Imran Louza
Louza with Nantes in 2020
Personal information
Full name Imran Louza[1]
Date of birth (1999-05-01) 1 May 1999 (age 24)
Place of birth Nantes, France
Height 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Lorient
(on loan from Watford)
Number 6
Youth career
2005–2006 Etoile du Cens
2006–2017 Nantes
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2017–2019 Nantes B 40 (10)
2019–2021 Nantes 58 (9)
2021– Watford 56 (6)
2024– → Lorient (loan) 1 (1)
International career‡
2017 Morocco U20 2 (1)
2019 France U20 2 (0)
2019 France U21 6 (0)
2021– Morocco 15 (2)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 29 January 2024 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 17 June 2023 (UTC)

Imran Louza (Arabic: عمران لوزة; born 1 May 1999) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Lorient on loan from EFL Championship club Watford. Born in France, he plays for the Morocco national team.

Louza came through Nantes' youth academy and made his first team debut in 2019, and his international debut in 2021.

Club career

Nantes

Louza joined the youth academy of Nantes in 2006 from Etoile du Cens, and was captain of several youth categories in the club.[2] He made his professional debut with Nantes in a 4–1 Coupe de France win over Châteauroux on 4 January 2019, and scored in his debut.[3]

Watford

On 1 June 2021, Watford completed the signing of Louza from Nantes for a reported fee of €10 million.[4] He signed with The Hornets on a five-year deal lasting until 2026.[5][6] On 21 August 2021, Louza made his debut for Watford in a 2-0 loss against Brighton.[7]

On 8 October 2022, in Louza's third appearance of the season, he opened his account for Watford with an impressive free-kick to equalise in an eventual 3–1 defeat to Blackpool.[8] On 19 October 2022, Louza was stretchered off during a 3–0 defeat to Millwall.[9] Manager Slaven Bilić would go on to reveal that Louza had fractured his fibula as well as suffering ligament damage, an injury that would rule him out for several months and see him miss the 2022 FIFA World Cup.[10]

In January 2024, Louza joined Ligue 1 club Lorient on loan until the end of the season, the deal containing a purchase option.[11][12]

International career

Louza was born in France to a Moroccan father and a French mother. He represented the Morocco U20s in a 3–2 friendly win over the France U20s, and scored a goal for his side.[13] He switched to represent France internationally, debuting for the France U20s and U21s.

Louza formally decided to represent the senior Morocco national team and debuted and scored in a 5–0 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification win over Guinea-Bissau on 6 October 2021.[14]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 28 January 2024[15]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup League cup Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Nantes B 2017–18 Championnat National 3 20 4 — — — 20 4
2018–19 Championnat National 2 20 6 — — — 20 6
Total 40 10 — — — 40 10
Nantes 2018–19 Ligue 1 1 0 2 1 0 0 — 3 1
2019–20 Ligue 1 24 2 2 1 2 1 — 28 2
2020–21 Ligue 1 33 7 1 0 — 2[a] 0 36 7
Total 58 9 5 2 2 1 2 0 67 12
Watford 2021–22[15] Premier League 20 0 2 0 — — 22 0
2022–23[15] Championship 21 5 0 0 — — 21 5
2023–24[15] Championship 15 1 1 0 1 0 — 17 1
Total 56 6 3 0 1 0 — 60 6
Lorient (loan) 2023–24 Ligue 1 1 1 — — — 1 1
Career total 155 25 6 2 5 1 2 0 167 28
  1. ^ Appearances in Ligue 1 relegation play-offs

International

Scores and results list Morocco's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Louza goal.
List of international goals scored by Imran Louza[16]
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 6 October 2021 Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, Rabat, Morocco  Guinea-Bissau 2–0 5–0 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
2 12 November 2021 Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, Rabat, Morocco   Sudan 3–0 3–0 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification

References

  1. ^ "2021/22 Premier League squads confirmed". Premier League. 10 September 2021. Retrieved 12 September 2021.
  2. ^ "Formation - Imran Louza, Made In FC Nantes". www.fcnantes.com.
  3. ^ "Il marque pour son premier match en pro avec le FC Nantes : Imran Louza vit "un rêve de gosse"". France Bleu. 5 January 2019.
  4. ^ "Watford sign Imran Louza for €10m from Nantes". www.getfootballnewsfrance.com. June 2021.
  5. ^ "Pro Group - Imran Louza leaves FC Nantes". www.fcnantes.com.
  6. ^ "Official: Hornets Sign Louza". Watford F.C. 1 June 2021. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
  7. ^ "Brighton make it two wins from two with Watford victory". BBC Sport. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  8. ^ "Blackpool 3–1 Watford: Jerry Yates double ends Tangerines' winless run". BBC Sport. 8 October 2022. Retrieved 21 October 2022.
  9. ^ "Millwall 3–0 Watford: Tom Bradshaw's first-half hat-trick downs Hornets". BBC Sport. 19 October 2022. Retrieved 21 October 2022.
  10. ^ "Imran Louza: Watford's Morocco midfielder 'out for a few months' with broken leg". BBC Sport. 21 October 2022. Retrieved 21 October 2022.
  11. ^ "Official: Louza Joins Lorient On Loan". www.watfordfc.com. 15 January 2024. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
  12. ^ "Imrân Louza prêté au FC Lorient" [Imrân Louza loaned to FC Lorient]. www.fclorient.bzh (in French). 15 January 2024. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
  13. ^ "FC Nantes. Imran Louza, le Canari qui grandit dans l'ombre". 14 November 2018.
  14. ^ "FC Nantes. Première sélection et premier but pour Imran Louza, ancien Canari, avec le Maroc". 6 October 2021.
  15. ^ a b c d Imran Louza at Soccerway
  16. ^ "Imran Louza". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 12 November 2021.

External links

FC Lorient – current squad
Morocco squad – 2021 Africa Cup of Nations
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