Watford 2004–2006 Diagouraga was born in
Paris to
Malian parents and began his career in
youth football in the city. He subsequently suffered a broken shoulder in a
traffic accident, but returned to football and was spotted in a trial match versus an academy team from English club
Watford. After a number of further trial matches, he joined the Hornets' academy in December 2003. He signed a professional contract in November 2004 at age 17 and starred in the youth team's run to the quarter-finals of the 2004–05
FA Youth Cup. His performances during the run attracted transfer interest from
Premier League club
Chelsea. Diagouraga received his maiden call-up to the first team for the first game of the
2005–06 season, when he was an unused substitute during a 2–1
Championship defeat at home to
Preston North End. Diagouraga made his first team debut with a start in Watford's 2–1
League Cup second round victory over
Wolverhampton Wanderers on 20 September 2005 and he was substituted after 75 minutes by
Junior Osborne. Diagouraga made three further appearances before joining
League One club
Swindon Town on
loan on 23 March 2006. He made eight appearances and returned to Watford at the end of the season. He joined League One club Rotherham United on loan until the end of
the season on 12 January 2007. The terms of the deal saw him arrive at
Millmoor as a makeweight in a £1,000,000 deal that took Millers players
Will Hoskins and
Lee Williamson to Watford. Diagouraga made only seven appearances for the Millers. Diagouraga spent the entire
2007–08 season away on loan and was released in June 2008, after his contract expired. He made only six appearances during his four years with the club as a professional. He scored the first senior goal of his career in a 4–2 win over
Bradford City on 22 September. after the Bulls secured a third-place finish in League Two. On 7 July 2008, Diagouraga transferred to Hereford United permanently and signed a three-year contract. He was a regular starter and scored his first goal of the
2008–09 season in a 2–2 draw at home to Tranmere Rovers on 26 December 2008. He was again a virtual ever-present, making 48 appearances and scoring two goals as the Bulls were relegated straight back to League Two after a bottom-place finish. He departed Edgar Street in June 2009. He was an ever-present through the first half of the
2009–10 season and featured in Posh's run to the League Cup fourth round, Diagouraga made what would be his last Peterborough appearance in a 0–0 draw with
Ipswich Town on 8 December. which led to his departure on loan for the rest of the season in January 2010. He departed the club on 17 July 2010,
Brentford 2010–2012 Diagouraga joined League One club
Brentford on a one-month loan on 21 January 2010 and the deal was later extended to the end of the season. He went straight into the starting lineup for Brentford's league match at
Norwich City two days later and was substituted for
Carl Cort after 59 minutes of the 1–0 defeat. He made 20 appearances during the second half of the
2009–10 season as Brentford consolidated their position in League One. Diagouraga signed for Brentford on a three-year contract in July 2010. He began the
2010–11 season as a starting
central midfielder alongside
Marcus Bean and featured in Brentford's run to the fourth round of the League Cup, in which he started in victories over Championship club
Hull City and Premier League
Everton in the second and third rounds respectively. Diagouraga scored his first Brentford goal in a 2–1 home win over
Charlton Athletic on 2 October. He made 43 appearances during the 2010–11 season and scored one goal. Diagouraga suffered a knee injury in a
2011–12 pre-season
friendly versus
Hampton & Richmond Borough in July 2011, which ruled him out for two months. He returned to the team with a fifteen-minute cameo at the end of a 2–0 away victory over
Oldham Athletic on 24 September. Diagouraga enjoyed a successful 2011–12 season, making 40 appearances and scoring a seasonal-best five goals.
