Discover how 19-year-old Junior Kroupi, AFC Bournemouth’s record-breaking striker, is taking the Premier League by storm after a sensational rise through the ranks at FC Lorient.
Born to play
Born on 23 June 2006 in Lorient, France, Kroupi’s story is one steeped in football heritage.
His father, Eli Kroupi, enjoyed a distinguished career across France, featuring for clubs such as Stade Rennais, AS Nancy, and FC Lorient, where his son would later play.
A forward himself, Kroupi senior’s finest hour came in the 2005/06 season when he helped Nancy lift the Coupe de la Ligue, the very season his son was born.
“Like father, like son” could not be truer here. Growing up in Brittany, Junior Kroupi quickly developed the same hunger for football, joining FC Lorient’s academy when he was six.
His talent was impossible to ignore and by the age of 15, he had already signed his first professional contract, marking him out as one of the brightest prospects in France.