William Gros

William Gros
Personal information
Date of birth (1992-03-31) 31 March 1992 (age 32)
Place of birth St. Pierre, Réunion
Position(s) Striker
Team information
Current team
FC Fleury 91
Youth career
Le Havre
JS Saint-Pierroise
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2010–2014 Kilmarnock 50 (2)
2014 Oldham Athletic 1 (0)
2015–2016 Bangkok
2014–2015 Toulouse Rodéo 11 (2)
2016–2020 AS Vitré 57 (14)
2020–2022 FC Fleury 91
2022– JS Saint-Pierroise
International career
2018– Madagascar[1] 4 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 11:34, 27 November 2023 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 09:55, 2 February 2020 (UTC)

William Gros (born 31 March 1992) is a professional footballer who plays as a striker for JS Saint-Pierroise and the Madagascar national team.

Club career

[edit]

Gros played in France for Le Havre and in his native Réunion for JS Saint-Pierroise before signing for Scottish club Kilmarnock in September 2010.[2] After making a substitute appearance, he scored on his first start for the club in March 2011 against St Mirren.[2] Gros signed a new three-year contract with the club in August 2013.[3] In March 2014, following a lack of games, Gros announced he was considering his future at the club.[4]

In June 2014 Gros went on trial with English club Oldham Athletic.[5] On 21 July 2014, Gros signed a one-month contract with the club.[6][7] Oldham manager Lee Johnson told Gros to prove his fitness in order to earn a longer contract with the club.[8] Gros was released by the club on 21 August 2014.[9]

He then returned to France, playing with Toulouse Rodéo and AS Vitré.[10]

Gros then joined FC Fleury 91 in the summer of 2020.[11]

Gros rejoined JS Saint-Pierroise in the summer of 2022.[citation needed]

International career

[edit]

Gros has distant Malagasy ancestry, a great-great-grandmother,[12] a generation that usually exceeds those allowed by the FIFA eligibility rules (parents and grandparents). However, he was called up to the Madagascar national team on 11 August 2018.[13] He made his professional debut for Madagascar in a 1–0 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualification win over Equatorial Guinea on 16 October 2018.[14]

Personal life

[edit]

Gros was born to a Martiniquais father and a Réunionnais mother of Malagasy descent.[15] He is the cousin of the footballers Vincent and Mathieu Acapandié.[16]

Career statistics

[edit]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup League cup Other Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Kilmarnock 2010–11[17] 11 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 11 1
2011–12[18] 8 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 9 0
2012–13[19] 17 1 2 0 1 0 0 0 20 1
2013–14[20] 14 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 16 0
Total 50 2 4 0 2 0 0 0 56 2
Oldham Athletic 2014–15[21] 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 0
Toulouse Rodéo 2014–15[10] 11 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 11 2
AS Vitré 2016–17[10] 8 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 8 3
2017–18[10] 24 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 25 3
2018–19[10] 25 8 5 2 0 0 0 0 30 10
Total 57 14 6 2 0 0 0 0 63 16
Career total 119 18 10 2 3 0 0 0 132 20

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "William Gros". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  2. ^ a b Alan Marshall (1 March 2011). "Kilmarnock chief Mixu Paatelainen: Starlet William Gros can be hit in SPL.. but fans must be patient". Daily Record. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
  3. ^ "Kris Boyd and William Gros sign new Kilmarnock contracts". BBC Sport. 1 August 2013. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
  4. ^ "Kilmarnock striker William Gros considering future". The Scotsman. 21 March 2014. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
  5. ^ Sheldan Keay (26 June 2014). "Oldham boss targeting Sidibe, Featherstone and Gros". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
  6. ^ "SIGNING: William Gros". Oldham Athletic A.F.C. 21 July 2014. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
  7. ^ "Oldham Athletic: Amari Morgan-Smith & Willie Gros join". BBC Sport. 21 July 2014. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
  8. ^ Matthew Chambers (17 July 2014). "Johnson seeks Gros profit". Oldham Evening Chronicle. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
  9. ^ "William Gros Released". Oldham Athletic A.F.C. 21 August 2014. Retrieved 21 August 2014.
  10. ^ a b c d e William Gros at Soccerway. Retrieved 31 August 2018.
  11. ^ "N2 : William GROS s'engage !". FC Fleury 91. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
  12. ^ "Football (N2) : William Gros, de l'AS Vitré, a la CAN en ligne de mire" [Football (N2): William Gros, from AS Vitre, has the AFCON in sight]. Actu. 20 September 2018. Retrieved 21 June 2019. It is from my great-great-grandmother that I hold my Malagasy origins.
  13. ^ "William Gros et Romain Métanire arrivent chez les Barea de Madagascar" (in French). Orange.mg. 12 August 2018. Retrieved 31 August 2018.
  14. ^ "Football : William Gros, de l'AS Vitré, jouera la Coupe d'Afrique des Nations".
  15. ^ Sureau, Julien (11 March 2017). "Football. William Gros, attaquant de l'AS Vitré, globe-trotter du ballon rond" [Football. William Gros, AS Vitré striker, globe-trotter of the round ball] (in French). Actu. Retrieved 21 June 2019.
  16. ^ "FC Nantes : Mathieu Acapandié devient le plus jeune Réunionnais à devenir footballeur professionnel". Linfo.re.
  17. ^ "Games played by William Gros in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 October 2016.
  18. ^ "Games played by William Gros in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 October 2016.
  19. ^ "Games played by William Gros in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 October 2016.
  20. ^ "Games played by William Gros in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 October 2016.
  21. ^ "Games played by William Gros in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 October 2016.