Valérie Gauvin

Valérie Marie Christelle Gauvin (born 1 June 1996) is a French professional footballer who plays as a forward for Division 2 Féminine club Montauban FCTG.

Valérie Gauvin
Gauvin in 2013
Personal information
Full nameValérie Marie Christelle Gauvin[1]
Date of birth (1996-06-01) 1 June 1996 (age 28)
Place of birthSainte-Clotilde, Réunion, France
Height1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)
Position(s)Forward
Team information
Current team
Montauban
Number9
Youth career
2003–2008FC Mirandais
2008–2014Toulouse
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2012–2014Toulouse31(33)
2014–2020Montpellier90(50)
2020–2022Everton27(5)
2022North Carolina Courage0(0)
2022Houston Dash3(0)
2023Fleury3(0)
2023–Montauban5(0)
International career
2012France U165(3)
2012–2013France U179(9)
2016France U206(1)
2016–2017France U238(6)
2015–2021France37(17)
Medal record
Summer Universiade
Gold medal – first place2015 GwangjuTeam
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 20 January 2024

Club career

Toulouse

Gauvin was born on the French island of Réunion and moved to the south-west of mainland France with her mother and sister at the age of 4. At the age of 12 she joined Toulouse to train with the club, and at the age of 16 joined the senior team in the Division 2 Féminine. In 2012–13, Gauvin played for Toulouse in the Division 1 Féminine before being relegated back to the Division 2 Féminine. In the 2013–14 season she was the top scorer of the league with 32 goals in 20 games.[2] During her time at Toulouse, she also scored 45 goals in the National U19 Challenge.[3]

Montpellier

In June 2014, Gauvin returned to the Division 1 Féminine, joining Montpellier.[3] In May 2017, following a successful season in which she scored 13 goals in 17 appearances and helped Montpellier qualify for the 2017–18 UEFA Women's Champions League, Gauvin signed a contract extension until 2020.[4]

Everton

After scoring 14 goals in 16 appearances for Montpellier in the 2019–20 season, Gauvin was signed by FA Women's Super League club Everton in August 2020.[5]

North Carolina Courage

On 31 March 2022, the North Carolina Courage of the American National Women's Soccer League paid a transfer fee to Everton to acquire Gauvin, who signed a one-year contract with one-year option.[6] After five months without an appearance for the club while recuperating from minor injuries,[7] the Courage traded Gauvin to Houston Dash in exchange for $25,000 in allocation money and a conditional second-round pick in the 2024 NWSL Draft.[8]

International career

In July 2012, Gauvin represented France under-16 at the 2012 Nordic Under-16 Cup. She started in the 1–0 loss to Sweden,[9] started and scored the first goal in the 5–1 victory over Finland,[10] and started and scored a brace in the 3–0 victory over Norway, giving France the third place in the tournament.[11]

In October 2012, Gauvin represented France under-17 in the first round of the 2013 UEFA Women's Under-17 Championship qualification campaign. She started all 3 matches, scoring a brace in the 5–0 victory against Bosnia and Herzegovina,[12] a brace in the 12–0 victory over Lithuania,[13] and a hat-trick in the 5–0 victory over Hungary.[14] In March 2013, she was in the French squad for the second round.[15] She started and scored a goal in both the 3–1 victory over Northern Ireland[16] and in the 2–0 victory over Finland,[17] but came on as a 75th minute substitute in the 1–1 draw with Spain,[18] who qualified due to a better goal-difference.

In July 2015, Gauvin helped France to win the gold medal at the 2015 Summer Universiade, including opening the scoring against Russia in the 2–0 victory in the final.[19]

In September 2015, Gauvin was called up to the French senior team for the first time, for matches against Brazil and Romania.[2] She made her official debut appearance for the French senior team on 23 October 2015, in a 2–1 loss to the Netherlands, coming on as a substitute for Marie-Laure Delie in the 71st minute.[20]

In November 2016, Gauvin was selected for France's under-20 squad for the 2016 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup.[21][22] She played in a friendly against Canada in Australia ahead of the tournament, scoring the second goal in a 2–0 victory.[23] In the tournament's group stage she came on as a late sub in the 0–0 draw against the United States[24] and in the 2–0 victory over New Zealand.[25] She started in the 2–2 draw against Ghana,[26] providing the assist for the first goal by Delphine Cascarino.[27] In the knock-out stage she came on as a sub in extra-time in the semi-final 2–1 victory over Japan[28] and in the 73rd minute in the final against North Korea which France lost 3–1.[29][30]

In March 2017, Gauvin represented the French secondary senior team at the 2017 Istria Cup. She played in all 4 matches,[31] scoring a hat-trick against Hungary B.[32] France B finished the tournament in third place, beating Northern Ireland 1–0.[33]

On 23 October 2017, Gauvin scored her first goal for the French senior team in an 8–0 victory over Ghana during a friendly match.[34][35] On 6 April 2018, Gauvin scored a hat-trick in an 8–0 victory over Nigeria.[36]

Career statistics

International

As of 26 November 2021[37]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
France201510
201600
201741
201884
2019158
202053
202141
Total3717

Scores and results list France's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Gauvin goal.

International goals by date, venue, opponent, score, result and competition
#DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.23 October 2017Stade Auguste Delaune, Reims, France  Ghana8–08–0Friendly
2.7 March 2018Orlando City Stadium, Orlando, United States  Germany3–03–0SheBelieves Cup
3.6 April 2018MMArena, Le Mans, France  Nigeria2–08–0Friendly
4.5–0
5.6–0
6.4 March 2019Stade de la Vallée du Cher, Tours, France  Uruguay3–06–0
7.5–0
8.4 April 2019Stade de l'Abbé-Deschamps, Auxerre, France  Japan1–13–1
9.8 April 2019Stade de la Meinau, Strasbourg, France  Denmark4–04–0
10.31 May 2019Stade Dominique Duvauchelle, Créteil, France  China1–02–0
11.12 June 2019Allianz Riviera, Nice, France  Norway1–02–12019 FIFA Women's World Cup
12.23 June 2019Stade Océane, Le Havre, France  Brazil1–02–12019 FIFA Women's World Cup
13.8 October 2019Kazhymukan Munaitapaspv Stadium, Shymkent, Kazakhstan  Kazakhstan1–03–0UEFA Women's Euro 2022 qualifying
14.7 March 2020Stade du Hainaut, Valenciennes, France  Brazil1–01–02020 Tournoi de France
15.10 March 2020  Netherlands1–23–3
16.23 October 2020Stade de la Source, Orléans, France  North Macedonia1–011–0UEFA Women's Euro 2022 qualifying
17.26 November 2021Stade de la Rabine, Vannes, France  Kazakhstan5–06–02023 FIFA Women's World Cup qualification

References