of him. But he played just two Premier League starts for the Londoners and was loaned out to Sevilla, Fiorentina, Anderlecht and Trabzonspor before joining Olympiakos three years later. Marin was a hugely-talented attacking midfielder playing his best football with Bremen when Bundesliga rivals FC Koln launched a charm offensive to sign the precocious seven-year-old Wirtz in 2010. Club officials wanted to present him with a shirt bearing the name of his favourite player - and were stunned when the youngster name-checked Marin rather than Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi or German star Mesut Ozil. He still treasures the jersey. Liverpool have agreed a deal with Bayer Leverkusen that will see them pay £100million plus another £16million in add-ons to bring Wirtz to Anfield in a bid to improve a team that cruised to the title under Arne Slot in the Dutchman's first season. The 22-year-old is a team player who isn't afraid to push against the grain. Former team-mates at Brauweiler describe a personality who was always ready to sacrifice himself for the good of the collective. Benjamin Schwarz recalled: "Flo always gave his best for the team and always encouraged the other boys. Even at a young age that was very noticeable. He also always passed the ball to his team-mates even though he knew he was so much better than the rest of us." Bilal Ksiouar added: "When you played in the same team as Flo it was like you had one or two players more than the opposition. Even against older boys and better teams, he always stood out." Yet Wirtz caused a storm in the local area when he left Koln after 10 years in January 2020 to join Bayer Leverkusen. The two rivals had struck a pact not to poach each other's youth players, but Leverkusen felt that the outstanding promise being shown by the 16-year-old was something they just couldn't ignore. Rudi Voller, the legendary German striker who won the World Cup in 1990, was Leverkusen's technical director. He explained: "Failing to sign Wirtz at that age would have been negligent - and he was going to leave them when his contract expired that summer anyway." Wirtz continued his studies at his new club, getting top marks in advanced maths, advanced geography, German and biology. But within five months of moving to Leverkusen, at the age of just 17 years and 15 days, he made his Bundesliga debut against Werder Bremen and in doing so overtook Kai Havertz as the club's youngest-ever player. Even then he had a talent for producing the unexpected both on and off the pitch. Fans were shocked when he admitted that he always opted to play as rivals Bayern Munich during games of FIFA. And when asked who he admired most amongst his contemporaries, he named Joao Felix, the Portuguese striker who is now famous for being another big-money Chelsea misfit. "Joao Felix is a similar type of player to me," said Wirtz. "He's very creative and I learn a lot from him." Yet it was that same bloody-minded attitude that drove Wirtz into returning to fitness just 272 days after rupturing a cruciate ligament against old foes Koln in 2022, an injury that would force him to miss the World Cup. Club medics were constantly urging the midfielder to slow down, but Wirtz would turn up for rehabilitation sessions even when ordered to have a day off. With an attitude like that, he will fit straight in at Anfield. Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Man United contact new striker target after Viktor Gyokeres picks rival Premier League club as his No 1 preference - but major stumbling block threatens to scupper move
Manchester United have posted interest in Eintracht Frankfurt striker Hugo Ekitike after being made aware Viktor Gyokeres would prefer to join Arsenal. Ekitike is valued at £80million and Chelsea and Liverpool are also among the 22-year-old's admirers, although his price tag is prohibitive. He scored 22 goals in 45 games for Frankfurt last season and was previously on the books at Paris Saint-Germain, who sold him for close to £14m in 2024. The France U-21 international finished the campaign as Frankfurt's top scorer in the Bundesliga, tied with Omar Marmoush, who left for Manchester City in January. United head coach Ruben Amorim had targeted a reunion with Gyokeres after his side finished a lowly 15th in the Premier League and lost the Europa League final. But the Red Devils' hopes of signing the in-demand Swede look to have faded and as a result, they could turn their attention to Ekitike, despite his hefty valuation. In a potential boost for United, Ekitike was asked which club was his 'favourite' as a child and he quickly responded: 'Manchester United'. Arsenal are understood to be maintaining dialogue with Sporting over Gyokeres although RB Leipzig's Benjamin Sesko remains their No 1 target. Should they fail to strike a deal with Leipzig, they could revert to Gyokeres, who scored an incredible 54 goals in 52 appearances for his club last season. The 27-year-old also has interest from Juventus and clubs in Saudi Arabia. United, who have no European football to offer their targets this summer, are continuing to work on a deal to sign Brentford forward Bryan Mbeumo. A first bid of £55million for the 25-year-old was rejected earlier this week. Reports have indicated that Tottenham, who have officially unveiled Thomas Frank as their new head coach, would look to hijack the move. United also admire Bournemouth forward Antoine Semenyo, who is on Spurs' radar, too.
