Evann Guessand

Evann Guessand
Guessand with the Ivory Coast in 2026
Personal information
Full name Evann Ludovic Vidjannagni Guessand
Date of birth (2001-07-01) 1 July 2001
Place of birth Ajaccio, Corse-du-Sud, France
Height 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)[1]
Positions
Team information
Current team
 Crystal Palace
(on loan from Aston Villa)
Number 29
Youth career
2008–2014 ASPTT Marseille
2014–2019 Nice
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2018–2020 Nice B 25 (9)
2020–2025 Nice 89 (19)
2020–2021 → Lausanne-Sport (loan) 34 (7)
2022–2023 → Nantes (loan) 30 (3)
2025– Aston Villa 13 (0)
2026 → Crystal Palace (loan) 8 (1)
2026– → Crystal Palace (loan) 1 (0)
International career‡
2017 France U16 4 (3)
2018 France U17 2 (0)
2019 France U18 5 (2)
2019 France U19 4 (0)
2024– Ivory Coast 23 (4)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 22 August 2026
‡ National team caps and goals as of 30 June 2026

Evann Ludovic Vidjannagni Guessand (born 1 July 2001) is a professional footballer who plays as a winger or forward for Premier League club Crystal Palace, on loan from Aston Villa. Born in France, he represents the Ivory Coast national team.

Guessand is a product of the Nice academy, and progressed through their youth and B sides to the first team, before transferring to Aston Villa in 2025. He also spent time on loan at Lausanne-Sport and Nantes earlier in his career.

Guessand was a regular French youth international up to under-19 level, before switching to the Ivory Coast in 2024.

Early life

Evann Ludovic Vidjannagni Guessand[2] was born on 1 July 2001 in Ajaccio, Corse-du-Sud.[3] His father Servais Guessand Konan is an Ivorian former footballer who played professionally for Ajaccio.[4]

Club career

Nice

Guessand joined the youth academy of Nice at the age of 12.[5] On 5 January 2020, he made his professional debut in a 2–0 Coupe de France win over Fréjus Saint-Raphaël.[6][7] On 23 August, he made his Ligue 1 debut against Lens as a late substitute in 2–1 home win.[8]

Loan to Lausanne

On 30 September 2020, Guessand joined Lausanne-Sport on loan.[9] On 3 October, he made his Swiss Super League debut against Zürich, scoring his first goal for the club in the 4–0 home victory.[10] In total, he scored seven goals during the 2020–21 season, making him the team's top goalscorer, and also recorded five assists.[11]

Return to Nice

In the pre-season of 2021–22, Guessand extended his contract at Nice until 2026.[11] On 24 October 2021, he recorded his first goal for the club, scoring a stoppage time winner against Lyon after coming on as an 83rd minute substitute.[12] Three days later, he made his first start in a 1–1 draw against Marseille, assisting a goal for Amine Gouiri six minutes into the Mediterranean derby.[13]

Overall, he made 20 league appearances during the season, including two starts.[14] In the 2021–22 Coupe de France, Guessand made substitute appearances in every round, including the 2022 Coupe de France final where Nice were beaten 1–0 by Nantes at the Stade de France on 7 May.[15]

Loan to Nantes

On 12 July 2022, Guessand joined Ligue 1 club Nantes on a season-long loan.[16] He made his debut for the club in the 2022 Trophée des Champions on 31 July, where they were beaten 4–0 by Paris Saint-Germain.[17]

He scored his first goal for the club in a 3–1 league win over Toulouse on 28 August.[18] On 8 September, on his UEFA Europa League debut, Guessand scored the winning goal for Nantes in the final minutes of a 2–1 home victory over Olympiacos.[19]

Guessand ended 2022–23 as a runner-up in the Coupe de France for the second consecutive season. He was an unused substitute in the 2023 Coupe de France final on 29 April, where Nantes were beaten 5–1 by Toulouse.[20]

