Player Profile: Modibo Diakité

By: Franco | August 12th, 2009

Full name: Modibo Diakité
Date of birth: 2 March 1987 (age 22)
Place of birth:Bourg-la-Reine, Hauts-de-Seine, France
Height:1.92 m
Playing position: Central Defender
Shirt Number: 87
Career to date:
2005 until 2006 – Pescara – 1 appearance
2006 until present – Lazio – 13 appearances (1 goal)

Diakité made his debut in Serie B on May 28, 2006 for Pescara against Mantova at the Stadio Adriatico. Despite only playing one match for the first team, the 19-year old Pescara youth product was recognized by giants Lazio, who signed him at the end of the 2005-06 season for only 300,000 Euro.

In his first season at Lazio, Diakité made three senior appearances in Serie A. His debut came on a trip to Stadio Friuli, where Lazio beat Udinese 4-2. His first start came against Fiorentina, during that match he also had a goal disallowed. In Diakité’s first season at Lazio, (2006-07) Lazio finished third and thus qualified for the UEFA Champions League. For the promising Diakité, there would be more opportunities, however he missed the chance to debut in European competition when he broke his tibia in the opening round of the new season. Diakité was involved in a three way collision with teammate Massimo Mutarelli and Torino striker Nicola Ventola. He unfortunately missed the remainder of that season.

On November 25, 2008, Lazio opted to extend Diakité’s contract until 2013 as a sign of faith in his ability. A week later, Diakité played his first competitive match since the leg injury, impressing as Lazio beat Milan 2-1 at the San Siro in the Coppa Italia. He started a week later in Serie A against Inter, scoring an own goal in the 0-3 loss, yet his performance aside was promising and he retained his starting place. In the next match, Diakité again started, this time away at Udinese and after an hour, the team found itself 3-0 down. In the process of a remarkable fightback to 3-3, Diakité scored his first Lazio and Serie A goal, heading in a corner. A truly memorable match for the giant Frenchman.

Modibo is known for his physical presence and his towering stature. His appearance alone is enough to scare off any attacker, let alone Serie A’s best. Although a physical player and an extremely hard tackler, Diakite landed himself in hot water during this current pre-season as he over did it on some slide tackles in a training run on several team members which caused Lazio Captain Rocchi to react violently. Luckily enough, the “fight” was stopped before it really began.

Arsenal Manager, Arsène Wenger, is said to be a fan of Diakite’s and has made no secret of his attempt to purchase the player during this seasons summer transfer market. Thankfully the likes of Tare and Lotito understand the Frenchmens potential and didn’t listen to any offers submitted by the Londoners.

In summary, if Diakite intends to stick around, I predict him having a big future here at Lazio. With saying that, he is still very inexperienced and will need the help and guidance of his surrounding team mates along with the attention of current coach, Ballardini. We wish Diakite all the best for this coming season and as Laziali, we hope to see him in Lazio’s colors for years to come.

Forza Lazio, Forza Diakite!