Ismaël Kenneth Jordan Koné (born June 16, 2002) is a professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder for Serie A club Sassuolo. Born in the Ivory Coast, he plays for the Canada national team.
🏟️ Early Career
Koné began his professional playing career with Major League Soccer club CF Montréal in 2021. In late 2022, Koné agreed to join EFL Championship club Watford.
🇫🇷 Marseille and Loans
After two seasons in England, Koné joined Ligue 1 club Marseille, but he struggled for playing time with the French club. He went on two loan spells, first with fellow Ligue 1 side Rennes and then Serie A club Sassuolo. In early 2026, Koné joined Sassuolo on a permanent deal.
🇨🇦 Canada National Team
Koné received his first call-up to the Canada national team in 2022 for that year’s FIFA World Cup qualification matches. He was ultimately named to Canada’s squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. For Koné’s performances in his debut season, he was named that year’s Canadian Youth Player of the Year.
🌍 International Tournaments
The following year, Koné participated in the 2023 CONCACAF Nations League Finals, and was again named the Canadian Youth Player of the Year for a second consecutive season. Koné has since represented Canada at the 2024 Copa América, 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup, and 2026 FIFA World Cup.
👶 Early Life
Koné was born in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. In 2010, he moved to Canada with his mother at age 7, growing up in Montreal. Two years later, he began playing youth soccer with the AS Notre-Dame-de-Grâce Panthers. When he was 16, he joined CS Saint-Laurent.
🏅 Youth Achievements
With CS Saint-Laurent he earned the bronze medal at the 2019 Canadian Under-17 Championship. He went on trial in Belgium with Genk and Mouscron, but was unable to sign with Mouscron as they did not have the funds available to sign a non-European player. Soon afterwards, he was forced to return to Canada due to the COVID-19 pandemic, where he began training with CF Montreal U23 and earned an invitation to the first team’s training camp in 2021.
📝 CF Montréal Contract
After a few months training with the CF Montréal first team, initially unable to sign a contract due to “some technicalities in MLS rules,” Koné officially signed a two-year contract with two option years on August 13, 2021. However, soon after signing his contract he suffered a knee injury, which limited his participation in training.
🔵 Professional Debut
After the 2021 season, he went to train with Montreal’s sister club, Serie A club Bologna. Koné made his professional debut and scored his first goal with Montreal in a 3–0 win against Santos Laguna on February 23, 2022, in the 2022 CONCACAF Champions League.
🟡 Watford Transfer
In December 2022, EFL Championship club Watford announced they had agreed to sign Koné on a transfer from CF Montréal, with the midfielder penning a four-and-a-half-year deal. He made his debut on January 7, 2023, starting an FA Cup match against Reading. Koné scored his first goal for Watford in a 3–2 win over Norwich on November 28, 2023.
🔵 Marseille Move
On June 28, 2024, it was announced Ligue 1 club Olympique Marseille had reached an agreement for the permanent signing of Koné, for a reported transfer fee of £15m including add-ons. After ankle injuries initially prevented him from practicing or playing regularly, Koné’s time at Marseille became dominated by discussions of conflict between him and manager Roberto De Zerbi.
🔴 Rennes Loan
On February 3, 2025, Koné joined Rennes on loan for the remainder of the 2024–25 season. In the final match of the 2024–25 Ligue 1 season at the Stade Vélodrome, he scored a long-range goal from 30 meters against his parent club, Marseille.
🟢 Sassuolo Loan and Permanent Move
On July 29, 2025, amidst further media reports of incompatibility between Koné and De Zerbi, Koné was loaned to Serie A club Sassuolo. He made his official debut on August 15 in a Coppa Italia match against US Catanzaro, starting and playing 84 minutes in a 1–0 victory. On February 2, 2026, Sassuolo made the transfer permanent.
🏆 World Cup Debut
Koné scored his first international goal for Canada in a friendly against Bahrain on November 11, 2022. Two days later on November 13, he was named to Canada’s 26-man squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. He appeared in all three of the team’s matches at the World Cup.
🥇 Young Player Awards
At the end of the year, Koné was named the men’s 2022 Canada Soccer Young Player of the Year. The following year, Koné was awarded again the Canada Soccer Young Player of the Year.
🌎 2026 World Cup
In May 2026, Koné was selected for Canada’s squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which Canada co-hosted with Mexico and the United States. On June 12, Koné was selected as player of the match in a 1–1 draw with Bosnia and Herzegovina during both teams’ opening group stage game of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which saw Canada earn their first World Cup point ever.
🩹 World Cup Injury
On June 18, Koné was injured during the 51st minute of Canada’s second group stage match against Qatar by a tackle from Assim Madibo, who was later issued a red card. Medical staff put an air cast on Koné’s left leg and he was taken off the pitch on a stretcher as Canada later went on to win the game 6–0, their first win at a World Cup. The team announced the following day that Koné underwent a successful surgery for his broken tibia and fibula.
📊 Career Statistics
| Club | League | Period | Key Event |
|---|---|---|---|
| CF Montréal | MLS | 2021–2022 | Professional debut and first goal (Feb 2022) |
| Watford | EFL Championship | 2022–2024 | 63 games, 4 goals |
| Marseille | Ligue 1 | 2024–2025 | Conflict with manager Roberto De Zerbi |
| Sassuolo | Serie A | 2025–present | Permanent transfer in Feb 2026 |