Second return to Nice

Guessand training with Nice in 2025

Guessand appeared in all 34 of Nice's matches in the 2023–24 Ligue 1 season, starting in 14 matches and scoring six goals.[21] In 2024–25, he was named the club's Player of the Season[22] after scoring twelve goals and recording nine assists.[21]

Aston Villa

On 8 August 2025, Guessand signed for Premier League club Aston Villa for an undisclosed fee; the contract is valid until 2030.[23] This fee was reported to be worth €35 million (£30.5 million).[24] He made his Premier League debut as a late substitute in a 1–0 defeat to Brentford on 23 August.[25] On 23 October, Guessand scored his first Aston Villa goal in an eventual 2–1 Europa League defeat to Go Ahead Eagles.[26]

Loans to Crystal Palace

On 30 January 2026, Guessand joined fellow Premier League club Crystal Palace on a loan deal, with an option to make the move permanent at the end of the season.[27] He made his debut on 8 February as a second-half substitute away at rivals Brighton & Hove Albion, contributing with an assist for Ismaïla Sarr in a 1–0 victory for Palace which ended a 12-match winless streak.[28] On 22 February, he scored his first goal for Crystal Palace and first goal in the Premier League, a 90th-minute winner to seal a 1–0 victory against Wolverhampton Wanderers.[29] Four days later, he scored Palace's second goal in the 2–0 win over Zrinjski Mostar in the UEFA Conference League.[30]

On 27 May, he appeared as a substitute in the 2026 UEFA Conference League final as Palace won 1–0 against Rayo Vallecano.[31] Having featured in the Europa League-winning Aston Villa squad and the Conference League-winning Crystal Palace side,[32] he became the first ever player to win two European trophies in one season.[33] In the summer of 2026, Crystal Palace decided not to take up the option to sign Guessand permanently.[34] However, on 12 August, they announced they had re-signed Guessand on a further season-long loan deal, with a conditional obligation to make the move permanent at the end of the season.[35][36]

International career

Born in France, Guessand holds French and Ivorian nationalities.[37] After representing France at youth level,[38] Guessand was named in the Ivory Coast's provisional squad for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in December 2023.[39]

Guessand made his debut for the Ivory Coast national team on 11 June 2024 in a World Cup qualifier against Kenya at the Bingu National Stadium in Lilongwe, Malawi. He substituted Emmanuel Latte Lath in the 61st minute of a scoreless draw.[40] He scored his first international goal in a 1–0 win over Burundi on 21 March 2025.[41]

Having originally only named in the back-up squad for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, Guessand was called up to the tournament squad to replace the injured Sébastien Haller on 19 December 2025.[42] He appeared in four of the team's five matches at the tournament, scoring once in a 3–2 win over Gabon.[43]

On 15 May 2026, Guessand was integrated by Ivory Coast coach Emerse Faé in his list of 26 players in order to participate in the 2026 World Cup.[44]

Personal life

Guessand is the older brother of Axel Guessand, who is also a former French youth international footballer.[45]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 22 August 2026
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] League cup[b] Europe Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Nice II 2018–19 Championnat National 2 71————71
2019–20 Championnat National 3 178————178
2020–21 10————10
Total 259————259
Nice 2019–20 Ligue 1 301000——40
2021–22 20150———251
2023–24 34641———387
2024–25 321220—7[c]1—4113
Total 8919121—71—10821
Lausanne-Sport (loan) 2020–21 Swiss Super League 34710———357
Nantes (loan) 2022–23 Ligue 1 30351—9[c]21[d]0456
Aston Villa 2025–26 Premier League 13000107[c]2—212
Crystal Palace (loan) 2025–26 Premier League 81——6[e]1—142
2026–27 Premier League 10000000—10
Total 91000061—152
Career total 20039182102961024947
  1. ↑ Includes Coupe de France, Swiss Cup
  2. ↑ Includes EFL Cup
  3. 1 2 3 Appearances in UEFA Europa League
  4. ↑ Appearance in Trophée des Champions
  5. ↑ Appearances in UEFA Conference League

