Beninwende Yann Jonathan Pitroipa (born 12 April 1986) is a Burkinabé former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played as a winger. Since making his debut for Burkina Faso in 2006, he has featured at the 2010, 2012 and 2013 editions of the

African Cup of Nations The Africa Cup of Nations, commonly abbreviated as AFCON and officially known as the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, is the main biennial international men's association football competition in Africa. It is s ...

, scoring two goals in the 2013 tournament as Burkina Faso reached the final. He was also chosen the Player of the Tournament.

Club career

Freiburg

Pitroipa played for Planete Champion in his native Burkina Faso until 2004, when he moved to Germany. In 2004, he signed with

Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany and the highest level of the German football league system. The Bundesliga comprises 18 teams ...

side

SC Freiburg Sport-Club Freiburg e.V., commonly known as SC Freiburg (), is a Football in Germany, German professional football club, based in the city of Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg. It plays in the Bundesliga, having been promoted as champions ...

. He scored his first goal for Freiburg in a 3–3 draw with

SpVgg Greuther Fürth Spielvereinigung Greuther Fürth (), commonly known as Greuther Fürth (), is a Football in Germany, German football club based in Fürth, Bavaria. They play in the 2. Bundesliga, the second tier of the German football league system, following r ...

on 22 September 2006. He went on to make 75 league appearances, both in the Bundesliga and 2. Bundesliga, and scored 16 goals.

Hamburger SV

In July 2008, Pitroipa moved to

Hamburger SV Hamburger Sport-Verein e.V. (), commonly known as Hamburger SV () or Hamburg (), or HSV (), is a German sports club based in Hamburg, with its largest branch being its Association football, football department. Though the current HSV was founde ...

on a free transfer. In his last season in the Bundesliga with Hamburg, he appeared in 26 games, adding two goals and six assists. After the dismissal of head coach

Armin Veh Armin Veh (; born 1 February 1961) is a German football manager and former player who last managed Eintracht Frankfurt. He won the German championship with Bundesliga team VfB Stuttgart in 2007. Veh and his team also had the chance to win "the d ...

in March 2011, Pitroipa voiced his unhappiness with the coaching situation. Under new manager

Michael Oenning Michael Oenning (born 27 September 1965) is a German football coach and former player. He formerly managed Vasas Budapest, Hamburger SV, 1. FC Nürnberg, 1. FC Magdeburg, and Aris. Playing career Oenning graduated in German and Sports science ...

, Pitroipa was relegated to a bit-part role for the club and expressed his desire to leave Hamburg in search of regular football. Hamburg's new director of football,

Frank Arnesen Frank Arnesen (born 30 September 1956) is a former Danish footballer and sporting director at Dutch football club Feyenoord. Arnesen was the director of football at English football clubs Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea, and was sporting directo ...

, formerly of Chelsea, did not help matters either, bringing in many young players in an effort to freshen up the squad and start a new era. Pitroipa's last game for the club came on the final day of the

2010–11 Bundesliga The 2010–11 Bundesliga was the 48th season of the Bundesliga, Germany's premier football league. It began on 20 August 2010 and concluded on 14 May 2011. The winter break was in effect between weekends around 18 December 2010 and 15 January 20 ...

season, coming on as a 38th-minute substitute for striker

Paolo Guerrero José Paolo Guerrero González (; born 1 January 1984) is a Peruvian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Forward (association football)#Striker, striker for Peruvian Primera División club Club Alianza Lima, Alianza Li ...

in Hamburg's 1–1 draw with

Borussia Mönchengladbach Borussia Verein für Leibesübungen 1900 e.V. Mönchengladbach, better known as Borussia Mönchengladbach () and colloquially known as just Gladbach, is a professional Association football, football club based in Mönchengladbach, North Rhine-W ...

. Pitroipa made a total of 97 appearances for Hamburg, scoring six goals and adding ten assists. His exit from the club was part of a mass exodus of star names, as

Frank Rost Frank Rost (born 30 June 1973) is a German former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He comes from a sporting family background; his father Peter won a gold medal at the 1980 Olympic Games in handball, and his mother Christina ...

Zé Roberto José Roberto da Silva Júnior (born 6 July 1974), commonly known as Zé Roberto, is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a left wing-back or as a midfielder. He is most well-known for his time with Bayer Leverkusen and Bay ...

Joris Mathijsen Joris Mathijsen (born 5 April 1980) is a Dutch former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. He is the director of football at Willem II. Club career Mathijsen started his football career at SV VOAB in Goirle after he visited a tr ...

