Danon Issouf Johannes Djourou Gbadjere (; born 18 January 1987), known as Johan Djourou, is a Swiss former professional footballer who played as a centre back. According to his profile on the website of his former club Arsenal, Djourou possessed "pace, power and whole-hearted commitment" in addition to his versatility.
He played as a defensive midfielder in his youth for former club Étoile Carouge, but when he arrived at Arsenal, he was converted to a central defender. He occasionally filled in at full back for Arsenal and played several games in central midfield while on loan to Birmingham City. He spent time on loan at Hannover 96 in 2013 before joining fellow Bundesliga team Hamburger SV, initially on loan, later that year. After three years with Hamburg he went on to play for Turkish Super Lig club Antalyaspor, SPAL of Serie A, the Swiss Super League's Sion and Neuchâtel Xamax, and finally Nordsjælland in the Danish Superliga.
Djourou represented Switzerland from 2006 to 2018, earning 76 caps. He was called up by the nation at three FIFA World Cups and two UEFA European Championships.
Club career Early career Djourou was born in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, to Ivorian parents Joachim and Angeline, and was later adopted by his father's first wife, Danièle, a Swiss woman. Djourou later acknowledged that he has two mothers in his life.
They moved to Geneva when he was 17 months old. According to his father, Djourou began playing football when he was a baby, saying: "I would grab balls in stores and play football in the store." Djourou enrolled at the Payerne Training Center when he was 13 and then, in 2002, Djourou joined local second division side Étoile Carouge as a midfielder at 15. He joined Arsenal on 1 August 2003.
Arsenal
Djourou made his first senior start for Arsenal in a 3–1 victory against Everton in the League Cup, having made his first appearance after 89 minutes of the corresponding match in the previous round against Manchester City on 27 October 2004. He later made three appearances at the end of the 2004–05 season. On 21 January 2005, Djourou signed a two-year contract extension with the club.
His first appearance of the 2005–06 season came on 29 November 2005 against Reading in the Round of 16 of the League Cup, starting the whole game, in a 3–0 win. He then played in the third round clash with Cardiff City. Djourou made his full Premiership debut for Arsenal in the 7–0 victory over Middlesbrough on 14 January 2006, playing at centre-back with Philippe Senderos. He started Arsenal's FA Cup fourth round clash with Bolton Wanderers as part of a makeshift defence, a game in which Arsenal lost 1–0. In February 2006, Djourou played in the league games against West Ham United, Birmingham City and Bolton Wanderers. After a five match absence, he returned to the first team, coming on as a substitute against Aston Villa in Arsenal's 5–0 victory, replacing the injured Emmanuel Eboué. Djourou then started in a league match against Portsmouth on 12 April 2006, a game which also saw the comeback of Sol Campbell, in a 1–1 draw. At the end of the 2005–06 season, he went on to make twelve appearances in all competitions.
Following the conclusion of the World Cup, Manager Arsène Wenger said that he would be planning on using Djourou in the first team ahead of the new season. He started the whole game in the opening game of the season in Arsenal's first ever match at Emirates Stadium in a 1–1 draw with Aston Villa. Djourou then played in both legs against Dinamo Zagreb in the UEFA Champions League third qualifying round, as Arsenal won 5–1 on aggregate. He then helped Arsenal keep two separate clean sheets; which the first one occurred between 17 September 2006 and 23 September 2006 and the second one occurred between 14 October 2006 and 22 October 2006. On 1 November 2006, it was announced that Djourou signed a six-year contract extension with the club. Shortly after, however, he missed four matches, due to international commitment and competitions, he returned to the first team against Fulham on 29 November 2006, coming on as a 65th-minute substitute, in a 2–1 loss. This was followed by keeping two consecutive clean sheets against Tottenham Hotspur and FC Porto. The next two months saw Djourou make only two appearances due to being sidelined with injuries. It wasn't until on 11 February 2007 when he returned to the first team against Wigan Athletic, starting a match and played 51 minutes before being substituted, in a 2–1 win. However, his return was short-lived when Djourou suffered a knee injury that kept him out throughout February. It wasn't until on 3 March 2007 when he returned to the starting line-up, in a 2–1 win against Reading. After not playing for two months, Djourou returned to the starting line-up in the last game of the season against Portsmouth, playing in the defensive midfield position, as Arsenal drew 0–0. At the end of the 2006–07 season, he went on to make thirty appearances in all competitions.
Loan to Birmingham City On 10 August 2007, Djourou signed for Birmingham City on loan for five months.
He made his debut two days later against the previous season's FA Cup and League Cup winners Chelsea. This was a closely fought contest in which Chelsea ran out eventual 3–2 winners, in which Djourou cleared off the line from Frank Lampard to keep Birmingham City in the game. He then helped the club keep two consecutive clean sheets between 15 September 2007 and 22 September 2007 against gifted Bolton Wanderers and Liverpool. Djourou continued to play for Birmingham consistently through his loan period until 22 December 2007, when he gifted Bolton Wanderers' Nicolas Anelka a goal via an errant throw-in. This marked his last appearance for the club. Although Birmingham manager Alex McLeish was keen to retain him, Djourou returned to Arsenal at the end of his loan spell, as cover for Kolo Touré and Alex Song who were playing in the 2008 African Cup of Nations. By the time he returned to his parent club, Djourou made 13 appearances in all competitions.