2012–2014 Diagouraga was a virtual ever-present during the
2012–13 season, making 49 appearances and scoring one goal, which came in a 2–1 win over
Notts County on 29 March 2013. He signed a new two-year contract in February 2013. Diagouraga was denied promotion to the Championship due to a missed penalty from
Marcello Trotta in the final game of the season versus
Doncaster Rovers and defeat to
Yeovil Town in the
2013 League One Playoff Final. Now behind
Adam Forshaw,
George Saville and
Alan McCormack in the midfield pecking order, Diagouraga featured mostly from the bench during the early stages of the
2013–14 season. He received an assurance over his future from new manager
Mark Warburton in January 2014, but joined League Two club
Portsmouth on a one-month loan on 17 February 2014. After three appearances and receiving "good reports", Brentford manager Mark Warburton put a block on Diagouraga's loan being extended beyond 16 March. Diagouraga was named by manager
Richie Barker as
captain for the final game of his initial loan, which resulted in a 3–1 defeat to
Fleetwood Town on 15 March. After the match, Diagouraga reiterated his desire to stay at
Fratton Park and his loan was extended until the end of the
2013–14 season on 17 March. He was recalled by Brentford on 26 March, after making eight appearances. He made 26 appearances during the 2013–14 season.
2014–2016 Diagouraga found himself behind
Marcos Tébar and Alan McCormack in the midfield pecking order during the early months of the
2014–15 season, but he forced his way into the starting lineup in November after being challenged by Mark Warburton to earn a new contract. On 9 December, Diagouraga signed a new contract would keep him at
Griffin Park until the end of the
2016–17 season. He celebrated his 200th Brentford appearance versus
Leeds United at
Elland Road on 7 February 2015 and assisted
Alex Pritchard for the only goal of the game. On 3 May, Diagouraga was announced as the
Brentford Supporters’ Player of the Year. He made 43 appearances during the 2014–15 season, which ended after the Bees fell to
Middlesbrough in the
playoff semi-finals. Despite featuring as an ever-present in league matches during the first half of the
2015–16 season, Diagouraga handed in a transfer request on 11 January 2016. A new contract had gone unsigned during the previous six months, "but once the wheels were in motion about me leaving, it was hard for me to make a U-turn". In 2024, Diagouraga stated that "If I could turn the clock back, I probably wouldn’t have left" the club. He made his debut versus former club Brentford on 26 January, as a substitute for
Luke Murphy after an hour of the 1–1 draw. After failing to win a recall, Diagouraga moved on loan to Championship club Ipswich Town for the remainder of the
2016–17 season. He made 12 appearances before his spell was cut short by a groin injury. After surprisingly appearing as a
central defender early in Leeds'
2017–18 pre-season programme, Diagouraga was left out of the squad for the club's tour of
Austria and failed to win a call into a first team squad before his contract was terminated by mutual consent on 25 August 2017. Diagouraga made 20 appearances and scored three goals during just over 18 months at Elland Road.
Plymouth Argyle On 9 October 2017, Diagouraga joined League One strugglers
Plymouth Argyle as a
free agent and signed a contract to run until 9 January 2018. His presence in midfield brought about an upturn in the Pilgrims' form and he was offered a new 18-month contract in late December 2017. Diagouraga rejected the extension and remained at
Home Park until his existing contract expired.
Fleetwood Town Diagouraga reunited with his former Brentford manager
Uwe Rösler at League One club Fleetwood Town on 10 January 2018 and signed an 18-month contract on a
free transfer. Three days later, he made his debut with a start and scored the opening goal in a 2–1 victory over
Southend United.
Return to Swindon Town On 18 July 2018, Diagouraga signed a two-year contract with League Two club Swindon Town on a free transfer. He made just 15 appearances during an injury-affected
2018–19 season.
Morecambe On 2 January 2020, Diagouraga joined League Two club
Morecambe on a contract running until the end of the
2019–20 season, with the option of a further year. He made 12 appearances and scored one goal before the 2019–20 season was
ended early. In June 2020, the option on Diagouraga's contract was taken up for
2020–21 and he made 43 appearances and scored three goals during a season which culminated in
promotion to League One for the first time in the club's history. Diagouraga signed a new one-year contract in June 2021 and he made 46 appearances, scoring one goal, He was released when his contract expired.
Rochdale On 16 June 2022, Diagouraga signed a one-year contract with League Two club
Rochdale on a free transfer, effective 1 July 2022. He made 37 appearances during a disastrous
2022–23 season, Diagouraga was released when his contract expired and though he had offers to continue playing, he elected to retire. == Coaching career ==