Piotr Trochowski Piotr Artur Trochowski (, born 22 March 1984) is a German former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. According to his 2010 FIFA World Cup profile he is a playmaker known for "his speed, agility, tricky dribbling and r ...

and

Ruud van Nistelrooy Rutgerus Johannes Martinus van Nistelrooij (; born 1 July 1976), commonly known as Ruud van Nistelrooy (), is a Dutch professional Association football, football manager and former player who is the current manager of EFL Championship club Leic ...

were also shown the door. Jonathan Pitroipa

Rennes

On 7 July 2011, Pitroipa completed his transfer to French side

Rennes Rennes (; ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Resnn''; ) is a city in the east of Brittany in Northwestern France at the confluence of the rivers Ille and Vilaine. Rennes is the prefecture of the Brittany (administrative region), Brittany Regions of F ...

for £3.16 million transfer fee, well under the €5 million sum desired by Hamburg. Rennes were keen on securing the signature of the Burkina Faso international for a long time, impressed by "his pace and dribbling skills". In his first official appearance for his new club, Pitroipa scored a brace against Georgian side

Metalurgi Rustavi Metalurgi Rustavi was a Georgian football team based in Rustavi, which has twice won the national league. In Soviet times, the club played under the name "Metalurgi" (Rustavi), then during the independence of Georgia, the club was called "Go ...

in the first leg of their

Europa League Playoff Europa may refer to: Places * Europa (Roman province), a province within the Diocese of Thrace * Europa (Seville Metro), Seville, Spain; a station on the Seville Metro * Europa City, Paris, France; a planned development * Europa Cliffs, Alexan ...

tie on 28 July 2011. Pitroipa made his

Ligue 1 Ligue 1 (; ), officially known as Ligue 1 McDonald's France, McDonald's for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in France and the highest level of the French football league system. Administered by the Ligue de ...

debut with Rennes in their league opener against newly promoted

Dijon Dijon (, ; ; in Burgundian language (Oïl), Burgundian: ''Digion'') is a city in and the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Côte-d'Or Departments of France, department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Regions of France, region in eas ...

on 7 August 2011, which ended in a 5–1 victory. He helped in the build-up for the opening goal, delivering a long pass to Abdoulrazak Boukari, who then flicked it on to

Víctor Montaño Víctor Hugo Montaño Caicedo (; born 1 May 1984) is a Colombian former professional footballer who played as a forward. He made one appearance for the Colombia national team in 2011. Club career Early career Although born in Cali, Montaño st ...

, who slid it in. This marked the first time in nine years that Rennes scored five goals in a Ligue 1 game. The following weekend, Pitroipa scored his first Ligue 1 goal for Rennes in their 1–1 draw with

Paris Saint-Germain Paris Saint-Germain Football Club, commonly referred to as Paris Saint-Germain () or simply PSG, is a French professional Association football, football club based in Paris. They compete in Ligue 1, the French football league system, top d ...

on 13 August 2011. His 88th-minute equalizer denied the free-spending capital club their first win of the season and ensured that his side remained undefeated from their opening two league outings. After defeating Metalurgi Rustavi 7–2 on aggregate, Rennes were drawn against

Red Star Belgrade Fudbalski klub Crvena zvezda ( sr-cyrl, Фудбалски клуб Црвена звезда, lit=Red Star Football Club), commonly referred to as Crvena zvezda () and colloquially referred to as Red Star Belgrade in anglophone media, is a ...

in the Europa League Play-off. Pitroipa started the first leg at the

Stadion FK Crvena Zvezda The Rajko Mitić Stadium (, ), previously known as Stadion Crvene zvezde (), also known as Marakana ( sr-Cyrl, Маракана), is a multi-use stadium in Belgrade, Serbia which has been the home ground of Crvena zvezda since 1963. The stadium ...

in Serbia and continued his fine goal-scoring form, netting the equalizing goal for his side in the 41st minute. Substitute Víctor Montaño grabbed the winning goal for the visitors in the second-half, putting them in a comfortable position to advance to the group stages of the Europa League. Rennes won the second leg in convincing fashion, 4–0, to advance to the group stages. Pitroipa beat

Bakary Koné Bakary Koné (, born 27 April 1988) is a Burkinabé former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. Club career Early career Koné played on youth side for CFTPK Abidjan and joined in 2004 to ÉF Ouagadougou where he began his pr ...

