Early career Djourou was born in
Abidjan, Ivory Coast, to Ivorian parents Joachim and Angeline, and was later adopted by his father's first wife, Danièle, a Swiss woman. Djourou later acknowledged that he has two mothers in his life. He joined
Arsenal on 1 August 2003.
Arsenal Djourou made his first senior start for Arsenal in a 3–1 victory against
Everton in the
League Cup, having made his first appearance after 89 minutes of the corresponding match in the previous round against
Manchester City on 27 October 2004. He later made three appearances at the end of the 2004–05 season. On 21 January 2005, Djourou signed a two-year contract extension with the club. His first appearance of the 2005–06 season came on 29 November 2005 against
Reading in the Round of 16 of the League Cup, starting the whole game, in a 3–0 win. He then played in the third round clash with
Cardiff City. Djourou made his full Premiership debut for Arsenal in the 7–0 victory over
Middlesbrough on 14 January 2006, playing at centre-back with
Philippe Senderos. He started Arsenal's
FA Cup fourth round clash with
Bolton Wanderers as part of a makeshift defence, a game in which Arsenal lost 1–0. In February 2006, Djourou played in the league games against
West Ham United,
Birmingham City and
Bolton Wanderers. After a five match absence, he returned to the first team, coming on as a substitute against
Aston Villa in Arsenal's 5–0 victory, replacing the injured
Emmanuel Eboué. Djourou then started in a league match against
Portsmouth on 12 April 2006, a game which also saw the comeback of
Sol Campbell, in a 1–1 draw. At the end of the 2005–06 season, he went on to make twelve appearances in all competitions. 's
Clarence Seedorf Following the conclusion of the
World Cup, Manager
Arsène Wenger said that he would be planning on using Djourou in the first team ahead of
the new season. He started the whole game in the opening game of the season in Arsenal's first ever match at
Emirates Stadium in a 1–1 draw with Aston Villa. Djourou then played in both legs against
Dinamo Zagreb in the
UEFA Champions League third qualifying round, as Arsenal won 5–1 on aggregate. He then helped Arsenal keep two separate clean sheets; which the first one occurred between 17 September 2006 and 23 September 2006 and the second one occurred between 14 October 2006 and 22 October 2006. On 1 November 2006, it was announced that Djourou signed a six-year contract extension with the club. Shortly after, however, he missed four matches, due to international commitment and competitions, he returned to the first team against
Fulham on 29 November 2006, coming on as a 65th-minute substitute, in a 2–1 loss. This was followed by keeping two consecutive clean sheets against
Tottenham Hotspur and
FC Porto. The next two months saw Djourou make only two appearances due to being sidelined with injuries. It wasn't until on 11 February 2007 when he returned to the first team against Wigan Athletic, starting a match and played 51 minutes before being substituted, in a 2–1 win. However, his return was short-lived when Djourou suffered a knee injury that kept him out throughout February. It wasn't until on 3 March 2007 when he returned to the starting line-up, in a 2–1 win against Reading. After not playing for two months, Djourou returned to the starting line-up in the last game of the season against Portsmouth, playing in the defensive midfield position, as Arsenal drew 0–0. At the end of the 2006–07 season, he went on to make thirty appearances in all competitions.
Loan to Birmingham City On 10 August 2007, Djourou signed for
Birmingham City on loan for five months. He made his debut two days later against the previous season's FA Cup and League Cup winners
Chelsea. This was a closely fought contest in which Chelsea ran out eventual 3–2 winners, in which Djourou cleared off the line from
Frank Lampard to keep Birmingham City in the game. He then helped the club keep two consecutive clean sheets between 15 September 2007 and 22 September 2007 against gifted Bolton Wanderers and Liverpool. Djourou continued to play for Birmingham consistently through his loan period until 22 December 2007, when he gifted Bolton Wanderers'
Nicolas Anelka a goal via an errant
throw-in. This marked his last appearance for the club. Although Birmingham manager
Alex McLeish was keen to retain him, Djourou returned to Arsenal at the end of his loan spell, as cover for
Kolo Touré and
Alex Song who were playing in the
2008 African Cup of Nations. By the time he returned to his parent club, Djourou made 13 appearances in all competitions.
