Hoarau started his football career at JS Saint-Pierroise in his native Réunion. In 1995, Le Havre AC scouts considered him too "thin" and signed his then-teammate Florent Sinama Pongolle. After gaining the attention of then-Le Havre manager Jean-François Domergue, Hoarau signed his first professional contract at the age of 20 for Le Havre in January 2004.[1] He made his league debut on 12 May 2004 against Châteauroux in a 2–1 loss, coming on as a substitute.[2]
Despite being signed, Hoarau spent the majority of his career under Domergue playing in the reserves, often earning brief call-ups to the senior squad, then quickly being sent down.[3] He registered his first career goal in just the second match of the 2004–05 season in a 2–1 victory over Amiens.[4] Despite this, his play was heavily limited following the firing of Domergue and the appointment of temporary manager Philippe Hinschberger. During the following season under new manager Thierry Uvenard, his playing time increased—he appeared in 28 matches, scoring five goals. The next season, he only made five appearances for Le Havre before being sent on loan to Gueugnon, where he made 21 appearances and scored eight goals.
Ligue 2 star
Under new manager Jean-Marc Nobilo, his fourth manager in four years, Hoarau was installed as the lead striker and flourished. Playing in all 38 league matches, he was top scorer with 28 goals and, at one point during the season, scored at least one goal in 12-straight matches.[5] His performances led to the French media naming him the "Karim Benzema of Ligue 2", as Benzema was having a similar season in Ligue 1.[3] His performances caught the eye of several Ligue 1 clubs, such as Auxerre, Marseille, and Paris Saint-Germain to name a few, as well as English clubs Arsenal, Blackburn Rovers and Chelsea,[6] who likened the player to Peter Crouch. Eventually, it was announced in January 2008 that Hoarau had signed with Parisian club Paris Saint-Germain on a four-year deal after reportedly snubbing the club's primary rival, Marseille.[7] PSG paid Le Havre fee of €500,000 and also allowed the player to finish the Ligue 2 season with his former club, whom he helped achieve promotion to Ligue 1.
Hoarau arrived in Paris following the Ligue 2 season with high expectations, as he was expected to replace club legend Pauleta and live up to comments made by former president Alain Cayzac, who referred to Hoarau as being the "signing of the century" for PSG.[8]
He made his debut for the club in a 1–0 defeat at Monaco on 9 August 2008. After going scoreless the first week, Hoarau responded in the second week scoring his first goal for the club on his home debut in a 1–0 victory over Bordeaux.[9] His breakthrough into the team came in the annual Classique against rivals Marseille on 26 October 2008. In a huge 4–2 victory for the club, Hoarau scored a brace.[10] He followed this up by scoring another brace, this time against his former club Le Havre in a 3–1 victory.[11] His next set of goals were against Le Mans, earning another brace in another 3–1 victory.[12] Hoarau also continued his solid form on the European stage scoring a brace in the club's first leg match against VfL Wolfsburg on 18 February 2009 in the 2008–09 UEFA Cup.[13] In total for the season, Hoarau made 45 appearances, 32 in league play, and scored 20 goals, 17 in league play, contributing to the club's successful season where they reached as high as the second position in the league and made it to the quarter-finals of the UEFA Cup.
Due to his great performances, Hoarau was linked to several clubs, most notably Lyon, who offered €10million for the player's services.[14] Both Hoarau and PSG, however, downplayed the offer and, two days later, Hoarau signed a contract extension until 2013.[15]
Following his successful first season in Paris, Hoarau struggled to reproduce the same kind of form. The arrival of new striker Mevlüt Erdinç failed to ignite a successful partnership, with both players often injured and profligate in front of goal whenever they managed to play. Hoarau did however score the winning goal for PSG in extra time in the 2010 Coupe de France Final.[16] Since the signing of new striker Kevin Gameiro in the summer of 2011, both Hoarau and Erdinç were relegated to the substitutes' bench, and the former suffered a serious injury on the very first day of the 2011–12 season. Hoarau was linked with a loan move to Saint-Étienne.[17] On the last day of the 2011–12 season, with Montpellier and PSG both chasing the Ligue 1 title, Hoarau suffered an injury in a match against Lorient, with Montpeillier going on to win their first league title.[18]
In the 2012–13 season, Hoarau featured less for the club and was placed on the transfer list despite being out of contract at the end of the season.[19]
Upon his departure to Dalin Aerbin, Hoarau appeared at Parc des Princes, where he made a farewell speech and was left emotional, saying, "Nothing has changed. I'm a little excited. I have a small tear in the eye."[20]
Hoarau made his debut in the opening game of the season, coming on as a substitute in the 69th minutes for Zhou Tong, in a 1–0 loss against Shandong Luneng. Hoarau scored his first goal three weeks later, on 30 March 2013, in a 3–3 draw against newly promoted Shanghai East Asia.[24] Two weeks later, on 14 April 2013, Hoarau scored again in a 2–1 loss against reigning league champion Guangzhou Evergrande. Hoarau later struggled to score despite having earned himself as first team regular. His lack of scoring lead the club recruit Nabil Baha as their new striker, with the club considering selling Hoarau during the summer transfer window.[25] Eventually, Hoarau would stay at the club for the season and would help the club finish in fifth in the league table.
Upon the conclusion of the 2013 season, Chinese media Sina Sports reported that Hoarau was among several foreign players to leave Dalian Aerbin.[26][27] Four days later, the club confirmed the departure of Hoarau, who would return to France.[28]
Bordeaux
After one season in China, Hoarau returned to France by joining Ligue 1 side Bordeaux until the end of the 2013–14 season.[29] Prior to the move, Hoarau was also linked with Marseille.[30] The move to Marseille did not transpire, as Hoarau preferred moving elsewhere.[31]
Young Boys
In the summer of 2014, Hoarau left Bordeaux and joined Swiss side BSC Young Boys.[32]
In the play-off round of the Champions League campaign the following season, Hoarau scored goals in both legs against Dinamo Zagreb, which took Young Boys to the group stages for the first time ever.[32] He scored twice more in the final group game on 12 December, a surprise 2–1 defeat of Italian giants Juventus. Despite the victory, Young Boys still finished bottom of the group on four points.[34]
Sion
On 18 September 2020, Hoarau signed with fellow Swiss side Sion.[35]
Retirement
In August 2022, at the age of 38, Hoarau announced his retirement from professional playing.[36]
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