to the ball and shot past

Hugo Lloris Hugo Hadrien Dominique Lloris (born 26 December 1986) is a French professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper for Major League Soccer club Los Angeles FC. Lloris began his career wi ...

to help Rennes record a 2–1 victory over

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

on 18 November and move up to fourth in the Ligue 1 table. On 4 March 2012, he turned in a "Man of the Match" performance against

Lorient Lorient (; ) is a town (''Communes of France, commune'') and Port, seaport in the Morbihan Departments of France, department of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in western France. History Prehistory and classical antiquity Beginn ...

as he scored a brilliant 25-yard strike with his left foot and then provided an assist for

Youssouf Hadji Youssouf Hadji (; born 25 February 1980) is a Moroccan former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. He notably had three spells for French side AS Nancy, also serving as the team captain, making 378 appearances and scori ...

, the man who set up Pitroipa's goal, to earn a 2–0 victory. After a mazy run through four

Evian Evian (, ; , stylized as evian) is a French brand that bottles mineral water from several sources near Évian-les-Bains, on the south shore of Lake Geneva. Evian is owned by Danone, a French multinational corporation. In addition to the miner ...

defenders, Pitroipa lofted the ball over onrushing goalkeeper

Stephan Andersen Stephan Maigaard Andersen (born 26 November 1981) is a Danish former professional association football, football player, who played as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper. He was a full international for the Denmark national football ...

as Rennes won 3–1 on 7 April to boost their bid for European football. In Rennes' game against

Nice Nice ( ; ) is a city in and the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly one millionDidier Digard before slotting the ball home, giving Rennes a 3–1 victory and putting them two points away from a

Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

spot. Pitroipa helped Rennes finish in sixth place on 60 points, thanks to scoring a goal in their 5–0 defeat of relegated Dijon on 20 May 2012; the result, however, was not good enough to secure European football for 2012–13 though. Pitroipa scored his first goal of the

2012–13 Ligue 1 The 2012–13 Ligue 1 was the 75th season since its establishment. Montpellier were the defending champions. The league schedule was announced in April 2012 and the fixtures were determined on 30 May. The season began on 10 August and ended on ...

season on 25 August 2012, as Rennes registered their first victory of the campaign with a 3–2 defeat of

Bastia Bastia ( , , , ; ) is a communes of France, commune in the Departments of France, department of Haute-Corse, Corsica, France. It is located in the northeast of the island of Corsica at the base of Cap Corse. It also has the second-highest popu ...

, also providing the assist for

Mevlüt Erdinç Mevlüt Erdinç (surname spelt Erding in France; born 25 February 1987) is a former professional footballer who played as a forward. Born in France to Turkish parents, he spent most of his career in his country of birth, recording 295 games and ...

's strike. He scored the winning goal for Rennes a minute from time against

Troyes Troyes () is a Communes of France, commune and the capital of the Departments of France, department of Aube in the Grand Est region of north-central France. It is located on the Seine river about south-east of Paris. Troyes is situated within ...

on 2 December, completing a comeback victory from 1–2 down to seal a 3–2 win and a third-straight Ligue 1 victory.

Antwerp

In early January 2018, Pitroipa was one of four signings to be announced by

Belgian First Division A The Belgian Pro League (; ; ), officially the Jupiler Pro League () for sponsor Jupiler, is a professional association football league in Belgium and the highest level of the Belgian football league system. Contested by 16 clubs from the 2023– ...

side

Royal Antwerp F.C. Royal Antwerp Football Club (commonly referred to as Royal Antwerp or simply Antwerp) is a Belgian professional football club based in the city of Antwerp. They compete in the Belgian Pro League, the top flight of Belgian football. Founded in 1 ...

Free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

Pitroipa signed a six-month contract.

Paris FC

Pitroipa joined

Paris FC Paris Football Club (French pronunciation: Help:IPA/French, aʁi futbol klœb, commonly referred to as Paris FC or simply PFC, is a French professional Association football, football club based in Paris, France. They will compete in Ligue ...

in 2018. He left in January 2021 after making a total of 69 league appearances and scoring 3 league goals.

Retirement

Pitroipa announced his retirement from playing in February 2021.

