Eric Bocat

Eric Bocat

Bocat in 2025
Personal information
Full name	Eric-Junior Doriane Magate Kom Baga Bocat [1] [2]
Date of birth	(1999-07-16) 16 July 1999 (age 26) [2]
Place of birth	Paris, France [2]
Height	1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) [2]
Position	Left-back [3]
Team information
Current team	Stoke City
Number	17
Youth career
2009–2014	Val d'Europe
2015–2017	US Torcy
2017–2018	Dijon
2018–2019	Brest
2019–2020	Lille
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2017–2018	Dijon B	11	(0)
2018–2019	Brest B	24	(0)
2019–2020	Lille B	20	(0)
2020	Lille	0	(0)
2020–2022	Mouscron	33	(1)
2022–2024	Sint-Truiden	59	(2)
2024–	Stoke City	48	(0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 16:55, 28 February 2026 (UTC)

Eric-Junior Doriane Magate Kom Baga Bocat (born 16 July 1999) is a French professional footballer who plays as a left-back for EFL Championship club Stoke City.

Career

Early career

Bocat was born in Paris and began playing football with youth teams Val d'Europe and US Torcy in Seine-et-Marne before joining the Dijon academy. He made eleven appearances for Dijon's B team in 2017–18 and 24 appearances for Brest's B team in 2018–19 before he joined Lille in August 2019. ^[4] Bocat played for Lille's B team 20 times in the Championnat National 2 during the 2019–20 campaign and made his senior debut in a Coupe de France round of 16 tie against SAS Épinal which ended in a shock 2–1 defeat. ^[5]

Mouscron

Bocat left Lille on 1 August 2020 and signed for Belgian top flight club Mouscron. ^[6] He only made nine appearances in 2020–21 as Mouscron suffered relegation to the First Division B amid severe financial problems. ^[2] He was a regular in 2021–22, playing 27 times as Mouscron's situation worsened and they were declared bankrupt at the end of the season. ^[7]

Sint-Truiden

After two seasons at Mouscron, Bocat signed for Belgian Pro League side Sint-Truiden in July 2022. ^[8] In his first season at Stayen, Bocat made 25 appearances as Sint-Truiden finished in a mid-table position of 12th. In 2023–24, Bocat only missed three games as the team had a decent campaign, finishing ninth and competed in the European play-offs. ^[9]

Stoke City

On 26 June 2024, Bocat joined English Championship side Stoke City for an undisclosed fee, ^{[10] [11]} reported to be around €1.5 million, plus €500,000 in add-ons, ^[12] signing a four-year deal. ^{[10] [11]} Following the announcement of the transfer it was revealed that they had looked into signing the defender the previous transfer window, instead using the budget to prioritise the signing of a forward player, Million Manhoef. ^[13] Bocat had a stop-start first season in English football, making 34 appearances in 2024–25, as Stoke avoided relegation on the final day. ^{[14] [15] [16]}

Personal life

Born in France, Bocat is of Central African and Senegalese descent. ^[17]

Career statistics

As of match played 28 February 2026

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National cup [a]		League cup [b]		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Dijon B	2017–18 [2]	Championnat National 3	11	0	—		—		—		11	0
Brest B	2018–19 [2]	Championnat National 3	24	0	—		—		—		24	0
Lille B	2019–20 [2]	Championnat National 2	20	0	—		—		—		20	0
Lille	2019–20 [2]	Ligue 1	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
Mouscron	2020–21 [2]	Belgian First Division A	8	0	1	0	—		—		9	0
	2021–22 [2]	Belgian First Division B	25	1	2	0	—		—		27	1
	Total		33	1	3	0	—		—		36	1
Sint-Truiden	2022–23 [2]	Belgian Pro League	22	0	3	0	—		—		25	0
	2023–24 [2]	Belgian Pro League	37	2	1	0	—		—		38	2
	Total		59	2	4	0	—		—		63	2
Stoke City	2024–25 [2]	Championship	30	0	0	0	4	0	—		34	0
	2025–26 [2]	Championship	18	0	1	0	2	0	—		21	0
	Total		48	0	1	0	6	0	—		55	0
Career total			195	3	9	0	6	0	0	0	210	3

1. Includes Belgian Cup, Coupe de France and FA Cup
2. Includes Coupe de la Ligue and EFL Cup

References

1. "EFL- Squad list 2024/25" (PDF). English Football League. Retrieved 6 September 2024.
2. Eric Bocat at Soccerway. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
3. Eric Bocat at WorldFootball.net
4. "Football : Eric Bocat (ex Val d'Europe) signe au LOSC" [Football: Eric Bocat (ex Val d’Europe) signs for LOSC]. Actu.fr (in French). Retrieved 26 June 2024.
5. "Fourth-tier Epinal topple Lille". Dawn. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
6. "ÉRIC BOCAT LEAVES FOR MOUSCRON". Lille OSC (in French). Retrieved 27 June 2024.
7. "Down and out Mouscron files for bankruptcy". Inside World Football. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
8. "Après deux saisons passées à Mouscron, Eric Bocat rejoint Saint-Trond" [After two seasons spent in Mouscron, Eric Bocat joins Saint-Trond]. sudinfo.be (in French). Retrieved 27 June 2024.
9. "Stoke city sign Sint-Truiden's unsung hero from the past two seasons". getfootballnewsbene.com. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
10. "Potters bag Bocat". Stoke City F.C. 26 June 2024. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
11. "Stoke City sign French defender Eric Bocat on four-year deal". BBC Sport. 26 June 2024. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
12. Prévot, Tom (22 June 2024). "Mercato : pisté par des clubs de Ligue 1, Eric Bocat (Saint-Trond) va s'engager à Stoke City". L'Équipe (in French). Retrieved 27 June 2024.
13. Smith, Peter (26 June 2024). "Boss explains Eric Bocat transfer as Stoke City move to resolve left-back situation". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
14. "Stoke City end of season player ratings from sustained excellence to won't be seen again". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 15 May 2025.
15. "Derby County 0–0 Stoke City: Both teams survive after goalless draw". Sky Sports. Retrieved 8 May 2025.
16. "Derby County 0–0 Stoke City". BBC Sport. Retrieved 15 May 2025.
17. "Le piston français Eric Bocat (Saint-Trond) a la cote • Actufoot • Actu du foot pro/amateur".