Return to Arsenal Shortly after returning from a loan spell at Birmingham City, Djourou made his first Arsenal's appearance of the 2007–08 season, coming against Tottenham Hotspur in the semi-finals of the League Cup, and played 45 minutes before being substituted at half time, as they drew 1–1. However, he suffered a groin injury that saw him sidelined for three months. Although Djourou returned to the substitute bench in mid–April, it wasn't until on 28 April 2008 when he returned to the first team, coming on as a 78th-minute substitute, in a 6–2 win against
Derby County. At the end of the 2007–08 season, Djourou made three appearances in all competitions for Arsenal. In May 2008, Djourou stated that he would be willing to partner
Cesc Fàbregas in midfield after the departure of
Mathieu Flamini to
A.C. Milan. Instead, he played in the centre of defence as first choice backup following the departure of fellow Swiss defender
Philippe Senderos to A.C. Milan on a season-long loan. Djourou made his first appearance of the 2008–09 season, starting the whole game, and kept a
clean sheet, in a 1–0 win against
West Bromwich Albion in the opening game of the season. He played in both legs against
FC Twente in
UEFA Champions League third qualifying round, as Arsenal won 6–0 on aggregate. On 22 September 2008, Djourou signed a new long-term contract. Following the absence of
William Gallas, he started in the next seven matches for the club. During his first team run-ins, Djourou scored an
own goal against
Chelsea on 30 November 2008, but Arsenal managed to catch up and went on to win 2–1. This lasted until he tweaked his calf in the warm-up and dropped out at the last minute prior to a 2–2 draw against Aston Villa on 22 December 2008. After missing two matches as a result, Djourou returned to the starting line-up against
Plymouth Argyle in the third round of the FA Cup and helped Arsenal win 3–1. Since returning from injury, he found himself in and out of the first team for the club. However, on 11 April 2009, in a league match against
Wigan Athletic, Djourou suffered a knee injury which later required surgery. He recovered from the knee and returned to the first team, coming on as a second-half substitute, in a 2–0 win against
Middlesbrough on 26 April 2009. Djourou made two more appearances later in the 2008–09 season. He went on to make 29 appearances in all competitions. in 2012 After Touré's departure to
Manchester City, Djourou had a chance to break into the starting eleven. However, he suffered a knee injury while on international duty. It was announced on 6 September 2009 that Djourou's recovery period would take an estimated six to eight months; Arsène Wenger stated: "He will have to be patient this season." After returning to training in April, Djourou made his return from injury, coming on as a second-half substitute for the injured
Mikaël Silvestre, in the 4–0 win over
Fulham in Arsenal's final game of the season, in what turned out to be his only appearance in the 2009–10 campaign. Ahead of the 2010–11 season, Djourou said he's expecting competitions following the new signing of
Laurent Koscielny. Djourou appeared two times in the first two months of the season, and was placed on the substitute bench as a result. Due to
Thomas Vermaelen's injury at the beginning of the 2010–11 campaign, Djourou received more opportunities to play. Djourou then played a role when he set up two goals, in a 5–1 win against
Shakhtar Donetsk on 19 October 2010. Wenger admitted that he rotated the Swiss international because he missed an entire year and did not want to lose him. Djourou became Arsenal's first-choice centre-back, playing in all eight games in January 2011, during which time Arsenal conceded no Premier League goals. His performance was praised by the club's captain
Cesc Fàbregas. He played in both legs of the semi-finals against
Ipswich Town to help Arsenal win 3–1 on aggregate to reach the
Football League Cup Final. Djourou scored his first goal for Arsenal on 5 February, in the third minute of a 4–4 draw against
Newcastle United at
St. James' Park. He, once again, helped the club's defence keep three consecutive clean sheets between 12 February 2011 and 5 March 2011 against
Wolverhampton Wanderers,
Stoke City and
Sunderland. On 27 February 2011, he started and played the full 90 minutes alongside
Laurent Koscielny against Birmingham City in the
2011 Football League Cup Final held at
Wembley Stadium in a 2–1 defeat. On 12 March 2011, while playing in the quarter finals of the
FA Cup away to
Manchester United at
Old Trafford, Djourou suffered a suspected dislocated shoulder in a collision with teammate
