Can Ismaël Koné use Sassuolo move to reignite CanMNT ambitions after Marseille struggles?

 

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It’s a make-or-break year for Ismaël Koné, as he gets set for his third full season in Europe since making the move from CF Montréal to EFL Championship side Watford at the end of the 2022 World Cup. 

Now set to join his fourth club since that move, he’ll hope this latest stop can be one where he finds some stability ahead of a crucial period, with the 2026 World Cup just around the corner. 

When Koné first made that move to Watford off the back of what he showed at that 2022 World Cup, where he impressed for Canada after being a surprise inclusion in that squad, it was expected he’d star at the 2026 World Cup, but a lot has changed since then.

Yet, that shows why this latest move, which has seen him join Italian side Sassuolo on loan from Marseille, might be his most important one yet. After a turbulent season with Marseille, who bought him for 12 million euros just over a year ago, he’s now being forced to take a big risk with this Sassuolo move. 

Benvenuto Ismaël 🖤💚#ForzaSasol pic.twitter.com/3k9vMwkhVM

— U.S. Sassuolo (@SassuoloUS) July 29, 2025

At the same time, it’s a risk that could prove to be beneficial for him. After doing well at Watford, where he made 63 appearances across one and a half years, including 46 appearances in his lone full campaign in England (doing so despite having four managers in his short stint there), he just couldn’t find that same stability at Marseille, where he played nine times before heading out on a loan to Stade Rennais. 

He did well to find his feet again at Rennes, scoring twice (including a goal against Marseille) and adding an assist in 13 appearances, but they were unable to find an agreement to have him return to the club, which shows the challenges his situation at Marseille created. Given the investment they made to bring him just a year ago, and his age, they wanted to recoup some of those costs, even though they made it clear they didn’t want him to return. 

What a goal, Ismaël Koné 🚀🇨🇦 pic.twitter.com/U0dUiai0US

— Ligue 1 English (@Ligue1_ENG) May 17, 2025

That’s where Sassuolo comes into the picture. While a club like Rennes, known for their strong homegrown talent, might’ve been hesitant to splash the cash to exercise their purchase option on Koné (reportedly around 14 million euros), Sassuolo appear to have no such reservations. 

A fixture in Serie A, the club were relegated in 2023-2024 after spending 11 straight seasons in the Italian top flight (having previously never reached those heights), but did well to rebound with instant promotion last year, winning Serie B. 

Now, they want to stay in Serie A long-term, and have been conducting their business with that in mind - not only have they done well to keep players like longtime winger, captain and 2021 Euro champion, Domenico Berardi, but they’ve already signed four other players along with Koné, with none of them being over 25. 

They haven’t spent large amounts of money to do so, with three of the moves being loans (including Koné), but the Koné signing gives a good idea of their long-term plans - reports suggest that Sassuolo will have an automatic purchase clause if they stay in the top flight next season, which is a clear sign of their intentions with him. 

Now, the big question for Koné is quite simple - will he play at Sassuolo? For him, that’ll have to be his priority right now, as he looks to start for Canada next summer at the World Cup, something that’ll only happen if he’s playing regularly this season. 

With stiff competition for places in that Canadian midfield brewing, Koné will know that this is a massive opportunity to keep his name in that mix, especially with the emergence of several young midfielders in recent months, such as Nathan Saliba and Niko Sigur. 

The good news is that not only does he look to play at Sassuolo, but he could potentially play in a system that fits him quite nicely, too. 

After bursting onto the scene as a box-to-box #8 for Montréal, he then played a multitude of roles at Watford, bouncing between playing as a #8, #6 and #10, while at Marseille, he was mostly preferred as a #10. Then, at Rennes, he played as more of an #8 in a double-pivot, while at Canada, he’s also mostly played as an #8 in a double pivot. 

Naturally, he’s more of a #10, having played that position as a youngster, but he projects as a #8 at the top-level, given his physical tools, and most clubs have seemed to agree on that notion. 

Ismaël Koné opened his Watford account with a GOLAZO today, firing from distance vs Norwich City

It's a huge goal for Watford, too, helping them turn this score around after a rough start

Between him scoring here and vs 🇯🇲with the #CanMNT, not a bad weekpic.twitter.com/Wk6wToIdmB

— Alexandre Gangué-Ruzic (@AlexGangueRuzic) November 28, 2023

At Sassuolo, manager Fabio Grosso mostly played a 4-3-3 or a 4-2-3-1 in 2024-2025, using more of the latter when he had attacking midfielder Kristian Thorstvedt available to him, and the former otherwise. With Thorstvedt appearing to be back after missing most of the second half of Sassuolo’s promotion campaign with an injury, the 4-2-3-1 could be back in the cards to begin 2025-2026, which would push Koné to compete for a spot in the double-pivot, although he could also battle to earn reps at that #10 spot with Thorstvedt. 

Of course, should Grosso shift to more of a 4-3-3, Koné would also be a natural fit in that system, but it wouldn’t be the worst thing for Koné to get reps in that double-pivot in a 4-2-3-1, as that’d fit more what he’d be asked to do with Canada, and he’s already familiar with the formation. 

Plus, there should be minutes up for grabs in that double pivot after the departure of Pedro Obiang, who was at the club since 2019, as he was their second-most-used midfielder last year. The first, Daniel Bolaca, remains, but Koné will want to compete with the likes of Andrea Ghion and Edoardo Iannoni, who were the next-most used midfielders after Bolaca and Obiang.

