Malo Gusto

^[1]

Malo Gusto

Gusto with Lyon in 2022
Personal information
Full name	Malo Arthur Gusto
Date of birth	(2003-05-19) 19 May 2003 (age 21) [2]
Place of birth	Décines-Charpieu, France
Height	1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) [3]
Position(s)	Right-back [3]
Team information
Current team	Chelsea
Number	27
Youth career
2012–2015	AS Villefontaine
2015–2016	Bourgoin-Jallieu
2016–2021	Lyon
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2020–2021	Lyon II	8	(1)
2021–2023	Lyon	53	(0)
2023–	Chelsea	40	(0)
International career‡
2018	France U16	2	(0)
2019	France U17	1	(0)
2021	France U19	3	(0)
2021–	France U21	10	(1)
2023–	France	1	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 21:25, 15 December 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 15 October 2024

Malo Arthur Gusto (born 19 May 2003) ^[2] is a French professional footballer who plays as a right-back for Premier League club Chelsea and the France national team. ^{[4] [5]}

Early life

Malo Arthur Gusto ^[4] was born on 19 May 2003 ^[2] in Décines-Charpieu, a commune in the Metropolis of Lyon. ^[6] Growing up in Villefontaine, Isère, his father first made him play rugby football, but the young Gusto soon chose to play association football, pursuing his dream to become a professional footballer while studying for a baccalauréat technologique. ^{[7] [8]}

Club career

Lyon

Malo Gusto started playing at the ASVF, ^[9] later joining Bourgoin-Jallieu on a one-year spell, ^[10] before entering the Lyon academy as an under-14, in a move resembling the one of his elder academy fellow Amine Gouiri. ^{[11] [12] [13] [7]} Gusto so happened to arrive in Lyon the same year that the club moved to the Stade des Lumières, in his home town. ^[13]

There he was part of the same generation as Florent da Silva, Yaya Soumaré and Rayan Cherki, eventually signing his first professional contract with the French club in December 2020. ^{[14] [1]} At that point he had already made a few appearance on the team sheet for Ligue 1 games under Rudi Garcia's management, whilst already having shown his talent in the Youth League and National 2, with the reserve. ^{[12] [14]}

Malo Gusto made his professional debut for Lyon on the 24 January 2021, replacing Bruno Guimarães on the 90th minute of a 5–0 Ligue 1 away win against their Derby du Rhône rivals of Saint-Étienne. ^{[8] [15]} Having made another short Ligue 1 appearance at the end of the season, the young defender signed a new contract with Lyon in June, tying him to the club until 2024. ^{[16] [17]}

Gusto started his first game during Lyon's opening match against Brest on 7 August. ^{[11] [18]} By doing so he became the youngest defender to start a Ligue 1 game for OL since Samuel Umtiti. ^{[19] [20]}

While still appearing to be behind Dubois in the right back hierarchy, Gusto still took the spotlight on several occasions under Bosz's direction, as he started games such as the 2–0 Europa League away win against Rangers or the 2–1 Ligue 1 away loss against Paris Saint-Germain. ^{[11] [8] [21] [22]}

Chelsea

On 29 January 2023, Chelsea announced the signing of Malo Gusto on a deal until 2030. ^[5] Lyon reported the transfer fee to be €30m plus €5m in bonuses. ^[23] He was loaned back to Lyon until the end of the 2022–23 season. ^[5] On 13 August, he made his debut for the club in a 1–1 draw against Liverpool in the Premier League. ^[24] On 24 September, he was shown his first red card in his career after Jarred Gillett went to the VAR monitor to review a late challenge he made on Lucas Digne in their home defeat to Aston Villa. ^[25]

International career

Born in France, Gusto is of Portuguese descent through his father, ^[26] and Martiniquais descent through his mother. ^[27] He is a youth international for France: he first played as a midfielder for the under-16, but was later selected as a fullback with the U17 and U18. However, he did not play any official game with the latter, as the covid pandemic did not allow most youth international encounters or competitions to go on as planned during 2020–2021. ^{[13] [28] [29]}

In September 2021, as the pandemic was slowing down, the young defender eventually gained his next French cap, this time playing with the under-19. ^{[11] [8]} He was called up for a friendly tournament in Slovenia, against Russia, Slovakia and the hosts, along with his teammate Rayan Cherki. ^{[30] [31]} There he started and played every minute of all three games, even ending up wearing the captain's armband. ^{[32] [33] [34]}

However only a month later both he and Cherki were directly promoted to the under-21 team, by Sylvain Ripoll. ^{[35] [36]} The two of them made their debut coming off the bench with the espoirs on the 8 October 2021, helping their team to an important 5–0 win against Ukraine in the Euro qualifying. ^{[37] [38] [39]}

