Soualiho Meïté (born 17 March 1994) is a French 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 plays as a
midfielder
In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...
for
Greek Super League
The Super League Greece 1 (), or Stoiximan Super League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Greece and the highest level of the Greek football league system. The league was formed on 16 July 2006 and repla ...
club
PAOK
PAOK (, Πανθεσσαλονίκειος Αθλητικός Όμιλος Κωνσταντινοπολιτών, ''Panthessalonikeios Athlitikós Ómilos Constantinopoliton'', ''Pan-Thessalonian Athletic Club of Constantinopolitans''), commonly ...
Club career
Early career
On 14 March 2011, Meïté signed his first professional contract agreeing to a three-year deal with
Auxerre
Auxerre ( , , Burgundian language (Oïl), Burgundian: ''Auchoirre'') is the capital (Prefectures in France, prefecture) of the Yonne Departments of France, department and the fourth-largest city in the Burgundy historical region southeast of Par ...
. He was subsequently promoted to the senior team by
manager
Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...
Laurent Fournier
Laurent Fournier (born 14 September 1964) is a French former professional footballer.
Managerial career
Fournier retired in 1998, immediately becoming manager of his final club SC Bastia in Ligue 1. He was fired in April 1999, and his next jobs ...
and assigned the number 32 shirt. Meïté made his professional debut on 20 November in a 2–1 defeat against
Valenciennes
Valenciennes (, also , , ; ; or ; ) is a communes of France, commune in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, department, Hauts-de-France, France.
It lies on the Scheldt () river. Although the city and region experienced ...
, appearing as a
substitute.
Monaco
On 17 June 2017, Meïté was transferred to
Monaco
Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...
for €8 million. He made his debut for the club on 16 September that year.
On 2 January 2018, Meïté was loaned to Bordeaux. He scored his first goal on 15 April in a 3–1 away win against Montpellier.
Torino
On 10 July, Meïté was signed by Italian club
Torino
Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...
through an equal exchange with full-back
Antonio Barreca, who moved to Monaco. He made his debut for the ''Granata'' on 12 August during
Coppa Italia
Coppa Italia () is the annual domestic cup of Italian football. The knockout competition was organized by the DDS and the Lega Calcio until the 2009–10 season and by Lega Serie A ever since.
Juventus is the competition's most successf ...
against
Cosenza
Cosenza (; Languages of Calabria#Northern Calabrian (Cosentian), Cosentian: ''Cusenza'', ) is a city located in Calabria, Italy. The city centre has a population of approximately 70,000, while the urban area counts more than 200,000 inhabitants. ...
(4–0) as a starter. He scored his first goal for the club on 26 August in a 2–2 draw against
Inter Milan
Football Club Internazionale Milano, commonly referred to as Internazionale () or simply Inter, and colloquially known as Inter Milan in English-speaking countries, is an Italian professional Association football, football List of football ...
at
San Siro
San Siro is a football stadium in the San Siro district of Milan, Italy. It has a seating capacity of 75,817, making it the largest stadium in Italy and one of the largest stadiums in Europe. It is the home stadium of the city's principal ...
.
On 14 January, Meïté signed with
AC Milan
(), commonly referred to as Milan or AC Milan () mainly outside of Italy, is an Italian professional Football club (association football), football club based in Milan, Lombardy. Founded in 1899, the club competes in the Serie A, the top tie ...
, on loan from
Torino
Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...
with an option to buy.
Benfica
Meïté joined Portuguese club
Benfica in July 2021, signing a contract until 2026. The next stop in Meite's career was Benfica. In Lisbon he made 27 appearances before leaving on loan for Cremonese in the 2022–23 season, where he made 35 appearances and produced two assists.
PAOK
On 27 August 2023, Meïté joined
PAOK
PAOK (, Πανθεσσαλονίκειος Αθλητικός Όμιλος Κωνσταντινοπολιτών, ''Panthessalonikeios Athlitikós Ómilos Constantinopoliton'', ''Pan-Thessalonian Athletic Club of Constantinopolitans''), commonly ...
on loan with an option to buy. The agreement for the 29-year-old French midfielder is for an option of four million euros, with the Lusitanians retaining a resale percentage (30%). Meïté made his debut with PAOK against
OFI as a substitute on 3 September 2023. On 5 October Soualiho was named Fans' Man of the Match with a percentage of 31% against
Eintracht Frankfurt
Eintracht Frankfurt e.V. () is a German professional sports club based in Frankfurt, Hesse. It is best known for its football club, which was founded on 8 March 1899. The club currently plays in the Bundesliga, the top tier of the German footb ...
in Toumba for the 2nd matchday of the
UEFA Europa Conference League
The UEFA Conference League (UECL), usually known simply as the Conference League, is an annual association football, football competition organised since 2021 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European foot ...
2023-24 group stage. He scored his first goal for the club on 14 January in a 4–0 win against
PAS Giannina
PAS Giannina Football Club (), or with its full name Panipirotikós Athlitikós Síllogos Giánnina (, ''Panepirotic Athletic Club Giannina'') is a Greek professional Association football, football club based in the city of Ioannina, the capita ...
at
Toumba.
On 26 June 2025, PAOK triggered the option to buy Meïté. The French midfielder signed a contract for one year with the option for another year.
International career
Born in France, Meïté is of Ivorian descent. A former
France youth international, he represented his nation at
under-16 and
under-17 level. He played with the under-17 team at the
2011 FIFA U-17 World Cup
The 2011 FIFA U-17 World Cup was the 14th edition of the FIFA U-17 World Cup, the biennial international men's youth association football, football championship contested by the under-17 national teams of the member associations of FIFA. It was h ...
.
Career statistics
Club
Honours
Zulte Waregem
*
Belgian Cup
The Belgian Cup (; ; ) is the main knockout football competition in Belgium, run by the Royal Belgian FA. The competition started in 1908 with provincial selections as the "Belgian Provinces Cup". Starting from 1912 only actual clubs were allowed ...
:
2016–17
Benfica
*
Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira
The Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira (; English: Cândido de Oliveira Super Cup, or simply Portuguese Super Cup) is an annual Portuguese association football, football match played since 1979 between the winners of the top-tier league (Primeira L ...
:
2023
Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...
PAOK
*
Super League Greece
The Super League Greece 1 (), or Stoiximan Super League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Greece and the highest level of the Greek football league system. The league was formed on 16 July 2006 and repla ...
:
2023–24
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Meite, Soualiho
Living people
1994 births
French men's footballers
France men's youth international footballers
French expatriate men's footballers
Ivorian men's footballers
French sportspeople of Ivorian descent
Men's association football midfielders
Footballers from Paris
AJ Auxerre players
Lille OSC players
S.V. Zulte Waregem players
AS Monaco FC players
FC Girondins de Bordeaux players
Torino FC players
AC Milan players
S.L. Benfica footballers
US Cremonese players
PAOK FC players
Ligue 1 players
Ligue 2 players
Championnat National 2 players
Championnat National 3 players
Belgian Pro League players
Serie A players
Primeira Liga players
Super League Greece players
Expatriate men's footballers in Belgium
French expatriate sportspeople in Belgium
Expatriate men's footballers in Italy
French expatriate sportspeople in Italy
Expatriate men's footballers in Portugal
French expatriate sportspeople in Portugal
Expatriate men's footballers in Greece
French expatriate sportspeople in Greece
21st-century French sportsmen