Gael Kakuta once got Chelsea a transfer ban – now he can’t stop scoring in Turkey’s second tier

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Gael Kakuta is a name that will be familiar to many Chelsea fans, but not because of anything he did on the pitch at Stamford Bridge.

In 2007, Kakuta was seen as one of football’s next rising stars, receiving considerable attention at Chelsea.

Kakuta scored 12 goals in 24 appearances for Chelsea’s youth team in his first season, winning the Academy Player of the Year award. However, he was unable to sustain that momentum.

However, with off-field controversy and Kakuta not living up to the hype surrounding him, the Frenchman has had a very different career than people first expected.

Gael Kakuta’s signing got Chelsea a two-window transfer ban

When Kakuta first signed for Chelsea from Lens in 2007, he was a relatively unknown name who just had some buzz surrounding him as a teenager with potential.

However, he exploded into a household name before even playing for the first team after FIFA banned Chelsea from making any signings across two transfer windows based on how they signed Kakuta.

In 2009, it was revealed that Kakuta had been banned for four months and fined for breaching his contract with Lens to move to Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea were put on a transfer ban until January 2011 because of their involvement, showcasing how seriously this was being taken at the time.

The Premier League giants did fight against the penalty. They were eventually able to lift the sanctions after ruling that Kakuta didn’t have a valid contract with Lens when he was signed.

That led to Chelsea’s transfer ban being suspended in the same year, and lifted in February 2010, ending the unexpected drama.

Gael Kakuta is currently tearing it up in Turkey

Kakuta spent eight years at Chelsea, eventually leaving the club in 2015, but he only made six appearances for the first team.

He had six loan spells during that time, and ultimately joined Sevilla in 2015, where he remained for just one season.

Moving around frequently has been a common theme of Kakuta’s career, as he has played for 27 different clubs at this stage.

Nowadays, Kakuta is playing in the second tier of Turkish football for Sakaryspor, who he joined during the summer transfer window, and he has hit the ground running.

Kakuta has scored six goals in nine games so far this season, showcasing some of the talent that people have always spoken of, even if he’s not getting the eyeballs he would’ve done at Chelsea.