Bacary Sagna. Djourou was carried from the field and Wenger later confirmed that he would be unavailable for the remainder of the 2010–11 season. This came as a major blow to Arsenal's title challenge, up until then having not lost a Premier League game with him on the field. As well as that Djourou had played a major part in defence in cover of the injured Vermaelen. Djourou recovered more quickly than expected, returning to play the whole of the 1–1 draw with
Liverpool at the
Emirates Stadium on 17 April 2011, playing alongside Koscielny, and the
North London Derby three days later. On 24 April 2011, against Bolton Wanderers at the
Reebok Stadium, he conceded a penalty (missed by
Kevin Davies) in a 2–1 defeat which effectively ended Arsenal's title hopes. At the end of the 2010–11 season, he played in a total of 37 matches for the Gunners in all competitions. Local newspaper
Islington Gazette gave Djourou's performance 8/10, saying: "Having missed over a year with a serious knee injury, his return coincided with a defensive shortage and he stepped into the breach admirably, not being on the losing side in the league until late April, when his form did start to fade. Has done enough to be first choice." Ahead of the 2011–12 season, Djourou said he would fight for his place in the first team, having recovered from a shoulder injury. Having described Arsenal's failure to not reach the UEFA Champions League group stage as 'unthinkable', Djourou played in both legs against
Udinese and helped the club win 3–1 on aggregate to reach further in the Group Stage. However, on 28 August 2011, he played in the centre of a young Arsenal seriously weakened by injuries for a match against Manchester United at Old Trafford. Arsenal lost 8–2, in what was their heaviest defeat since 1896, a 115-year record. Three days later Arsenal announced the signing of experienced German defender
Per Mertesacker from
Werder Bremen, and Djourou's first team opportunities became more limited in the centre-back position. As a result, he began to receive first team football by playing in the right-back position for the club. Despite being involved in the first team, Djourou, at times, found himself out of the starting eleven, due to competitions that saw him placed on the substitute bench and his own injury concern. In a 2–1 loss against Fulham on 2 January 2012, he was
sent off for a second bookable offence. After serving a one match suspension, Djourou returned to the starting line-up against
Swansea City on 15 January 2012, and set up Arsenal's second goal of the game, in a 3–2 loss. The following month saw him signed a three-year contract extension until summer 2015. The second half of the season continued to see his first team opportunities limited. During the 2011–12 season, he started 19 times for Arsenal and made 8 substitute appearances. Ahead of the 2012–13 season, Djourou was told by Manager
Ottmar Hitzfeld that he must leave Arsenal in hopes of getting a call up from Switzerland. This led Djourou to comment over his future at the club. However, he announced his intention to stay at Arsenal. Unfortunately, Djourou's first team opportunities at the club continued to be limited and only appeared two times in the first half of the season. As a result, Djourou was told by Wenger that he can leave Arsenal. Despite leaving the club, Djourou reflected on his time at Arsenal, saying: "I loved him, first of all to have the chance to spend that time with him, for him to build me. He built many players but first of all he gave me the chance to express myself. I think what I liked about the boss was the way he handled every case, you would say it was similar but also so different."
Loan to Hannover On 3 January 2013, Djourou confirmed that he was set to move to
Bundesliga club
Hannover on loan until the end of the season, with no option to buy included in the deal. He said, "I joined the club who wanted me the most. At my age, the priority is to play regularly. To do this, I did not hesitate to refuse offers with the most exclusive clubs who made important financial efforts." Djourou made his Hannover 96 debut, starting the whole game, in a 5–4 loss against
Schalke 04 on 18 January 2013. Since joining the club, he quickly became a first team regular for the side, playing in the centre-back position. Djourou then helped Hannover 96 keep two consecutive clean sheets between 30 March 2013 and 7 April 2013 against
FC Augsburg and
VfB Stuttgart. This lasted until he tore his hamstring that saw him miss three matches. It wasn't until the last game of the season against
Fortuna Düsseldorf when Djourou returned to the starting line-up and kept a clean sheet, in a 3–0 win. At the end of the 2012–13 season, he went on to make sixteen appearances in all competitions. Following this, his time at Hannover 96 came to an end and he returned to his parent club.
