{{short description|Guinean footballer (born 1995)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2023}} {{Infobox football biography | name = Sory Kaba | image = Sory Kaba, RC Lens - Dijon FCO (30-05-2019) 15.jpg | caption = Kaba with [[Dijon FCO|Dijon]] in 2019 | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1995|7|28|df=y}} | birth_place = [[Conakry]], Guinea | height = 1.91 m | position = [[Forward (association football)|Forward]] | currentclub = [[Oud-Heverlee Leuven|OH Leuven]] | clubnumber = 39 | youthyears1 = 2012–2014 | youthclubs1 = [[Alcobendas CF|Alcobendas]] | years1 = 2014–2016 | clubs1 = [[Alcobendas CF|Alcobendas]] | caps1 = 52 | goals1 = 13 | years2 = 2016–2017 | clubs2 = [[Elche CF Ilicitano|Elche B]] | caps2 = 32 | goals2 = 14 | years3 = 2017–2019 | clubs3 = [[Elche CF|Elche]] | caps3 = 59 | goals3 = 22 | years4 = 2019 | clubs4 = [[Dijon FCO|Dijon]] | caps4 = 9 | goals4 = 0 | years5 = 2019–2023 | clubs5 = [[FC Midtjylland|Midtjylland]] | caps5 = 73 | goals5 = 20 | years6 = 2021–2022 | clubs6 = → [[Oud-Heverlee Leuven|OH Leuven]] (loan) | caps6 = 26 | goals6 = 10 | years7 = 2023 | clubs7 = → [[Cardiff City F.C.|Cardiff City]] (loan) | caps7 = 17 | goals7 = 8 | years8 = 2023–2025 | clubs8 = [[UD Las Palmas|Las Palmas]] | caps8 = 17 | goals8 = 1 | years9 = 2024–2025 | clubs9 = → [[Elche CF|Elche]] (loan) | caps9 = 24 | goals9 = 4 | years10 = 2025– | clubs10 = [[Oud-Heverlee Leuven|OH Leuven]] | caps10 = 30 | goals10 = 6 | nationalyears1 = 2017– | nationalteam1 = [[Guinea national football team|Guinea]] | nationalcaps1 = 21 | nationalgoals1 = 3 | club-update = 1 June 2026 | nationalteam-update = 23:25, 10 October 2020 (UTC) }}
'''Sory Kaba''' (born 28 July 1995) is a Guinean professional [[association football|footballer]] who plays as a [[forward (association football)|forward]] for [[Oud-Heverlee Leuven|OH Leuven]], and the [[Guinea national football team|Guinea national team]].
==Club career== Born in [[Conakry]], Kaba moved to Spain at early age and joined [[Alcobendas CF]]'s youth setup in September 2012. He made his senior debut during the 2013–14 season, helping in their promotion to [[Tercera División]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://adalcobendascf.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1278:sory-kaba-jugador-del-alcobendas-levitt-cf-ficha-por-el-elche-cf&catid=1:ultimasnoticias&Itemid=50|title=Sory Kaba, jugador del Alcobendas Levitt CF, ficha por el Elche CF|trans-title=Sory Kaba, player of Alcobendas Levitt CF, signs for Elche CF|publisher=Alcobendas CF|language=es|accessdate=14 May 2017}}</ref>
On 29 January 2016, Kaba joined [[Elche CF]], being assigned to [[Elche CF Ilicitano|the reserves]] also in the fourth tier.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.elchecf.es/noticia/sory-kaba-refuerza-al-elche-ilicitano|title=Sory Kaba refuerza al Elche Ilicitano|trans-title=Sory Kaba bolsters Elche Ilicitano|publisher=Elche CF|language=es|date=29 January 2016|accessdate=14 May 2017}}</ref> On 13 May of the following year he made his first team debut, coming on as a second-half [[Substitute (association football)|substitute]] for [[Álex Fernández (footballer, born 1992)|Álex Fernández]] in a 1–0 [[Segunda División]] home loss against [[CD Mirandés]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.marca.com/futbol/segunda-division/2017/05/13/5917310ce5fdea3b228b45b7.html|title=Un Elche en caída libre entra en descenso y da vida al colista|trans-title=A freefalling Elche go inside the relegation zone and give life to the last placed|publisher=[[Marca (newspaper)|Marca]]|language=es|date=13 May 2017|accessdate=14 May 2017}}</ref>
