Imran Louza (Arabic: عمران لوزة; born 1 May 1999) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Ligue 1 club Lorient, on loan from EFL Championship club Watford. Born in France, he plays for the Morocco national team.
_10_(cropped).jpg) Louza with Nantes in 2020 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Imran Louza | ||
| Date of birth | 1 May 1999 | ||
| Place of birth | Nantes, France | ||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Lorient (on loan from Watford) | ||
| Number | 6 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2005–2006 | Etoile du Cens | ||
| 2006–2017 | Nantes | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2017–2019 | Nantes B | 40 | (10) |
| 2019–2021 | Nantes | 58 | (9) |
| 2021– | Watford | 56 | (6) |
| 2024– | → Lorient (loan) | 7 | (1) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2017 | Morocco U20 | 2 | (1) |
| 2019 | France U20 | 2 | (0) |
| 2019 | France U21 | 6 | (0) |
| 2021– | Morocco | 15 | (2) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 31 March 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 17 June 2023 (UTC) | |||
Louza came through Nantes' youth academy and made his first team debut in 2019, and his international debut in 2021.
Club career
Nantes
Louza joined the youth academy of Nantes in 2006 from Etoile du Cens, and was captain of several youth categories in the club. He made his professional debut with Nantes in a 4–1 Coupe de France win over Châteauroux on 4 January 2019, and scored in his debut.
Watford
On 1 June 2021, Watford completed the signing of Louza from Nantes for a reported fee of €10 million. He signed with The Hornets on a five-year deal lasting until 2026. On 21 August 2021, Louza made his debut for Watford in a 2-0 loss against Brighton.
On 8 October 2022, in Louza's third appearance of the season, he opened his account for Watford with an impressive free-kick to equalise in an eventual 3–1 defeat to Blackpool. On 19 October 2022, Louza was stretchered off during a 3–0 defeat to Millwall. Manager Slaven Bilić would go on to reveal that Louza had fractured his fibula as well as suffering ligament damage, an injury that would rule him out for several months and see him miss the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
In January 2024, Louza joined Ligue 1 club Lorient on loan until the end of the season, the deal containing a purchase option.
International career
Louza was born in France to a Moroccan father and a French mother. He represented the Morocco U20s in a 3–2 friendly win over the France U20s, and scored a goal for his side. He switched to represent France internationally, debuting for the France U20s and U21s.
Louza formally decided to represent the senior Morocco national team and debuted and scored in a 5–0 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification win over Guinea-Bissau on 6 October 2021.
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 31 March 2024
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Nantes B | 2017–18 | Championnat National 3 | 20 | 4 | — | — | — | 20 | 4 | |||
| 2018–19 | Championnat National 2 | 20 | 6 | — | — | — | 20 | 6 | ||||
| Total | 40 | 10 | — | — | — | 40 | 10 | |||||
| Nantes | 2018–19 | Ligue 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 3 | 1 | |
| 2019–20 | Ligue 1 | 24 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | — | 28 | 2 | ||
| 2020–21 | Ligue 1 | 33 | 7 | 1 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 36 | 7 | ||
| Total | 58 | 9 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 67 | 12 | ||
| Watford | 2021–22 | Premier League | 20 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 22 | 0 | ||
| 2022–23 | Championship | 21 | 5 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 21 | 5 | |||
| 2023–24 | Championship | 15 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 17 | 1 | ||
| Total | 56 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 60 | 6 | |||
| Lorient (loan) | 2023–24 | Ligue 1 | 7 | 1 | — | — | — | 7 | 1 | |||
| Career total | 161 | 25 | 6 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 173 | 28 | ||
International
- Scores and results list Morocco's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Louza goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 October 2021 | Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, Rabat, Morocco | Guinea-Bissau | 2–0 | 5–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 2 | 12 November 2021 | Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, Rabat, Morocco | Sudan | 3–0 | 3–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
References
External links
- Imran Louza at the French Football Federation (in French)
- Imran Louza – French league stats at LFP – also available in French (archived)
- Imran Louza at Soccerway