Hamburger SV 's match in 2014 On 1 July 2013, Djourou undertook a medical before signing for Bundesliga side
Hamburger SV on loan for a season. It was reported that this time, the deal did include an option to buy. He said: "I'm very happy now that everything is sorted. HSV are a big club, with a lot of quality and great fans. I am convinced that this is the right step for my career." However, his start to his Hamburger SV's career suffered a setback when Djourou suffered a groin injury that saw him miss the first three league matches of the season. It wasn't until on 31 August 2013 when he made his debut for the club, starting the match and played 72 minutes before being substituted, in a 4–0 win against
Eintracht Braunschweig. Since making his debut for Hamburger SV, Djourou started in the next six matches for the club. In a match against Stuttgart on 20 October 2013, he scored an own goal, as Hamburger SV drew 3–3. However, in a follow-up match against
SC Freiburg, Djourou suffered a groin injury once again and was substituted in the 22nd minute, resulting a 3–0 win for the club. It was announced that he would be out for several weeks. It wasn't until on 24 November 2013 when he returned to the starting line-up against Hannover 96, and helped Hamburger SV win 3–1. Having started in the next five matches, Djourou tore his muscle fibre that kept him out for a month. It wasn't until on 8 February 2014 when he returned to the starting line-up, in a 3–0 win against
Hertha BSC. Since returning from injury, Djourou regained his first team place for the next two months. This lasted until he, once again, injured his adductors while warming up prior to a 3–1 loss against
Wolfsburg on 19 April 2014. Despite this, Djourou returned to the first team and played in both legs of the relegation play-off matches against
Greuther Fürth, where a 1–1 draw kept Hamburg retaining their Bundesliga status via an away goal. At the end of the 2013–14 season, he went on to make 26 appearances in all competitions. As the 2013–14 season was coming to an end, Hamburg confirmed on 2 April 2014 that they had activated the buying clause and signed Djourou on a permanent deal. His first game after signing for the club on a permanent basis came in the first round of the DFB–Pokal against
Energie Cottbus and played 120 minutes with a 2–2 draw as a final score, resulting in a penalty shootout; and successfully converted the penalty in the shootout to help Hamburg win 4–2 to progress to the next round. Since the start of the 2014–15 season, he continued to establish himself in the starting eleven, playing in the centre-back position. Following the absence of captain
Rafael van der Vaart, Djourou captained the club for the first time against Hannover 96 on 14 September 2014, as Hamburger SV lost 2–0. He then captained Hamburger SV in the next four matches for the side. At times, Djourou did captained the side as the 2014–15 season progressed. However, in a match against
Borussia Dortmund on 7 March 2015, Djourou suffered an injury in the 18th minute against and was substituted, as the club drew 0–0. Up until now, he started in every match despite facing injury threat along the way. It wasn't until on 20 March 2015 when Djourou returned to the starting line-up against Hertha BSC, as Hamburger SV lost 1–0. However, his return was short-lived when he was sent off for a second bookable offence, in a 2–0 against Wolfsburg on 11 April 2015. After serving a one match suspension, Djourou returned to the starting line-up against FC Augsburg on 25 April 2015 and helped the club win 3–2. He then played in both legs of the relegation play-off matches against
Karlsruher SC, as Hamburg won 3–2 on aggregate to retain their Bundesliga status. Reflecting on the 2014–15 season, Djourou said: "It must never be like this again. You can't do that again. This pressure is too much. And by that I mean everyone. The whole city, HSV and all of our fans." He went on to make 36 appearances in all competitions. At the start of the 2015–16 season, Djourou was appointed a new captain of Hamburger SV following the departure of Van der Vaart. He then scored his first goal for the club, in his 70th appearance, as well as, setting up one of the goals, in a 3–2 win against Stuttgart on 22 August 2015. Shortly after, however, Djourou tore his muscle fibre that kept him out for weeks. It wasn't until on 11 September 2015 when he returned to the starting line-up against
Borussia Mönchengladbach and kept a clean sheet, as the club won 3–0. Djourou helped Hamburger SV keep two more clean sheets in the next two matches against
Eintracht Frankfurt and
FC Ingolstadt 04. Since returning from injury, he regained his first team place, as well as, captaincy for the club. Djourou then scored his second goal for Hamburger SV, in a 3–1 loss against