International

As of match played 30 June 2026[46]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Ivory Coast 202460
2025113
202661
Total234
Ivory Coast score listed first, score column indicates score after each Guessand goal.[46]
List of international goals scored by Evann Guessand
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
121 March 2025Meknes Honor Stadium, Meknes, Morocco Burundi1–01–02026 FIFA World Cup qualification
210 October 2025Côte d'Or National Sports Complex, Saint Pierre, Mauritius Seychelles4–07–0
331 December 2025Marrakesh Stadium, Marrakesh, Morocco Gabon2–23–22025 Africa Cup of Nations
428 March 2026Stadium MK, Milton Keynes, England South Korea1–04–0Friendly

Honours

Nice

Aston Villa

Crystal Palace

Individual

References

  1. ↑ "Evann Guessand: Overview". Premier League. Retrieved 1 February 2026.
  2. ↑ "2025/26 Premier League squad lists". Premier League. 12 September 2025. Retrieved 1 February 2026.
  3. ↑ "Evann Guessand". L'Équipe (in French). Paris. Retrieved 1 February 2026.
  4. ↑ "« Un mélange de Bafétimbi Gomis et Mamadou Niang… un génie » : Evann Guessand, enfin le bon élan ?". Ouest France (in French). 1 March 2025. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  5. ↑ "L'international ivoirien Evann Guessand quitte Nice pour Aston Villa". RFI (in French). 8 August 2025. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  6. ↑ Bacquié, Maxime (5 January 2020). "Coupe de France : OGC Nice / Fréjus-Saint-Raphaël". France Bleu (in French). Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  7. ↑ "Coupe de France : l'OGC Nice bat l'Etoile FC Fréjus St Raphaël 2 à 0". France 3 Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (in French). May 2020. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  8. ↑ "OGC Nice – RC Lens match details". tntsports.co.uk. 23 August 2020. Retrieved 8 July 2025.
  9. ↑ "Transferts : Lucas Da Cunha quitte Rennes pour Nice avant de partir en prêt à Lausanne". L'Équipe (in French). 30 September 2020. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  10. ↑ "Lausanne-Sport – FC Zürich match details". soccerway.com. 3 October 2020. Retrieved 8 July 2025.
  11. 1 2 "Evann Guessand prolonge à l'OGC Nice jusqu'en 2026". L'Équipe (in French). 27 July 2021. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  12. ↑ "Nice youngster Guessand claims late win over 10-man Lyon". RFI (in French). 24 October 2021. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  13. ↑ "A derby without a winner (1-1)". OGC Nice. 27 October 2021. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  14. ↑ "Evann Guessand prêté à Nantes". OGC Nice (in French). 12 July 2022. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  15. ↑ "Nice 0-1 Nantes, Coupe de France, résultat et résumé du match (07/05/2022)". L'Équipe. 7 May 2022. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  16. ↑ "Evann Guessand prêté au FC Nantes !" [Evann Guessand loaned to Nantes!] (in French). FC Nantes. 12 July 2022. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  17. ↑ "Football : face à Nantes, le PSG décroche son onzième Trophée des champions". Le Monde (in French). 31 July 2022. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  18. ↑ "Nantes vs. Toulouse". Soccerway. 28 August 2022. Retrieved 9 September 2022.
  19. ↑ "FC Nantes. Evann Guessand : « C'était une ambiance de fous »". Ouest-France (in French). 9 September 2022. Retrieved 9 September 2022.
