Where in the world is Frederic Gounongbe?
By Scott Johnson
Wednesday 4th October 2017
Can someone please pop round and check on Frederic Gounongbe.
The Benin international striker arrived in July 2016 with Kenneth Zohore, as Cardiff sought greater firepower. Zohore's career has since rocketed, while Gounongbe has completely dropped off the chart. It emerged at the end of last season, he'd undergone an operation which ruled him out of the start of pre-season, and there were hints he might get a chance to press a case - but that hasn't happened.
Gounongbe joined following the expiration of his contract at Westerlo and the hope was that Cardiff were exploiting their Belgian links, as Vincent Tan owns KV Kortrijk, by making a shrewd signing.
Like Zohore, he showed signs of potential and boasted a goal every other game ratio at most of his former clubs. At international level too, where he is pitted against former Cardiff forward Rudy Gestede.
Unfortunately, he failed to find the net in any of his dozen appearances for Cardiff and is likely to be forever remembered for missing an open goal from six yards out against Birmingham on debut. That may be harsh, but it is a fate suffered by plenty of other Cardiff players that were not given a fair crack of the whip in recent years.
Gounongbe has not featured under Warnock since last December and Danny Ward has stripped him of his No.9 shirt. The expectation was that he might have moved to Kortrijk on loan to try and revive his career in the manner of Idriss Saadi, but it never happened.
I always feel for players that have relocated from overseas to play for Cardiff, only to be discarded and quickly forgotten. Gounongbe is like a ghost at the club and, hopefully, the last of a dying breed; the failed Cardiff import. It would be nice to know what he’s up to though.
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