Kaba scored his first professional goal on 28 May 2017, netting the equalizer in a 1–1 home draw against [[CF Reus Deportiu]]. On 29 July, after [[2016–17 Segunda División|suffering relegation]], he extended his contract for three years and was definitely promoted to the first team.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.diarioinformacion.com/elche-cf/2017/07/28/sory-kaba-seguira-vinculado-elche/1921616.html|title=Sory Kaba seguirá vinculado al Elche tres campañas más|trans-title=Sory Kaba will remain tied up with Elche three more seasons|publisher=Diario Información|language=es|date=28 July 2017|accessdate=3 November 2017}}</ref>
On 31 January 2019, the last day of the 2018–19 winter transfer window, Kaba signed with [[Ligue 1]] side [[Dijon FCO]] having agreed a {{frac|4|1|2}}-year contract. The club paid a €4 million transfer fee to Elche triggering a release clause.<ref>{{cite news |title=Dijon achète Sory Kaba à Elche |url=https://www.lequipe.fr/Football/Actualites/Dijon-achete-sory-kaba-a-elche/984079 |accessdate=1 February 2019 |work=L'Équipe |date=31 January 2019 |language=French}}</ref>
On 5 July 2019, [[Danish Superliga]] club [[FC Midtjylland]] announced that they had signed Kaba on a five-year contract.<ref>[https://www.fcm.dk/nyheder/superliga/fc-midtjylland-henter-landsholdsangriber FC MIDTJYLLAND HENTER LANDSHOLDSANGRIBER], fcm.dk, 5 July 2019</ref> On 31 August 2021, Kaba moved to [[Belgian First Division A]] club [[Oud-Heverlee Leuven|OH Leuven]] on loan for the [[2021–22 Oud-Heverlee Leuven season|2021–22 season]]. OH Leuven secured an option to sign him permanently.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Thomas |first1=Standaert |title=Guinese international moet Thomas Henry doen vergeten: OH Leuven huurt spits Sory Kaba van Midtjylland |url=https://www.nieuwsblad.be/cnt/dmf20210830_97403090 |access-date=31 August 2021 |work=Het Nieuwsblad |date=30 August 2021 |language=nl}}</ref> On 1 June it was confirmed that Kaba was returning to Midtjylland, as the Belgian club had decided not to exercise the option to buy the striker.<ref>[https://www.bold.dk/fodbold/nyheder/sory-kaba-vender-tilbage-til-fc-midtjylland/ Sory Kaba vender tilbage til FC Midtjylland] bold.dk, 1 June 2022</ref>
On 31 January 2023, the last day of the winter transfer window, Kaba joined [[EFL Championship]] club [[Cardiff City F.C.|Cardiff City]] on loan until the end of the season.<ref>{{Cite news |date=31 January 2023 |title=Cardiff sign striker Kaba on loan from Midtjylland |language=en-GB |work=BBC Sport |url=https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/64464026 |access-date=18 August 2023}}</ref>
On 17 August 2023, Kaba officially joined [[La Liga]] club [[UD Las Palmas]] for a reported fee of over €2 million,<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Checa |first=Pablo |date=18 August 2023 |title=Sory Kaba refuerza la delantera de Las Palmas |url=https://as.com/futbol/primera/sory-kaba-refuerza-la-delantera-de-las-palmas-n/ |access-date=18 August 2023 |website=Diario AS |language=es-ES}}</ref> signing a four-year contract with the club.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=17 August 2023 |title=Sory Kaba, nuevo jugador de la UD Las Palmas |url=https://www.udlaspalmas.es/noticias/sory-kaba-nuevo-jugador-de-la-ud-las-palmas |access-date=18 August 2023 |website=UD Las Palmas |language=es-ES}}</ref> On 30 August of the following year, he returned to former side Elche on a one-year loan deal.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.udlaspalmas.es/noticias/sory-kaba-cedido-al-elche-cf|title=Sory Kaba, cedido al Elche CF|trans-title=Sory Kaba, loaned to Elche CF|publisher=UD Las Palmas|language=es|date=30 August 2024|accessdate=2 September 2024}}</ref>
