Cheick Oumar Doucouré (born 8 January 2000) is a Malian professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for club Crystal Palace.
Club career Lens Doucouré developed as a youth player at JMG Academy Bamako. He then spent the 2016–17 season with Real Bamako before moving the following season to Lens. Doucouré quickly cemented his place at Lens in the 2018–19 Ligue 2 campaign with him playing a total of 34 games across all competitions that season.
Crystal Palace On 11 July 2022, Doucouré was signed by English club Crystal Palace on a five-year contract. In his first season, he was named the club's Player of the Year.
On 25 November 2023, Doucouré sustained an Achilles injury in a 2–1 loss to Luton Town, likely ruling him out for the rest of the 2023–24 season. On 28 February 2024, he extended his contract with Palace until 2029.
2024-25 season Doucouré returned to the first team, making 14 appearances before suffering a knee injury in early January 2025. He underwent surgery and was ruled out for the remainder of the season.
2025–26 season On 4 September 2025, Doucouré was omitted from Crystal Palace’s squad for the UEFA Conference League league phase to allow for several more months of injury rehabilitation.
International career In October 2018, Doucouré received his first call-up to the Mali national team. He made his debut for Mali in a 1–0 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualification win over Gabon on 17 November 2018.
Career statistics Club
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational cupLeague cupEurope OtherTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsLens II2017–18Championnat National 240————402019–20Championnat National 210————10Total50————50Lens2018–19Ligue 22722020—403522019–20Ligue 22111020——2412020–21Ligue 133222———3542021–22Ligue 134130———371Total11568240—401318Crystal Palace2022–23Premier League3401000——3502023–24Premier League1100010——1202024–25Premier League1200010——1302025–26Premier League 0000000000002026–27Premier League 00000000—00Total57010200000600Career total1776926000401968
International
+ Appearances and goals by national team and yearNational teamYearAppsGoalsMali201810201940202020202110202220202320Total120
Honours Crystal Palace FA Cup: 2024–25 UEFA Conference League: 2025–26 Individual Crystal Palace Player of the Season: 2022–23
References
External links
Profile at the Crystal Palace F.C. website