Chico Lamba is Green!

Following the purchase options of Irvin Cardona and Maxime Bernauer, and the signing of Mahmoud Jaber, AS Saint-Étienne has welcomed a fourth player : Chico Lamba. The 22-year-old central defender joins the club from FC Arouca (Portugal).

Born in Guinea-Bissau in 2003, Chico Lamba moved to Portugal with his father at the age of 10. Already fond of football and talented, the youngster spent his first season with Clube Futebol Benfica before being spotted by an institution, Sporting Clube de Portugal.

With the Greens and Whites of Lisbon, Chico Lamba climbed the training ladder in 2014. He took part in the 2023 Youth League, which saw him beat Ajax Amsterdam and Liverpool. He captained the Portuguese side to a semi-final defeat by Alkmaar, scoring both goals. A fine performance achieved a year after his first professional appearance against Casa Pia at the age of 19.

Looking for his first professional challenge, Chico Lamba joined Futebol Clube de Arouca in 2024. With the Porto-based club, which has been in the top flight since 2021, the central defender wasted no time in making his mark. In his first season in the top flight, he made 28 appearances and helped Arouca to stay in Portugal's firt division..

Already spotted by the Portuguese Football Federation, Chico Lamba, who has played for the U16, U18 and U19 national teams, recently confirmed his development establishing himself in the Seleção's Espoirs squad. He played against Slovakia in June and caught the attention at the Euro U21 thanks to his defensive but also passing skills, especially during the game against France.

Powerful and intelligent player, Chico Lamba joins AS Saint-Étienne until 2029, and reinforces Les Verts' defensive sector. The Portuguese U-21 international will wear the number 15 shirt.

Chico Lamba: "I'm very happy and proud to be signing for this great club, AS Saint-Étienne. When I was younger, I used to watch Les Verts matches, I remember Aubameyang's matches for example, and I've already seen images of the incredible atmosphere in the Chaudron, of the presence of supporters in stadiums all over France. I'm really looking forward to taking my first steps in green, playing my first match in front of these fans and helping ASSE achieve its goals!"


Eirik Horneland, Saint-Étienne's coach : "We're delighted to welcome Chico to the club. He's a talented and intelligent player. He joins AS Saint-Étienne to continue his development with the team and the club as a whole. Chico is one of the best players of his generation. He has a strong personality and a real winning mentality. We can't wait to start working with him!"

Chico Lamba's “Vert l'Avenir” commitment

As part of its “Vert l'Avenir” CSR initiative, AS Saint-Étienne incentives each of its employees, including players, to commit to one of the four areas of its ASSE Cœur-Vert association: Environment, Citizenship, Sport for all and Health.

This season, Chico Lamba will be taking part in health-related actions.

Joueur associé

15

Chico
Lamba

Portugal