Return to Arsenal
Shortly after returning from a loan spell at Birmingham City, Djourou made his first Arsenal's appearance of the 2007–08 season, coming against Tottenham Hotspur in the semi-finals of the League Cup, and played 45 minutes before being substituted at half time, as they drew 1–1. However, he suffered a groin injury that saw him sidelined for three months. Although Djourou returned to the substitute bench in mid–April, it wasn't until on 28 April 2008 when he returned to the first team, coming on as a 78th-minute substitute, in a 6–2 win against Derby County. At the end of the 2007–08 season, Djourou made three appearances in all competitions for Arsenal.
In May 2008, Djourou stated that he would be willing to partner Cesc Fàbregas in midfield after the departure of Mathieu Flamini to A.C. Milan. Instead, he played in the centre of defence as first choice backup following the departure of fellow Swiss defender Philippe Senderos to A.C. Milan on a season-long loan. Djourou made his first appearance of the 2008–09 season, starting the whole game, and kept a clean sheet, in a 1–0 win against West Bromwich Albion in the opening game of the season. He played in both legs against FC Twente in UEFA Champions League third qualifying round, as Arsenal won 6–0 on aggregate. On 22 September 2008, Djourou signed a new long-term contract. Following the absence of William Gallas, he started in the next seven matches for the club. During his first team run-ins, Djourou scored an own goal against Chelsea on 30 November 2008, but Arsenal managed to catch up and went on to win 2–1. This lasted until he tweaked his calf in the warm-up and dropped out at the last minute prior to a 2–2 draw against Aston Villa on 22 December 2008. After missing two matches as a result, Djourou returned to the starting line-up against Plymouth Argyle in the third round of the FA Cup and helped Arsenal win 3–1. Since returning from injury, he found himself in and out of the first team for the club. However, on 11 April 2009, in a league match against Wigan Athletic, Djourou suffered a knee injury which later required surgery. He recovered from the knee and returned to the first team, coming on as a second-half substitute, in a 2–0 win against Middlesbrough on 26 April 2009. Djourou made two more appearances later in the 2008–09 season. He went on to make 29 appearances in all competitions.
After Touré's departure to Manchester City, Djourou had a chance to break into the starting eleven. However, he suffered a knee injury while on international duty. It was announced on 6 September 2009 that Djourou's recovery period would take an estimated six to eight months; Arsène Wenger stated: "He will have to be patient this season." After returning to training in April, Djourou made his return from injury, coming on as a second-half substitute for the injured Mikaël Silvestre, in the 4–0 win over Fulham in Arsenal's final game of the season, in what turned out to be his only appearance in the 2009–10 campaign.
Ahead of the 2010–11 season, Djourou said he's expecting competitions following the new signing of Laurent Koscielny. Djourou appeared two times in the first two months of the season, and was placed on the substitute bench as a result. Due to Thomas Vermaelen's injury at the beginning of the 2010–11 campaign, Djourou received more opportunities to play. Djourou then played a role when he set up two goals, in a 5–1 win against Shakhtar Donetsk on 19 October 2010. Wenger admitted that he rotated the Swiss international because he missed an entire year and did not want to lose him. Djourou became Arsenal's first-choice centre-back, playing in all eight games in January 2011, during which time Arsenal conceded no Premier League goals. His performance was praised by the club's captain Cesc Fàbregas. He played in both legs of the semi-finals against Ipswich Town to help Arsenal win 3–1 on aggregate to reach the Football League Cup Final. Djourou scored his first goal for Arsenal on 5 February, in the third minute of a 4–4 draw against Newcastle United at St. James' Park. He, once again, helped the club's defence keep three consecutive clean sheets between 12 February 2011 and 5 March 2011 against Wolverhampton Wanderers, Stoke City and Sunderland. On 27 February 2011, he started and played the full 90 minutes alongside Laurent Koscielny against Birmingham City in the 2011 Football League Cup Final held at Wembley Stadium in a 2–1 defeat. On 12 March 2011, while playing in the quarter finals of the FA Cup away to Manchester United at Old Trafford, Djourou suffered a suspected dislocated shoulder in a collision with teammate Bacary Sagna. Djourou was carried from the field and Wenger later confirmed that he would be unavailable for the remainder of the 2010–11 season. This came as a major blow to Arsenal's title challenge, up until then having not lost a Premier League game with him on the field. As well as that Djourou had played a major part in defence in cover of the injured Vermaelen. Djourou recovered more quickly than expected, returning to play the whole of the 1–1 draw with Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium on 17 April 2011, playing alongside Koscielny, and the North London Derby three days later. On 24 April 2011, against Bolton Wanderers at the Reebok Stadium, he conceded a penalty (missed by Kevin Davies) in a 2–1 defeat which effectively ended Arsenal's title hopes. At the end of the 2010–11 season, he played in a total of 37 matches for the Gunners in all competitions. Local newspaper Islington Gazette gave Djourou's performance 8/10, saying: "Having missed over a year with a serious knee injury, his return coincided with a defensive shortage and he stepped into the breach admirably, not being on the losing side in the league until late April, when his form did start to fade. Has done enough to be first choice."