Stade de Reims midfielder Yaya Fofana is one of the three nominees for the UNFP Ligue 2 Player of the Month trophy for October, after his first call-up to the Ivory Coast senior national team.
Double news for Yaya Fofana. The Stade de Reims midfielder has just been selected for the Ivory Coast senior national team for the first time for this international window, L’Union reports. He has also been nominated for the UNFP Ligue 2 Player of the Month trophy for October.
After 12 league matches, the Reims man has 10 goals and 2 assists, again according to the regional daily. On Reims’ last away trip to Grenoble (3-2), he scored twice. Those numbers explain, according to L’Union, why the player “is walking on water with Stade de Reims this season in Ligue 2”.
Three nominees, one reigning champion
The list unveiled by the UNFP pits Yaya Fofana against Nancy’s Ilyes Housni and Montpellier’s Nicolas Pays. The Reims man is no stranger to this ground: he is the reigning champion, having already been voted Player of the Month in September.
For the month of October alone, the UNFP counts 3 goals and 2 assists in four matches for the Reims midfielder. Voting is open until Sunday 15 November 2026.
The nomination comes at the very moment the Reims midfielder is called up for the first time with the Elephants.
A first with the Elephants
The call-up to the Ivory Coast senior national team is a first for Yaya Fofana, for this international window. It is still unclear how many matches are scheduled and what role the head coach intends to give him.
His 10 goals in 12 Ligue 2 matches accompany this first call-up.
A call-up does not guarantee a starting place, and nothing is yet known about a possible appearance off the bench or the playing time the Reims man will be given.
A verdict expected on 15 November
The UNFP trophy verdict will come on 15 November 2026, at the end of a voting period open since the list of three nominees was published. The winner’s name is therefore not yet known, and the reigning champion may either keep his crown or be denied it.
That same weekend, Ligue 2 takes a break for the seventh round of the Coupe de France, on 14 and 15 November. For Stade de Reims, this break means a weekend without a league match.