Introduction
Ludovic Lamine Sané (born 22 March 1987) is a French-born Senegalese international footballer who plays for German club Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga. He occupies the central defence position, but can also be deployed as holding midfielder. He initially starred for a host of amateur clubs before signing with Bordeaux at the start of the 2008–09 season.
Football career
Early career
Sané was born in Villeneuve-sur-Lot in southwestern France and began his football career playing for local club US Lormont on the outskirts of Bordeaux. He later joined Stade Bordelais before signing a contract with Championnat de France amateur club RCO Agde at the age of 19. Sané spent one season at Agde appearing in 25 matches scoring one goal. Following the season, he returned to Lormont and spent a season playing in the Division d'Honneur. During the summer of 2008, Sané jumped five divisions signing a three-year professional contract with Ligue 1 club Bordeaux.
Bordeaux
Sané initially played with the club's reserve team upon his arrival appearing in 15 matches during the 2008–09 season. While playing with the amateurs, the young player impressed manager Laurent Blanc and assistant Jean-Louis Gasset. For the 2009–10 pre-season, Sané featured regularly and performed well, most notably in a 3–1 win over Spanish club Athletic Bilbao after appearing as a second-half substitute. On 19 September 2009, Sané was called up to the first team for the first time for Bordeaux's league match against Boulogne. He didn't appear in the match, but eventually became a regular in the first 18 often appearing on the bench as a backup for French international Alou Diarra. On 3 November, Sané made his professional debut in the club's 2–0 victory over German club Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League appearing as a substitute in the 84th minute. The following month, he earned his first start playing the entire match in Bordeaux's 1–0 victory over Israeli club Maccabi Haifa. Sané made his league debut four days later in Bordeaux's important tie with Lyon. Bordeaux won the match 1–0 with Sané playing the full 90 minutes.
On 8 January 2010, Sané agreed to a contract extension with Bordeaux which will tie him to the club until 2014. He scored his first goal for Bordeaux in a 3–1 loss to Olympique de Marseille in a Coupe de la Ligue final at the Stade de France.
Werder Bremen
After spending seven senior years at Bordeaux, Sané departed the club and signed for Bundesliga side Werder Bremen for an undisclosed fee.
Career statistics
Club
- As of 17 December 2016
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Europe | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Agde | 2006–07 | 25 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 25 | 1 | |
| Total | 25 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 25 | 1 | ||
| Bordeaux | 2009–10 | 17 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 28 | 2 |
| 2010–11 | 33 | 2 | 4 | 0 | — | 37 | 2 | ||
| 2011–12 | 32 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | 33 | 2 | ||
| 2012–13 | 33 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 42 | 2 | |
| 2013–14 | 36 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 45 | 2 | |
| 2014–15 | 23 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 1 | |
| 2015–16 | 13 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 21 | 0 | |
| Total | 188 | 7 | 21 | 1 | 23 | 3 | 232 | 11 | |
| Werder Bremen | 2016–17 | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 14 | 1 | |
| Career total | 226 | 9 | 21 | 1 | 23 | 3 | 271 | 14 | |
Personal life
Ludovic's younger brother Salif Sané is also a professional footballer and Senegalese international.
Honours
- Bordeaux
- Coupe de France (1): 2012–13