==International career== Kaba was first called up for the [[Guinea national football team|Guinea national team]] on 25 September 2017, for a [[2018 FIFA World Cup qualification (CAF)|2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers]] against [[Tunisia national football team|Tunisia]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://guineenews.org/guinee-tunisie-voici-la-liste-de-lappe-bangoura/|title=Guinée – Tunisie: Voici la liste de Lappé Bangoura|trans-title=Guinea – Tunisia: Released the list of Lappé Bangoura |publisher=Guinée News|language=fr|date=25 September 2017|accessdate=3 November 2017}}</ref> He made his full international debut on 7 October, replacing [[Demba Camara]] in the 4–1 loss.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.fifa.com/worldcup/matches/round=276412/match=300367091/index.html#nosticky|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160819061028/http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/matches/round=276412/match=300367091/index.html#nosticky|url-status=dead|archive-date=19 August 2016|title=Guinea 1–4 Tunisia|publisher=FIFA.com|date=7 October 2017|accessdate=3 November 2017}}</ref>
In January 2022, he was selected by selection [[Kaba Diawara]] to participate in the [[2021 Africa Cup of Nations]] in [[Cameroon]].<ref>{{cite web|access-date=10 January 2022|date=4 January 2022|language=fr|title=CAN 2022. Guinée : avec Saidou Sow, retrouvez la liste complète du Sily national|url=https://www.ouest-france.fr/sport/football/coupe-d-afrique-des-nations/can-2022-la-guinee-revele-la-liste-des-27-joueurs-selectionnes-7163d488-6d7c-11ec-bcfe-9098f705e3cb|website=Ouestfrance.fr}}<!-- auto-translated by Module:CS1 translator --></ref>
==Career statistics== === Club === {{updated|match played 22 September 2024}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://uk.soccerway.com/players/sory-kaba/472704/|title=Sory Kaba|website=Soccerway|accessdate=23 September 2024}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center" |+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competition !rowspan="2"|Club !rowspan="2"|Season !colspan="3"|League !colspan="2"|National cup{{efn|Includes [[Coupe de France]], [[Danish Cup]], [[Belgian Cup]], [[Copa del Rey]]}} !colspan="2"|[[UEFA#Club|Europe]] !colspan="2"|Other !colspan="2"|Total |- !Division!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals |- |rowspan="4"|[[Elche CF|Elche]] |[[2016–17 Segunda División|2016–17]] |[[Segunda División]] |5||1||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||5||1 |- |[[2017–18 Tercera División|2017–18]] |[[Tercera División]] |34||13||5||2||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||39||15 |- |[[2018–19 Segunda División|2018–19]] |Segunda División |20||8||0||0||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||20||8 |- !colspan="2"|Total !59!!22!!5!!2!!colspan="2"|–!!colspan="2"|–!!64!!24 |- |[[Dijon FCO|Dijon]] |[[2019–20 Dijon FCO season|2019–20]] |[[Ligue 1]] |9||0||1||0||colspan="2"|–||1{{efn|Appearance in Ligue 1 relegation play-offs}}||0||11||0 |- |rowspan="6"|[[FC Midtjylland]] |[[2019–20 FC Midtjylland season|2019–20]] |[[Danish Superliga]] |30||7||0||0||2{{efn|name=UEL|Appearances in [[UEFA Europa League]]}}||1||colspan="2"|–||32||8 |- |[[2020–21 FC Midtjylland season|2020–21]] |Danish Superliga |27||11||5||2||10{{efn|name=UCL|Appearances in [[UEFA Champions League]]}}||1||colspan="2"|–||42||14 |- |[[2021–22 FC Midtjylland season|2021–22]] |Danish Superliga |0||0||0||0||0||0||colspan="2"|–||0||0 |- |[[2022–23 FC Midtjylland season|2022–23]] |Danish Superliga |16||2||2||1||9{{efn|Four appearances in UEFA Champions League, five appearances and one goal in UEFA Europa League}}||1||colspan="2"|–||27||4 |- |[[2023–24 FC Midtjylland season|2023–24]] |Danish Superliga |4||0||0||0||4{{efn|name=UECL|Appearances in [[UEFA Conference League]]}}||1||colspan="2"|–||8||1 |- !colspan="2"|Total !77!!20!!7!!3!!25!!4!!colspan="2"|–!!109!!27 |- |[[Oud-Heverlee Leuven|OH Leuven]] (loan) |[[2021–22 Oud-Heverlee Leuven season|2021–22]] |[[Belgian Pro League]] |26||10||3||2||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||29||12 |- |[[Cardiff City F.C.|Cardiff City]] (loan) |[[2022–23 Cardiff City F.C. season|2022–23]] |[[EFL Championship|Championship]] |17||8||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||17||8 |- |[[UD Las Palmas|Las Palmas]] |[[2023–24 UD Las Palmas season|2023–24]] |[[La Liga]] |17||1||3||1||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||20||2 |- |Elche (loan) |[[2024–25 Elche CF season|2024–25]] |Segunda División |3||0||0||0||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||3||0 |- !colspan="3"|Career total !208!!61!!19!!8!!25!!4!!1!!0!!253!!73 |}