1. FSV Mainz 05 on 5 December 2015. After missing one match due to influenza, he returned to the starting line-up on 19 December 2015 against FC Augsburg, as the club lost 1–0. In the second half of the season, Djourou appeared eleven times for the club as captain. This was due to his injury concerns, suspension and competitions that saw him placed on the substitute bench. In a 3–2 loss against Schalke 04 on 2 March 2016, he was sent off for a second bookable offence. After the match, Djourou's sending off was criticised by Manager
Bruno Labbadia, saying he let the team down. Despite this, Djourou returned to the starting line-up and helped the club finish tenth place in the league. At the end of the 2015–16 season, he went on to make 26 appearances and scoring two times in all competitions. Ahead of the 2016–17 season, Djourou continued to regain his captaincy for Hamburger SV. However, he continued to plagued by injuries in the first four months to the season. As a result of his injuries, Djourou was replaced as captain by
Gōtoku Sakai. He then helped the club keep two consecutive clean sheets between 4 December 2016 and 10 December 2016 against
Darmstadt 98 and FC Augsburg. By the second half of the season, Djourou's first team opportunities soon became limited, due to his own injury concerns and competitions that saw him placed on the substitute bench. In late March, he was criticised for conducting an interview after criticising Manager
Markus Gisdol and had to make an apology. Despite the apology, Djourou continued to remain on the sidelines for the rest of the 2016–17 season. At the end of the 2016–17 season, Djourou made sixteen appearances in all competitions. Following this, he was among several players to be released by Hamburger SV after being told that their contract would not be renewed. Upon learning about this, Djourou made a statement on his social media account, thanking the club, players and teammates for making him a better player throughout his time at Hamburger SV.
Antalyaspor On 7 August 2017, Djourou completed a free transfer to
Antalyaspor after the expiry of his contract with Hamburg, signing a two-year contract with an option to extend the deal by 12 months. After not appearing in the first two league matches of the season, he made his Antalyaspor debut, starting the whole game, in a 1–1 draw against
Yeni Malatyaspor on 26 August 2017. Djourou then scored his first goal for the club, in a 3–1 loss against
Sivasspor on 30 September 2017. Since making his debut for Antalyaspor, he started in the next six matches before suffering an injury that kept him out for three months. While on the sidelines, Djourou was linked with a move to
Genoa but the club refused to let him go. It wasn't until on 12 February 2018 when he returned to the first team, coming on as a 78th-minute substitute, in a 3–0 loss against
Galatasaray. Despite suffering from an illness, Djourou continued to regain his first team place for the rest of the 2017–18 season. At the end of the 2017–18 season, he went on to make eighteen appearances and scoring once in all competitions. Following this, Djourou was among several players whose future at Antalyaspor was being reconsidered by the club's management, despite having a year left on his contract.
Later career On 21 July 2018, Djourou signed with Italian
Serie A club
S.P.A.L. on a one-year contract with an option for a second year. He made his debut for the club, coming on as a second-half substitute, in a 1–0 loss against
Torino on 2 September 2018. However, Djourou found his first team opportunities limited at S.P.A.L., due to competitions and his own injury concern. He made just six appearances before leaving by mutual consent in January 2019. On 23 January 2020, Djourou completed a free transfer to
Sion for the rest of the
Swiss Super League season. He made his debut for the club, coming on as a 39th-minute substitute for the injured
Jean Ruiz, in a 1–1 draw against
FC Zürich on 2 February 2020. In a follow-up match against
BSC Young Boys, however, Djourou suffered a muscle injury and was substituted in the 14th minute, as Sion lost 1–0. This turns out to be his last appearance for the club and made two appearances. He was one of nine players dismissed on 20 March for refusing a pay cut during the
coronavirus pandemic. The dispute was eventually resolved in August after Djourou took the case to court. Djourou then moved to
Neuchâtel Xamax on 29 May 2020, together with fellow Sion dismissee
Xavier Kouassi. He made his debut for the club, playing in the sweeper position, in a 2–1 win against
FC Thun in the league's first match in three months. However, Djourou was plagued by injuries that affected most his time at Neuchâtel Xamax. Despite this, he went on to make seven appearances for the club. On transfer deadline day, 5 October 2020, Djourou joined
Danish Superliga club
FC Nordsjælland on a two-year deal. He made his debut for the club in a
Danish Cup match against FC Græsrødderne. On 4 June 2021, Djourou announced his retirement at the age of 34. He cited physical pain from playing, as well as business interests in a football academy and a podcast. ==International career==