Gael Bigirimana profile | CV ya Gael Bigirimana Yanga, Gaël Bigirimana born 22 October 1983) is a Burundian footballer who plays as a midfielder for the Tanzanian Giant sports club Young Africans and the Burundi national team.
Gael Bigirimana profile
Gael Bigirimana profile
He began his professional career at Coventry City in 2011 and a year later he signed for Newcastle United of the Premier League. After an aborted move to Rangers, Bigirimana returned to Coventry on loan in 2015 and permanently a year later. He scored for Coventry in their 2017 EFL Trophy Final victory, then signed for Motherwell of the Scottish Premiership. Bigirimana left Motherwell in January 2019 and then had a short spell with Hibernian before returning to England with Solihull Moors in October.
Born in manyoni, Bigirimana moved to the United Kingdom with his family as a refugee in 2004 and chose to represent England at under-20 level in 2013, later representing his country of birth in 2015. [3] He played at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations.
On 6 July 2012, Bigirimana signed for Premier League club Newcastle United. Their website said it was a five-year contract for an undisclosed fee, believed to be between £ 500,000 and £ 1,000,000. His competitive debut came on 23 August, in a 1–1 draw with Greek side Atromitos, in their UEFA Europa League play-off round match, before making his home Premier League debut on 2 September in a 1–1 draw with Aston Villa as a substitute for the injured Danny Simpson. He scored his first professional goal on 3 December to complete a 3–0 home win against Wigan Athletic after two earlier goals by Demba Ba.
On 2 February 2015, Bigirimana signed for Scottish Championship club Rangers on loan until the end of the 2014–15 season. He never made an appearance for the club due to an undisclosed medical condition, leading the then Rangers manager Stuart McCall to suggest the club should never have signed him in the first place.