{{notelist}}
=== International === {{Updated|matches played on 10 October 2020}}<ref name="nft">{{NFT|69095|accessdate=17 June 2019}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" |+ Appearances and goals by national team and year |- !National team!!Year!!Apps!!Goals |- |rowspan="4"|[[Guinea national football team|Guinea]] |2017||1||0 |- |2018||3||0 |- |2019||9||2 |- |2020||1||1 |- !colspan="2"|Total!!14!!3 |}
:''Scores and results list Guinea's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Kaba goal.''<ref name="nft"/>
{| class="wikitable sortable" |+ List of international goals scored by Sory Kaba |- !scope="col"|No. !scope="col"|Date !scope="col"|Venue !scope="col"|Opponent !scope="col"|Score !scope="col"|Result !scope="col"|Competition |- | align="center"|1 || 15 June 2019 || [[Borg El Arab Stadium]], [[Alexandria]], Egypt || {{fb|EGY}} || align="center"|1–1 || align="center"|1–3 || [[Exhibition game#Association football|Friendly]] |- | align="center"|2 || 22 June 2019 || [[Alexandria Stadium]], Alexandria, Egypt || {{fb|MAD}} || align="center"|1–0 || align="center"|2–2 || [[2019 Africa Cup of Nations Group B|2019 Africa Cup of Nations]] |- | align="center"|3 || 10 October 2020 || [[Estádio Municipal de Albufeira]], [[Albufeira]], Portugal || {{fb|CPV}} || align="center"|1–1 || align="center"|2–1 || Friendly |}
==Honours== '''FC Midtjylland''' *[[Danish Superliga]]: [[2019–20 Danish Superliga|2019–20]]<ref name="guld2">{{cite web |title=Guldfest i Herning: FC Midtjylland er dansk mester |url=https://www.dr.dk/sporten/fodbold/superliga/guldfest-i-herning-fc-midtjylland-er-dansk-mester |website=dr.dk |publisher=[[Danmarks Radio]] |accessdate=14 July 2020 |date=9 July 2020}}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== *{{BDFutbol|24509}} *{{Worldfootball.net|sory-kaba|new_id=pe484021}} *{{Soccerway|sory-kaba/472704}}
{{Oud-Heverlee Leuven squad}} {{Guinea squad 2019 Africa Cup of Nations}} {{Guinea squad 2021 Africa Cup of Nations}} {{authority control|state=expanded}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kaba, Sory}} [[Category:1995 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Footballers from Conakry]] [[Category:Guinean men's footballers]] [[Category:21st-century Guinean sportsmen]] [[Category:Men's association football forwards]] [[Category:Guinea men's international footballers]] [[Category:2019 Africa Cup of Nations players]] [[Category:2021 Africa Cup of Nations players]] [[Category:Segunda División players]] [[Category:Segunda División B players]] [[Category:Tercera División players]] [[Category:Ligue 1 players]] [[Category:Danish Superliga players]] [[Category:Belgian Pro League players]] [[Category:English Football League players]] [[Category:La Liga players]] [[Category:Elche CF Ilicitano footballers]] [[Category:Elche CF players]] [[Category:Dijon FCO players]] [[Category:FC Midtjylland players]] [[Category:Oud-Heverlee Leuven players]] [[Category:Cardiff City F.C. players]] [[Category:UD Las Palmas players]] [[Category:Guinean expatriate men's footballers]] [[Category:Guinean expatriate sportspeople in Spain]] [[Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Spain]] [[Category:Guinean expatriate sportspeople in France]] [[Category:Expatriate men's footballers in France]] [[Category:Guinean expatriate sportspeople in Denmark]] [[Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Denmark]] [[Category:Guinean expatriate sportspeople in Belgium]] [[Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Belgium]] [[Category:Guinean expatriate sportspeople in Wales]] [[Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Wales]]