On 9 October 2023, Gusto received his first call-up to the France national team for matches against the Netherlands and Scotland, replacing the injured Jules Koundé. ^{[40] [41]} On 13 October 2023, he made his international debut in the European Championship qualifier match against the Netherlands, coming off the bench in the 80th minute, helping France to a 2–1 victory, clinching the qualification as a result. ^[42]

Style of play

Gusto is seen as an agile and offensively minded player, ever since playing eight-a-side football at Villefontaine, and he first played as an attacking midfielder or a forward. While he was at the Lyon academy he played in several different positions, including wide midfielder, advanced playmaker, and right winger. He eventually settled as a right back, where he took full advantage of his speed and athleticism. ^{[11] [13] [8] [43] [44] [45]}

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 15 December 2024 ^[46]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National cup [a]		League cup [b]		Europe		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Lyon II	2020–21	Championnat National 2	7	0	—		—		—		—		7	0
	2021–22	Championnat National 2	1	1	—		—		—		—		1	1
	Total		8	1	—		—		—		—		8	1
Lyon	2020–21	Ligue 1	2	0	0	0	—		—		—		2	0
	2021–22	Ligue 1	30	0	0	0	—		7 [c]	0	—		37	0
	2022–23	Ligue 1	21	0	1	0	—		—		—		22	0
	Total		53	0	1	0	—		7	0	—		61	0
Chelsea	2023–24	Premier League	27	0	5	0	5	0	—		—		37	0
	2024–25	Premier League	13	0	0	0	1	0	1 [d]	0	0	0	15	0
	Total		40	0	5	0	6	0	1	0	0	0	52	0
Career total			101	1	6	0	6	0	8	0	0	0	121	1

1. Includes Coupe de France, FA Cup
2. Includes EFL Cup
3. Appearances in UEFA Europa League
4. Appearance in UEFA Conference League

International

As of match played 13 October 2023 ^[47]

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
France	2023	1	0
Total		1	0

Honours

Chelsea

• EFL Cup runner-up: 2023–24 ^[48]

