The talented attacking player was a crucial part of his national team’s successful 2015 AFCON campaign in which the Elephants of Cote D’Ivoire finally lived up to their potential by securing the title in a penalty shootout victory over Ghana. Gervinho did not take a penalty, as he was substituted minutes before the end of regulation time, but was one of the stand out performers throughout the tournament.
Gervinho is active on the short form post-based social media network, and with just under 332,000 followers at the time of publication, the Ivorian star has a growing and dedicated audience keeping tabs on his posts. He retweets far more often than he posts original content, and keeps his own set of people that he follows to an exclusive group of just over 100 Twitter handles.
Chelsea star Eden Hazard was asked to pick his ultimate five-a-side team from a list of his favourite football professionals, with Didier Drogba and Gervinho of Cote D’Ivoire, Demba Ba of Senegal, Spaniard Juan Mata and fellow Belgian Thibaut Courtois completing the side. Hazard chose former colleague at Lille, Gervinho, as he fondly recalls his time at the French club playing alongside the Ivorian.
An unnecessary act of racism was at the centre of Roma’s Europa League encounter with Feyenoord in Rotterdam in early 2015, as an inflatable banana was thrown onto the pitch during the match, landing near Gervinho. French referee Clement Turpin reacted to the incident by halting the game and speaking to the Ivorian, as well as the two club coaches involved in the match. The game was later restarted, and Roma earned victory thanks to a winning strike from Gervinho to make it 3-2 on aggregate.
The Ivorian star player was a major target for Arabian Gulf League team Al Jazira during the transfer market window period in mid-2015, and according to credible reports the move was almost done. The Roma fans were furious about the potential for a move, but the Arabian side seemed likely to meet all demands from the Romans. In the end the move collapsed, and to the delight of the Giallorossi fans, Gervinho remained in the Italian capital.
Born in Anyama, Côte d’Ivoire, in May 1987, Gervinho shares his hometown with fellow Ivorian international footballer Arouna Koné, who played for Everton in the Premier League. Koné is currently out for a large chunk of the season with an injury after scans revealed a cartilage problem.
Gervinho began his football career at the ASEC Abidjan youth academy in Côte d’Ivoire, where he received his nickname. The Brazilian coach who trained the academy gave him the name Gervinho as a Brazilian/Portuguese-style derivation of his first name, Gervais.
In July 2011, Gervinho transferred to Arsenal from Lille for a fee of £10.8 million ($16.9 million US). At that time, he was given the No. 27, Emmanuel Eboué’s former number, as he was already on the verge of leaving Arsenal.
Among his teammates, Gervinho is often referred to as the man with the ugliest and worst hair, and often receives mocking in the media as well. He takes it in stride, however, and often likes to deliver comical performances, sometimes dressing in women’s clothing and florescent colored boots, and demonstrating his truly…unique dance moves.
Source: ArticleBio.com/Gervinho
During a time of trouble and violence in the country, several Ivorian artists wrote a song about Gervinho. Describing it in an interview, he said, “…The lyrics said that seeing me lift the French title enabled them to forget their troubles for a while. That was very humbling.”
Source: DailyMail.co.uk
Before moving up to the senior squad in November 2007, Gervinho served as the captain for the country’s under-21 squad. He was eventually called up to the senior squad in the run up to the 2008 African Cup of Nations tournament.
After joining Arsenal, Gervinho achieved his Premier League debut in a match against Newcastle United, but was sent off mid match for slapping opponent Joey Barton. The game finished in a 0-0 draw, and Gervinho received a three-match ban for violent conduct.
When asked in an interview what the worst moment in his career was, Gervinho said, “I have said that I didn’t feel the coaches at Arsenal had enough confidence in me – and I was not given enough time to prove myself on the field. When I did play it was often out of position – and as a player you want to play where you can be at your best.”
Source: DailyMail.co.uk
While playing for Arsenal, Gervinho often made fans cringe when he would lose composure at the last second and miss wide-open opportunities. Though he had shed this reputation to an extent since making the move to Roma, fans were reminded that he was still able to put in the occasional world-class miss at an African Cup of Nations qualifying match against Sierra Leone on Nov. 14, 2014. While in control of the ball up until the last second, his shot went up, up and away, out into the stands and nowhere close to the goal. Côte d’Ivoire still ended the match with a 5-1 victory.
Gerinho names U.S. hip hop as his favorite style of music, and Jay Z and Kanye West as some of his most-listened-to artists. He even named Jay Z as one of the people he’d most like to have dinner with, along with Thierry Henry and President Barack Obama.
Source: DailyMail.co.uk
