Karim Cisse: Former Saint-Etienne midfielder linked with Lyon La Duchere move

Guinea-born French attacking midfielder Karim Cisse, currently without a club, is being linked with a move to French side Lyon La Duchere as he weighs up his next step after leaving Saint-Etienne. The 21-year-old, who has represented both Guinea and France at youth level, became a free agent on 1 July 2026 following the expiry of his spell with the Ligue 2 club and is considering options to relaunch his career.

Cisse, valued at around €50,000 at the time of his Saint-Etienne exit, is understood to be on the radar of Lyon La Duchere as they look to add creativity in the final third. The right-footed midfielder was born in Conakry and later developed in France, progressing through the ranks at Saint-Etienne before stepping up from the B team to the senior set-up in 2023.

His most substantial run of games came in the French lower divisions, where he produced seven goals and three assists across 20 appearances in National 3 Group K, emerging as an attacking threat over 1,406 minutes of football. He also featured in Ligue 2 and the Coupe de France during his time under contract with Saint-Etienne and spent the 2024-25 season on loan at FC Annecy before returning to his parent club.

Standing at 1.75m and primarily operating as an attacking midfielder, Cisse is now unattached at both club and national-club level, leaving him free to negotiate directly with interested teams as Lyon La Duchere assess whether to formalise their interest.