Mamadou Sylla (footballer, born 1994)

Mamadou Sylla Diallo (born 20 March 1994) is a Senegalese professional footballer who plays as a forward for Spanish club Real Valladolid.

Mamadou Sylla

Sylla in 2023
Personal information
Full name	Mamadou Sylla Diallo
Date of birth	(1994-03-20) 20 March 1994 (age 31)
Place of birth	Kédougou, Senegal
Height	1.84 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s)	Forward
Team information
Current team	Valladolid
Number	7
Youth career
2009–2011	Barcelona
2011–2012	Mataró
2012–2013	Espanyol
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2013–2015	Espanyol B	64	(15)
2015	→ Racing Santander (loan)	11	(3)
2015–2017	Espanyol	14	(0)
2016–2017	→ Eupen (loan)	35	(12)
2017–2020	Gent	29	(1)
2018	→ Zulte Waregem (loan)	14	(1)
2019	→ Sint-Truiden (loan)	13	(4)
2020	→ Orenburg (loan)	5	(0)
2020–2021	Girona	37	(9)
2021–2023	Alavés	34	(4)
2022	→ Rayo Vallecano (loan)	12	(0)
2023–	Valladolid	58	(13)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 27 May 2025

Career

Born in Kédougou,^[1] Sylla moved to Spain in 2004, aged ten, and joined FC Barcelona's youth setup in 2009.^[2] He subsequently represented CE Mataró and RCD Espanyol, and made his senior debuts with the latter's reserve team in 2013, in Segunda División B.

On 27 March 2015 Sylla joined Segunda División strugglers Racing de Santander on loan until the end of the campaign, as a short-term replacement to injured Mamadou Koné.^[3] He played his first match as a professional on 5 April, starting in a 2–0 home loss against UE Llagostera.^[4]

Six days later Sylla scoring his first professional goal, netting a last-minute winner in a 3–2 away win against RCD Mallorca.^[5] He returned to the Pericos in June, scoring three goals in 11 appearances but suffering team relegation.

Sylla made his debut in the main category of Spanish football on 27 September 2015, coming on as a second-half substitute for Víctor Sánchez in a 3–0 away loss against Deportivo de La Coruña.^[6] On 3 December, he scored his first goal for the team, coming off the bench to open a 1–1 draw at Levante UD in the first leg of the last 16 of that season's Copa del Rey.^[7]

On 11 July 2016, Sylla was loaned to Belgian club KAS Eupen for one year.^[8] He subsequently joined KAA Gent permanently, but served loan stints at SV Zulte-Waregem and Sint-Truidense VV.

On 5 January 2020, Sylla signed with Russian Premier League side FC Orenburg on loan until the end of the 2019–20 season.^[9][10] On 9 October, he returned to Spain after joining second division side Girona on a free transfer, signing a two-year contract.^[11]

On 20 August 2021, Sylla agreed to a three-year deal with La Liga side Deportivo Alavés.^[12] The following 31 January, he moved to fellow league team Rayo Vallecano on loan for the remainder of the season.^[13]

Back to the Babazorros for the 2022–23 season, Sylla scored four times as the club returned to the top tier at first attempt. On 1 September 2023, he terminated his contract with the club,^[14][15] and signed a one-year deal with Real Valladolid just hours later.^[15][16]

Career statistics

As of match played on 1 July 2024^[17]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National cup[a]		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Espanyol B	2012–13	Segunda División B	1	0	—		—		1	0
	2013–14	Segunda División B	33	6	—		—		33	6
	2014–14	Segunda División B	30	9	—		—		30	9
	Total		64	15	0	0	0	0	64	15
Racing Santander (loan)	2014–15	Segunda División	11	3	0	0	—		11	3
Espanyol	2015–16	La Liga	14	0	3	1	—		17	1
Eupen (loan)	2016–17	Belgian First Division A	35	12	4	1	—		39	13
Gent	2017–18	Belgian First Division A	28	1	2	1	2[b]	0	32	2
	2019–20	Belgian First Division A	1	0	1	0	1[b]	0	3	0
	Total		29	1	3	1	3	0	35	2
Zulte Waregem (loan)	2018–19	Belgian First Division A	14	1	2	0	—		16	1
Sint-Truiden (loan)	2018–19	Belgian First Division A	13	4	0	0	—		13	4
Orenburg (loan)	2019–20	Russian Premier League	5	0	0	0	—		5	0
Girona	2020–21	Segunda División	36	9	2	0	4[c]	2	42	11
	2021–22	Segunda División	1	0	0	0	—		1	0
	Total		37	9	2	0	4	2	43	11
Alavés	2021–22	La Liga	13	0	2	2	—		15	2
	2022–23	Segunda División	19	4	3	1	4[d]	1	26	6
	2023–24	La Liga	2	0	0	0	—		2	0
	Total		34	4	5	3	4	1	43	8
Rayo Vallecano (loan)	2021–22	La Liga	12	0	2	0	—		14	0
Valladolid	2023–24	Segunda División	29	8	0	0	—		29	8
	2024–25	La Liga	0	0	0	0	—		0	0
	Total		29	8	0	0	—		29	8
Career total			297	57	21	6	11	3	329	66

1. Includes Copa del Rey, Belgian Cup
2. Appearances in the UEFA Europa League
3. Appearances in the 2021 Segunda División play-offs
4. Appearances in the 2023 Segunda División play-offs