Here's how Koné's numbers compare to Iannoni's and Ghion's. At first glance, his dribbling numbers stand out, while his pass numbers look comparable to Iannoni's, and his offensive numbers edge Ghion's. (data via FBRef)

In terms of fit, however, what could Koné bring to the Sassuolo midfield? 

Mostly, his biggest impact will come on the ball. Despite his turbulent season in France, he still averaged 35+ passes per 90 minutes, completing 85.2% of them, while also attempting 4.17 passes to the final third and 8.91 passes forward. That was in line with what he had in his only full season at Watford, too, where he averaged 37.58 passes (at an 86.3% clip), 4.56 passes to the final third (at a 76% clip), and 9.27 forward passes per 90 (at a 73.1% clip), showing that he’s consistently proven to be good at getting on the ball and setting the tempo for his teams. 

What he’ll want to get back to, however, is to bring back more final product in his game, as he averaged 3.25 dribbles (at a 57% clip), 1.43 shots and 0.76 key passes per 90 with Watford, compared to just 1.33 dribbles (at a 78.6% clip), 0.95 shots and 0.57 key passes with Marseille and Rennes. 

Yet, that gives an idea of what plagued Koné in France - his confidence. Given that his passing numbers almost remained identical, but his dribbling, shooting and chance creation numbers dropped, it shows that he played things a lot safer than usual on the ball, which isn’t a hallmark of Koné’s game. When he’s at his best, he glides through the midfield with swagger, dribbling past defenders and picking out dangerous passes - think of his performance for Canada in a friendly against France last year as an example of what that looks like. 

Otherwise, the big thing to watch is his defensive play, which is the other area of this game where he’ll want to put in the most work on, especially if he’s to be a starter for Canada at the World Cup, with head coach Jesse Marsch wanting a lot of defensive output out of his players. 

He did well to get stuck into duels in France, contesting 13.94 duels (winning 53.1% of them), but had just 2.66 interceptions and 5.6 recoveries per 90, which he’ll want to improve. For context, that’s similar to what he did with Watford, where he got stuck into 17.21 duels (winning 48.8% of them), while making 2.37 interceptions and 5.05 recoveries per 90, so those France numbers weren’t anything out of the ordinary for him, either.

Here's how Koné compared to other Ligue 1 midfielders in 2024-2025 - despite his struggles, he had strong dribbling numbers, good passing numbers and surprisingly good final-third numbers. His defensive numbers weren't great, though (Data via WyScout). 

Overall, though, that shows what Koné could bring to this Sassuolo team, and what he’ll want to work on. 

Stylistically, Sassuolo will be expected to be a bit more defensive - they won Serie B promotion by conceding 38 goals in 38 games, which was the third-fewest in the league, and kept less than 50% of possession on average, showing that they won’t have to change their style drastically as they return to the Italian top flight. 

Because of that, it’ll be a good challenge for Koné defensively, given that his team won’t be expected to see as much of the ball as he might’ve at Marseille or Rennes, which he’ll hope can push him to be stronger in his duels while making more recoveries and interceptions. 

Then, in possession, he’ll want to bring some quality to their midfield, helping them get on the ball and make things happen as they look to make the most of their opportunities to attack. In particular, his big goal will be to find a good balance between completing a high rate of passes and taking more risks on the ball, as that’s where he’s at his best. 

What will help him, however, is that it doesn’t feel like he’ll have as much pressure on him as he did at Marseille, where they had a deep squad and cutthroat environment, where players were ready to take one’s place at a moment’s notice. At Sassuolo, it’ll be hoped Koné gets a bit more freedom to find his feet and show why many have been so bullish on him, as there’s no doubting his high potential as a player. 

Ultimately, what this move is a reminder of is that sometimes things can happen too quickly for youngsters, especially one like Koné, who hasn’t charted a typical path to where he is. Despite having over 100 professional appearances and 31 Canada caps under his belt at just 23, he didn’t follow a typical path to this point, having not come through the academy system. 

CANADA SCORES 🇨🇦

What a goal by Ismaël Koné to tie the game for Canada#CA2024 pic.twitter.com/bJVF1BAA8Q

— TSN (@TSN_Sports) July 14, 2024

Because of that, he’s had a steeper learning curve than most his age, which can be hard to remember when seeing his talent, which perhaps led to his struggles at Marseille. That’s why some stability could do him some good, though - and why it could be good for him to find it at a club like Sassuolo, which still allows him to play in a top-five league. 

He’s still young enough that he could spend a few years at Sassuolo and then try again with a move to a club the size of Marseille, but he’s also at an age where he could end up hitting his ceiling at Sassuolo, showing why it’s a make-or-break year for him.

Given his potential, it feels a lot safer to bet on the idea that this stop ends up pushing him to do the former, but he’ll need to hit the ground running with his new club, playing a big role as they look to avoid relegation. 

From there, that could then open the door for him to play a starring role at the World Cup, once again showing the implications that this move carries, with it arguably one of the biggest any Canadian is making this summer, at least in terms of what it means for their World Cup hopes. 

If all goes well, there’s no doubt that he can star for Canada at the World Cup, but that’ll only happen if he keeps his feet on the ground and builds some consistency at his new club, and then goes from there. 

All numbers via WyScout