Khalilou Fadiga

Khalilou Fadiga (born 30 December 1974) is a Senegalese former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.

He started his youth career at the Paris-based clubs Paris Saint Germain and Red Star before going to FC Liège in the Belgian League. He made his senior debut at FC Liège in the 1994–1995 season before playing for Lommel (KVSK United) and Club Brugge. After a loan spell with Auxerre in 2000, he signed permanently for the club in 2001.

In the summer of 2003, he was signed by Inter. At Inter, doctors discovered that he had heart problems and he never appeared for the team. He opted not to retire. After leaving Inter, he had brief stints at Bolton, Derby County, Coventry City, Gent, Germinal Beerschot and KSV Temse.

He earned 37 caps for the Senegal national team. He was part of the Senegal team that defeated reigning champions France in the opening fixture of the 2002 World Cup and made it to the quarter-finals. He was also part of the team that finished runner-up in the 2002 African Cup of Nations.

Early career
Fadiga moved to France when he was six years old. Fadiga began his career at Paris Saint-Germain in France but failed to make an impression, and so was transferred to fellow Parisian club, Red Star, before moving to Belgian club RFC Liège.

Lommel
It was in Belgium that he found the profile that was to launch his international career. After one season he moved from FC Liège to Lommel, which is now KVSK United. He played two seasons at Lommel before he was spotted by Club Brugge.

Club Brugge
Fadiga quickly became a fan favorite. He scored nine goals in 67 appearances. In September 2000, the midfielder returned to France when he signed for Auxerre.

Auxerre
In all, he played in 82 league games for the French club, scoring 10 goals, as well as appearing in the Champions League and UEFA Cup during season 2002–03. In his final season at Auxerre, he helped them win the 2002–03 Coupe de France, playing in the final as they defeated Paris Saint-Germain.

Internazionale
Fadiga moved to Internazionale in the summer of 2003, but the discovery of heart problems did not allow him to feature for the Italian club, apart from appearing in a few friendly games during the summer. He was released from the San Siro side after just one season but decided against retirement despite his heart problems.

Bolton Wanderers
English club Bolton Wanderers signed Fadiga for the 2004–05 season after he passed a medical. However, before he made an appearance for Bolton, he collapsed prior to a match in October, and had to be fitted with a defibrillator due to an irregular heartbeat. Despite stating his desire to return to the game, medical specialists urged him to retire, warning that if during a game his chest was knocked the defibrillator could fail, leading to instant death. However, following a period of rest and passing a medical, Fadiga returned to the Bolton squad in early 2005 and played in five games.

At the start of the 2005–06 campaign, Fadiga was loaned to Derby County of the Football League Championship, making four appearances. On his return to the Reebok Stadium, he took part in ten games, two of them in the UEFA Cup, before eventually being released in May 2006.

Coventry City
Without a club at the start of the 2006–07 season, he went on trial with Portsmouth and played for their reserve team. He also had trials at Watford and Hull City, before eventually signing a four-month contract with Coventry City on 23 February 2007. In April 2007, he suffered a serious achilles injury in the home game against Preston, and it ended his time at Coventry.

Return to Belgium
He returned to his wife's homeland, signing with AA Gent. After one year, he moved in June 2008 to Germinal Beerschot, but left Beerschot after short time in December 2008. He signed for Third Division club KSV Temse in 2011, before retiring from the game.

Personal life
Fadiga is married to a Belgian woman and has two kids, Noah and Naoel. Noah followed in his footsteps in becoming a professional footballer. Fadiga also holds Belgian nationality.

Career statistics

 * Scores and results list Senegal's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Fadiga goal.