  20. ↑ "Nantes 1-5 Toulouse: Toulouse win first major trophy in French Cup final". BBC Sport. 29 April 2023. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  21. 1 2 "Evann Guessand Career Stats - Ligue 1 - ESPN (AU)". ESPN. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  22. ↑ "Crystal Palace sign Villa forward Guessand on loan". BBC Sport. 30 January 2026. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  23. ↑ "Villa announce Evann Guessand signing". Aston Villa Football Club. 8 August 2025. Retrieved 8 August 2025.
  24. ↑ Veal, Jonathan (7 August 2025). "Evann Guessand Aston Villa medical update as final transfer fee emerges". Birmingham Live. Retrieved 8 August 2025.
  25. ↑ "Brentford v Aston Villa | 2025/2026 | Premier League | Overview". www.premierleague.com. Retrieved 23 August 2025.
  26. ↑ "Go Ahead Eagles vs Aston Villa | UEFA Europa League 2025/26". UEFA.com. 23 October 2025. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
  27. ↑ "Evann Guessand transfer: Crystal Palace sign Aston Villa forward on loan". BBC Sport. 30 January 2026. Retrieved 31 January 2026.
  28. ↑ "Premier League LIVE: Crystal Palace beat Brighton to end winless run". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 February 2026.
  29. ↑ "Crystal Palace 1-0 Wolves: Late Guessand strike gives Palace win over 10-man Wolves". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 February 2026.
  30. ↑ "Crystal Palace 2–0 Zrinjski (3-1 agg): Palace reach last 16 of Conference League". BBC Sport. 26 February 2026. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  31. ↑ Coates, Live ReportingCharlotte. "UEFA Conference League final LIVE: Crystal Palace vs Rayo Vallecano - score, radio commentary, text updates & match stats". BBC Sport. Retrieved 12 August 2026.
  32. ↑ Prince, Toby (27 May 2026). "Two trophies, one season: Evann Guessand makes history by winning Europa and Conference League". Tribuna.com.
  33. ↑ "Recapping Evann Guessand's story so far". Crystal Palace Football Club. 12 August 2026. Retrieved 12 August 2026.
  34. ↑ Tabuteau, Sam (21 July 2026). "Crystal Palace make Evann Guessand transfer decision after loan spell". London Evening Standard. Retrieved 27 July 2026.
  35. ↑ "Evann Guessand returns to Crystal Palace". www.cpfc.co.uk. Retrieved 12 August 2026.
  36. ↑ "Guessand rejoins Palace". Aston Villa F.C. 12 August 2026. Retrieved 12 August 2026.
  37. ↑ "Evann GUESSAND –".
  38. ↑ ""JE SENS UN GROUPE QUI VIT BIEN ENSEMBLE!"". 23 October 2020.
  39. ↑ "AFCON 2023 – PROVISIONAL SQUADS LIST" (PDF). p. 13.
  40. ↑ "Kenya v Ivory Coast game report". ESPN. 11 June 2024.
  41. ↑ "Le but d'Evann Guessand avec la Côte d'Ivoire". L'Équipe (in French). 21 March 2025. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  42. ↑ "Aston Villa News: Evann Guessand joins Ivory Coast squad". BBC Sport. 19 December 2025. Retrieved 29 December 2025.
  43. ↑ "Afcon 2025: Gabon 2-3 Ivory Coast: Elephants top group on goal difference". BBC Sport. 31 December 2025. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  44. ↑ "La liste de la Côte d'Ivoire pour la Coupe du Monde 2026". FIFA (in French). 15 May 2026. Retrieved 2 June 2026.
  45. ↑ Trésarrieu, Flavien (22 June 2022). "Transferts : l'Udinese vise Axel Guessand (Nancy)". L'Équipe (in French). Retrieved 27 March 2025.
  46. 1 2 Evann Guessand at National-Football-Teams.com
  47. ↑ "Ludovic Blas penalty wins French Cup for Nantes". BBC Sport. 7 May 2022. Retrieved 11 September 2022.
  48. ↑ "Europa League Final: Aston Villa's Landmark Night and Evann Guessand's Unique Journey". nigeriasport.ng. 21 May 2026. Retrieved 21 May 2026.
  49. ↑ McKenna, Chris (27 May 2026). "Crystal Palace 1–0 Rayo Vallecano". BBC Sport. BBC. Retrieved 27 May 2026.
  50. ↑ "Guessand and Youssouf voted Aiglons of the season". OGC Nice. 14 May 2025. Retrieved 14 May 2025.
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