References

1. "Premier contrat professionnel pour Malo Gusto à l'OL". L'Équipe (in French). Retrieved 10 March 2024.
2. "Malo Gusto Biography". espn.com. ESPN . Retrieved 26 December 2023.
3. "Malo Gusto". Chelsea F.C. Retrieved 6 October 2023.
4. "2023/24 Premier League squad lists". Premier League. 13 September 2023. Retrieved 6 October 2023.
5. "Gusto signs for Chelsea". Chelsea F.C. 29 January 2023. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
6. "Malo Gusto". L'Équipe. Paris. Retrieved 6 October 2023.
7. "Un jeune Nord-Isérois passe pro avec l'OL". Le Dauphiné libéré (in French). 17 December 2020. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
8. AFP (22 September 2021). "18 ans, formé à Lyon... l'Isérois Malo Gusto sur orbite". Le Dauphiné libéré (in French). Retrieved 23 October 2021.
9. "ASVF Football : Malo Gusto". asvffootball.sportsregions.fr (in French). Retrieved 22 October 2021.
10. "Malo Gusto signe un contrat pro – fcbourgoinjallieu". fcbourgoinjallieu.com (in French). 22 December 2020. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
11. Cornu, Adrien (30 September 2021). "Malo Gusto, le couloir lui revient de droit". Ouest-France (in French). Archived from the original on 23 October 2021. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
12. "OL: Malo Gusto, 5e joueur de l'Académie à signer pro en 2020". Le Progrès (in French). 17 December 2020. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
13. Leplang, Geoffrey (13 January 2021). "Malo Gusto, le Gone prêt à rugir de plaisir • Actufoot • Actu du foot pro/amateur". Actufoot  [ fr ] (in French). Archived from the original on 22 October 2021. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
14. "Malo Gusto signe son premier contrat professionnel". OL.fr (in French). 17 December 2020. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
15. Joret, Nicolas; Rego, Raul (24 January 2021). "Résultat et résumé Saint-Étienne - Lyon, Ligue 1 Uber Eats, 21e journée". L'Équipe (in French). Retrieved 24 January 2021.
16. "OL: le jeune Malo Gusto prolonge pour une saison supplémentaire". Le Progrès (in French). 4 June 2021. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
17. "L'OL prolonge Malo Gusto". L'Équipe (in French). 4 June 2021. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
18. Penot, Hervé (14 September 2020). "OL : Malo Gusto, le (jeune) latéral qui brûle les étapes". L'Équipe (in French). Retrieved 23 October 2021.
19. Chorlet, Fabien (11 August 2021). "OL, FC Barcelone : un Lyonnais s'offre un record de Samuel Umtiti". But !  [ fr ] (in French). Retrieved 23 October 2021.
20. Berthilier, Thomas (11 August 2021). "OL : Malo Gusto plus jeune défenseur titulaire depuis Samuel Umtiti". Olympique & Lyonnais (in French). Retrieved 23 October 2021.
21. Pereira, Alexis; Léger-Moëc, Aurélien (20 September 2021). "Malo Gusto s'est mis tout l'OL dans la poche". Foot Mercato  [ fr ] (in French). Retrieved 23 October 2021.
22. Parbaud, Corentin (20 September 2021). "OL: Rothen sous le charme de Gusto, "un gamin pétri de talent"". RMC Sport (in French). Retrieved 23 October 2021.
23. "TRANSFERT DE MALO GUSTO À CHELSEA…EN PRÊT À L'OL JUSQU'AU 30 JUIN 2023". www.ol.fr. 29 January 2023. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
24. "Chelsea 1-1 Liverpool: Mauricio Pochettino's side fight back to draw his first Premier League game in charge". 13 August 2023. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
25. Beardmore, Michael (24 September 2023). "Chelsea 0-1 Aston Villa". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 February 2024.
26. "One to watch: Malo Gusto, Lyon's young lion".
27. "EXCLU - Malo Gusto : " Je ne suis pas un joueur qui doute "". Onze Mondial. 17 May 2022.
28. "Malo Gusto, le prochain gone à intégrer l'équipe première ?". Café Crème Sport. 12 November 2020.
29. "Malo Gusto profile". Fédération Française de Football . Retrieved 22 October 2021.
30. Poyade, Loïc (27 August 2021). "Equipe de France U19 : La liste des Bleuets pour le tournoi en Slovénie". Ouest-France (in French). Retrieved 22 October 2021.
31. Orsini, Vincent (26 August 2021). "Un tournoi amical en Slovénie au menu". FFF . Retrieved 23 October 2021.
32. "Portée par un grand Rayan Cherki, l'équipe de France U19 domine la Russie". L'Équipe (in French). 2 September 2021. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
33. "Sélections : Des Lyonnais ont brillé". OL.fr (in French). 3 September 2021. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
34. Orsini, Vincent (4 September 2021). "Match nul (1-1) contre la Slovaquie". FFF . Retrieved 23 October 2021.
35. "Malo Gusto, Amine Adli, Rayan Cherki et Janis Antiste convoqués avec les Espoirs". L'Équipe (in French). 30 September 2021. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
36. AFP (30 September 2021). "Le Berjallien Malo Gusto (OL) appelé pour la première fois chez les Espoirs !". Le Dauphiné libéré (in French). Retrieved 23 October 2021.
37. AFP (8 October 2021). "Football. Espoirs : la créativité de Cherki pour réparer l'accroc des Féroé". Le Dauphiné libéré (in French). Retrieved 23 October 2021.
38. Mayen, Philippe (8 October 2021). "Les Bleuets plein gaz (5-0)". FFF . Retrieved 23 October 2021.
39. Cailloux, Thibaut (8 October 2021). "Résultat et résumé France Espoirs - Ukraine Espoirs, Qualif. Euro Espoirs, 4e journée Gr. H". L'Équipe (in French). Retrieved 23 October 2021.
40. "Gusto on maiden call-up, James competition and inspirational Thiago Silva". www.chelseafc.com. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
41. "Deux changements dans la liste des 23". www.fff.fr. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
42. "Winning debuts for Colwill and Gusto as two qualify for Euros". www.chelseafc.com. 13 October 2023. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
43. Monegier, Tom (18 July 2021). "Malo Gusto, le latéral droit qui monte à l'OL". Foot Mercato  [ fr ] (in French). Retrieved 23 October 2021.
44. Guillemet, Hugo (19 July 2021). "Avec Gusto et Lukeba, l'OL joue la carte jeunes". L'Équipe (in French). Retrieved 23 October 2021.
45. Ouggourni, Pierre-Hakim (5 August 2021). "De Gusto à Ugochukwu, cinq jeunes joueurs à suivre cette saison". Ouest-France (in French). Retrieved 23 October 2021.
46. Malo Gusto at Soccerway. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
47. "Malo Gusto". EU-Football.info. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
48. McNulty, Phil (25 February 2024). "Carabao Cup final: Chelsea 0–1 Liverpool (aet)". BBC Sport. Retrieved 26 February 2024.

External links

• Profile at the Chelsea F.C. website
• Malo Gusto at the French Football Federation (in French)
• Malo Gusto – UEFA competition record ( archive )