Ibrahim Amadou

Ibrahim Amadou (born 6 April 1993) is a French professional footballer who plays for Chinese Super League club Shanghai Shenhua. Primarily a defensive midfielder, he also plays as a centre-back.

Nancy
Born in Douala, Cameroon, Amadou moved to France at age 4 and lived in Colombes, where he played at local club AS Cheminots de l'Ouest. He then spent four years at Racing Club de France, before joining the Nancy academy in 2008.

Amadou made his professional debut on 26 May 2013, playing one minute in the last matchday of the Ligue 1 season against Stade Brestois. On 8 August 2014, he scored his first goal against Orléans in Ligue 2.

Lille
On 16 July 2015, Amadou signed a four-year contract with Lille for a reported fee of €2 million. He started in the first match of the 2015–16 Ligue 1 season against Paris Saint-Germain on 7 August 2015, playing in the heart of defense alongside Renato Civelli as Lille suffered a 1–0 defeat. He scored his first goal for the club in the 2–1 win over Bastia on 12 March 2016.

At the start of the 2017–18 season, manager Marcelo Bielsa appointed Amadou as club captain. On 13 August 2017, he took over the goalkeeping role in the 3–0 loss to Strasbourg, following the sending off of Mike Maignan.

Sevilla
On 2 July 2018, Amadou joined Spanish La Liga side Sevilla on a four-year deal.

On 7 August 2019, Amadou joined Norwich City on a season-long loan, with an option to buy the following summer.

On 31 January 2020, Amadou's loan to Norwich was terminated, and he joined Leganés until the end of the season.

On 5 October 2020, Amadou joined French club Angers on loan.

On 12 January 2022, he mutually terminated his contract with Sevilla.

Metz
On 13 January 2022, Amadou signed for French club Metz on a contract until the end of the 2021–22 season. An option for a further two seasons was included in the deal.

Return to Angers
On 1 September 2022, Amadou returned to Angers on a one-year contract. On 18 March 2023, he mutually terminated his contract with Angers.

Shanghai Shenhua
On 30 March 2023, Amadou joined Chinese Super League club Shanghai Shenhua.

International career
Amadou was born in Cameroon and raised in France. He is a French youth international, and was called up to the senior Cameroon national team, whom he rejected.

Honours
Lille
 * Coupe de la Ligue runner-up: 2015–16

Shanghai Shenhua
 * Chinese FA Cup: 2023
 * Chinese FA Super Cup: 2024