1. Lassana Diarra was born on 10 March 1985 and is a French former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder.
34 Facts About Lassana Diarra
1. 2.
Lassana Diarra has played for Russian clubs Anzhi Makhachkala and Lokomotiv Moscow.
3.
Lassana Diarra became a bit part player in Chelsea's first team and completed the full 90 minutes in Chelsea's last two games of the season at Blackburn Rovers and Newcastle United respectively, as manager Jose Mourinho rotated his squad.
4.
Lassana Diarra played full Premier League games against Blackburn, Charlton Athletic and Middlesbrough, with some success.
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Lassana Diarra started in Chelsea's win over Arsenal in the League Cup Final at the Millennium Stadium.
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Lassana Diarra was an unused substitute as Chelsea won the 2007 FA Cup Final against Manchester United.
7.
Lassana Diarra was given the number 8 shirt, vacated by the departure of winger Freddie Ljungberg.
8.
Lassana Diarra then started his first Premier League match for Arsenal against Wigan Athletic on 24 November 2007.
9.
Lassana Diarra scored his first goal for the club in the following match, against FA Cup Fourth Round Championship opponents Plymouth Argyle, and his first Premier League goal two weeks later, a controversial late winner against Bolton Wanderers.
10.
Lassana Diarra went on to play in every minute of Portsmouth's remaining FA Cup matches en route to claiming the trophy in the final.
11.
Lassana Diarra was assigned the number 6 shirt of Mahamadou Diarra for domestic competitions, as the Malian midfielder was out with a season-ending injury and the vacant number 39 for the Champions League.
12.
Lassana Diarra wore the name "Lass" on the back of his shirt to avoid confusion with Mahamadou.
13.
Lassana Diarra's transfer was officially completed on 1 January 2009, the opening of the transfer window.
14.
Lassana Diarra participated in the team's 2012 pre-season, and won the 2012 Supercopa with the club.
15.
On transfer deadline day, 31 August 2012, Lassana Diarra joined Anzhi Makhachkala on a four-year deal for an undisclosed fee.
16.
Lassana Diarra was originally meant to join merely on loan, but the club decided to make the deal permanent.
17.
Lassana Diarra's growing influence in the team became acknowledged: in November and December 2013, he topped the monthly poll among Lokomotiv fans in social networks and received the Player of the Month award twice in a row.
18.
Lassana Diarra was given a 15-month suspension from playing professional football and a suspension of payment of salary, both of which he had already served.
19.
Lassana Diarra did not receive a contract from Sporting Charleroi due to concerns arising from FIFA's rules regarding player transfers.
20.
Lassana Diarra challenged these rules on the grounds that they violated his right to free movement within the EU, which allows workers to seek employment in other member states without restrictions.
21.
On 11 August 2016, Lassana Diarra was named as the club's new captain, replacing Steve Mandanda who had earlier joined Crystal Palace.
22.
On 19 April 2017, Lassana Diarra joined Emirati club Al Jazira.
23.
Lassana Diarra made five appearances in the UAE Pro-League before mutually terminating his contract with the club on 24 December 2017.
24.
On 23 January 2018, Lassana Diarra joined Paris Saint-Germain on a one-and-a-half-year contract.
25.
Lassana Diarra was selected for the senior team by coach Raymond Domenech for a UEFA Euro 2008 qualifier away to Lithuania on 24 March 2007.
26.
Lassana Diarra started the match, alongside Claude Makelele and Jeremy Toulalan in midfield, and played the full 90 minutes.
27.
Lassana Diarra was selected that year for a friendly match against Austria on 28 March 2007.
28.
France was eliminated in the group stage of Euro 2008 and Lassana Diarra did not feature in any of his country's three group stage matches.
29.
On 11 May 2010, Lassana Diarra was named to the preliminary squad of Domenech's squad to play in the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
30.
Lassana Diarra was later named to the shortened list of players and was expected to be a starter alongside Jeremy Toulalan in the midfield.
31.
On 12 May 2016, Lassana Diarra was named in the France squad for UEFA Euro 2016.
32.
However, Lassana Diarra later was forced to pull out of the squad because of a swelling in his left knee.
33.
Jimmy Bullard said on facing Lassana Diarra: 'he was a bit like Kante.
34.
At the time, Lassana Diarra was playing for France in an international friendly against Germany at the Stade de France, just north of Paris in Saint-Denis.