International career

Pitroipa made his debut for

Burkina Faso Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa, bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Ivory Coast to the southwest. It covers an area of 274,223 km2 (105,87 ...

in 2006. On 20 June 2009, he scored a 27th-minute goal against the

Ivory Coast Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest List of ci ...

to put the score at 1–1 and a later own goal put his side into a 2–1 lead before a late fightback from the Elephants secured a 3–2 victory for Ivory Coast in the third round of CAF

2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying Qualifying for the 2010 FIFA World Cup was a series of tournaments organised by the six FIFA confederations. Each confederation – the AFC (Asia), CAF (Africa), CONCACAF (North, Central America and Caribbean), CONMEBOL (South America), OFC (Oce ...

. Pitroipa was part of the final squads at the

2010 Africa Cup of Nations The 2010 Africa Cup of Nations, also known as the Orange Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, was the 27th Africa Cup of Nations, the biennial football championship of Africa ( CAF). It was held in Angola, where it began on 10 January 2 ...

in Angola and the

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

edition in Equatorial Guinea. Following his success in Ligue 1, Pitroipa was called up to the Burkina Faso squad to the

2013 African Cup of Nations The 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, also known as the Orange Africa Cup of Nations South Africa 2013 for sponsorship reasons, held from 19 January to 10 February 2013, was the 29th Africa Cup of Nations, the football championship of Africa organized ...

. In the tournament, he scored an injury time goal against

Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

in their second group game, securing a 4–0 victory for his country. Burkina Faso advanced out of the group stage and into the quarter-finals of the competition where they faced

Togo Togo, officially the Togolese Republic, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to Ghana–Togo border, the west, Benin to Benin–Togo border, the east and Burkina Faso to Burkina Faso–Togo border, the north. It is one of the le ...

on 3 February, and Pitroipa scored the only goal of the game in the 105th minute to send the Stallions into the semi-finals. Pitroipa was controversially sent off in the semi-final game of the competition against

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

, when he was booked for simulation in the 117th minute while it appeared that he had been fouled in the penalty box. The Stallions overcame his sending off and won 3–2 in the penalty shoot-out after the game had finished 1–1 after extra time, booking the country's first ever trip to the African Cup of Nations final. The red card was later overturned by the CAF executive committee after referee Slim Jedidi admitted to having made a mistake by showing the second yellow card. Burkina Faso lost in the final to

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

by a score of 1–0, but Pitroipa was named as the "Player of the Tournament" by

CAF CAF or caf may refer to: Armed forces *Canadian Armed Forces (Canadian Forces), the Canadian Air Force, Army, and Navy *Canadian Air Force, now the Royal Canadian Air Force *Republic of China Air Force, the air force of the Republic of China (Tai ...

. He retired from international football in December 2019.

Coaching career

In October 2008, Pitroipa established, alongside Burkina Faso international teammate

Wilfried Sanou Wilfried Sanou (born 16 March 1984) is a Burkinabé former professional footballer who played as a winger or striker. He started his career with Planète Champion in his home country before moving to Austria where he played for Wattens and ...

, the Kada School. The club is owned by his father Miki Jean-Baptiste Pitroipa and Sanou's mother.

Career statistics

Club

International goals

:''Scores and results list Burkina Faso's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Pitroipa goal''.

Honours

International *

runner-up:

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

; third place:

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

Individual *

Africa Cup of Nations The Africa Cup of Nations, commonly abbreviated as AFCON and officially known as the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, is the main biennial international men's association football competition in Africa. It is s ...

Player of the Tournament:

Team of the Tournament:

qualification Top scorer:

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

References

External links

Jonathan Pitroipa
at kicker.de * {{DEFAULTSORT:Pitroipa, Jonathan Living people 1986 births Footballers from Ouagadougou Men's association football midfielders Burkinabe men's footballers Burkina Faso men's international footballers 2010 Africa Cup of Nations players 2012 Africa Cup of Nations players 2013 Africa Cup of Nations players 2015 Africa Cup of Nations players 2017 Africa Cup of Nations players SC Freiburg players Hamburger SV players Stade Rennais FC players Al Jazira Club players Al-Nasr SC (Dubai) players Royal Antwerp F.C. players Paris FC players Bundesliga players 2. Bundesliga players Ligue 1 players UAE Pro League players Burkinabe expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Germany Expatriate men's footballers in France Expatriate men's footballers in the United Arab Emirates Expatriate men's footballers in Belgium Burkinabe expatriate sportspeople in Germany Burkinabe expatriate sportspeople in France Burkinabe expatriate sportspeople in the United Arab Emirates Burkinabe expatriate sportspeople in Belgium 21st-century Burkinabe sportsmen