Loum Tchaouna: What Can He Provide to Lazio’s Attack?
It has been a breakout year for Loum Tchaouna. Having left Chad for France at a young age, Tchaouna spent time at FC Kronenbourg, Schilitghelm, and Strasbourg before joining Rennes’ academy in 2014, where he would develop across the next eight years and become a France youth international at the U16, U17, U19 and U20 level.
He made his Ligue 1 debut in a 1-1 draw vs. Bordeaux on September 9, 2021, and he would go on to make 10 appearances, all off the bench, whilst also making a name for himself in the Europa Conference League. This would draw the attention of Dijon, who signed him on loan for the 2022/23 season. Whilst he was unable to prevent them from dropping down to the third tier, he nevertheless got his first real taste of consistent minutes at the senior level.
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Tchaouana didn’t stick around long at Brittany and instead chose to depart his boyhood club, joining Salernitana on deadline day for a fee of €3 million. Playing outside of France for the first time in his career, he took to Italian football like a duck to water and made 33 appearances in Serie A, 23 of those coming as a starter, and amassed 2099 minutes. With four goals and four assists, he has been shifted across the front four and has impressed with his versatile skill set and efficiency in attack.
Salernitana suffered a dismal campaign, winning just two matches and going through four managers, but Tchaouna nevertheless impressed in his debut campaign in Italy and scored three minutes into the second half to give them a priceless victory against Hellas Verona on December 30. Little did they know, it would be their last victory of the Serie A season.
It was apparent that he wouldn’t be sticking around in Italy’s second tier, and as such, Tchaouna has taken his talents to the Italian capital and joined Lazio on a five-year deal that will see him earn €1 million + bonuses per season. The Biancocelesti paid his €8 million release clause to bring him to Rome, tying down the 20-year-old to a long-term deal.
After a disappointing 7th-placed finish, Lazio have commenced a major rebuild at the Stadio Olimpico, parting ways with veteran stars like Felipe Anderson, Luis Alberto, and all-time leading scorer Ciro Immobile. They have appointed Marco Baroni as their new manager, they’ve brought in Gaetano Castrovilli and Gabriele Artistico on free transfers, added Nuno Tavares and Fisayo Dele-Bashiru on loan, and reunited Baroni with former player Tijjani Noslin.
However, in Loum Tchaouna, they have acquired the services of a promising, versatile forward who should help inject some much-needed unpredictability into their attacking setup. His unofficial debut saw him score a hat-trick in a 23-0 victory against CS Auronzo, before playing the first 45 minutes in their 3-1 win vs. Trapani. He’s already honed his skills and made the adjustment to Serie A, and now, he has the opportunity to showcase his unique attributes for one of the biggest teams in Italy.
By: Scot Munroe / @scot_munroe
Featured Image: @GabFoligno / NurPhoto