BIOGRAPHY AND CAREER
Seydou Keita born in Bamako, Mali, 16 January 1980 is a Malian footballer who currently plays for FC Barcelona and the Malian national team. He also holds a French passport. Nicknamed "Seydoubilen" or "Red Seydou," Keita is the nephew of former African Footballer of the Year Salif Keita.
Keita made his senior debut for Marseille in September 1999, but shortly afterward he transferred to Lorient.
It was at Lorient where Keita became a much-wanted footballer, scoring one goal in 58 appearances from the defensive midfield.
After two years playing for Lorient, Keita moved to Lens, eventually working his way up to the captain's role. He started to score more goals from defensive midfield for Lens; in his four seasons at Lens he made 156 league appearances and scored 19 goals.
On 11 July 2007, Lens sold their captain after Keita reached an agreement with Spanish La Liga side Sevilla for the next four seasons. This was a very successful season for Keita and in 31 league games for Sevilla he scored four goals, putting a lot of top European clubs in the market for him. One of his four goals was a stunning strike against Real Madrid. This is where he came to the world's attention and eventually engineering a move to one of the world's biggest clubs, Barcelona. On 27 November 2007, in a Champions League match, Keita scored his first Champions League goal for Sevilla in a remarkable 3–1 win over English Premiership side Arsenal, thus inflicting Arsenal's first loss of the season.
On 26 May 2008, Keita signed a four-year contract with FC Barcelona with the Catalan club being believed to have paid the buy-out clause that Keita had at Sevilla of around €14 million. He became the first Malian Barcelona player ever and the club set his new release clause at €90 million.
Keita made his official debut for the club in a Champions League qualifier against Polish side Wisła Kraków on 13 August 2008, a game which Barcelona won 4–0. He then made his domestic league debut against Numancia on 31 August 2008. Keita scored his first goal for Barcelona on 16 November 2008 in a La Liga match against Recreativo de Huelva, scoring the second goal in a 2–0 victory. On 23 November, he scored his second goal for Barcelona against Getafe in a 1–1 draw. Keita scored his third goal for Barça in a 2-1 victory over Villarreal. Keita scored in a 1–1 draw with Bayern Munich in a Champions League quarter-final in which Barça won the first leg 4–0. They later advanced with a 5–1 aggregate score. He came on as a substitute as Barcelona won the 2009 UEFA Champions League Final, replacing Thierry Henry in the 72nd minute.
Keita scored in the first league game of the 2009–10 season, helping Barcelona to a 3–0 win over Sporting de Gijón. Keita also scored a hat trick on the eighth matchday in a 6–1 win against Real Zaragoza, his first for the club. On the 31st August, Keita signed a contract extension at Barcelona until 2014.
Keita is a Muslim, he married Zubaida Johnson. On May 12, 2008 he became the father of a child (Mohamed) who was born in a clinic in Seville. His family lives in the province Lafiabougou in Bamako. He holds French nationality, however he opted to pledge his allegiance to Mali and represent the African Nation.
On the international scene, Keita has played numerous matches for the Malian national team. He is regarded as one of the most skillful African players for his passing, control, vision, and shooting skills. He forms a midfield duo with Mahamadou Diarra of monaco and sometimes with his cousin Mohamed Sissoko of Juventus.
Keita was on duty at the 2010 African Cup of Nations and has scored 2 goals, both in the 4-4 draw against Angola in an amazing comeback performance in the opening match of the tournament. However, Mali did not advance to the quarter finals.
SEYDOU KEITA PROFILE
Full name: Seydou Keita Date of birth: January 16, 1980
Place of birth: Bamako, Mali
Height: 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Playing position: Midfielder
Club information
Current club: Barcelona
Number: 15
Youth career
1995–1997 Centre Salif Keita
1997–1999 Marseille
Senior career
1999–2000 Marseille 6 (0)
2000–2002 Lorient 58 (1)
2002–2007 Lens 156 (19)
2007–2008 Sevilla 31 (4)
2008– Barcelona 84 (12)
National team
2000– Mali 55 (16)
