Willy Boly

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Willy Boly
File:Willy Boly, Nottingham Forest, 2025 (cropped).jpg
Boly with Nottingham Forest in 2025
Personal information
Full name Willy-Arnaud Zobo Boly[1]
Date of birth (1991-02-03) 3 February 1991 (age 35)[2]
Place of birth Melun, France
Height 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in)[3]
Position Centre-back
Team information
Current team
 Nottingham Forest
Number 30
Youth career
2000–2002 Rosny-sous-Bois
2002–2006 CFF Paris
2004–2007 Clairefontaine
2007–2011 Auxerre
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2010–2014 Auxerre B 27 (2)
2011–2014 Auxerre 97 (3)
2014–2015 Braga B 16 (1)
2015–2016 Braga 25 (2)
2016–2018 Porto 4 (0)
2017–2018 → Wolverhampton Wanderers (loan) 36 (3)
2018–2022 Wolverhampton Wanderers 89 (5)
2022– Nottingham Forest 37 (2)
International career‡
2006 France U16 1 (0)
2007–2008 France U17 4 (0)
2010 France U19 1 (0)
2020– Ivory Coast 23 (1)
Medal record
Representing File:Flag of Côte d'Ivoire.svg Ivory Coast
Men's football
Africa Cup of Nations
Winner 2023 Ivory Coast
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 17:00, 5 April 2025 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals as of 10 October 2025 (UTC)

Willy-Arnaud Zobo Boly (born 3 February 1991) is a professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Premier League club Nottingham Forest. Born in France, he represents the Ivory Coast national team.

Club career

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Auxerre

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Born in Melun, Seine-et-Marne, Boly played youth football for three clubs, also having a three-year spell at the INF Clairefontaine academy.[4] He made his senior debut with AJ Auxerre's reserves and, in February 2011, he signed his first professional contract after agreeing to a three-year deal with an option for a fourth.[5]

On 16 April 2011, Boly made his Ligue 1 debut by playing the full 90 minutes in a 1–0 away win against Toulouse.[6][7] He scored his first goal in the competition the following matchday, in a 1–1 home draw to Lens.[8]

Boly was an undisputed starter in the 2011–12 season (33 games, one goal),[9] but the AJA were relegated to Ligue 2 after finishing last.[10]

Braga

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File:Shahter-Braga (7).jpg
Boly with Braga in 2016

On 1 September 2014, Boly moved to Portugal and joined Braga on a four-year deal.[11] He spent his first season with the B-team, in the Segunda Liga.[12]

Porto

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On 31 August 2016, Boly signed a five-year contract with Porto with a €45 million buyout clause.[13] He played only eight competitive matches during his spell,[14] including the 1–0 away loss against Juventus FC for the last-16 stage of the UEFA Champions League where he featured the second half after coming on as a substitute for André Silva.[15]

Wolverhampton Wanderers

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On 8 July 2017, Boly joined EFL Championship club Wolverhampton Wanderers on a season-long loan, reuniting him with his former head coach Nuno Espírito Santo.[16] He made his competitive debut for Wolverhampton on the opening day of the 2017–18 season in a 1–0 home win against Middlesbrough,[17] and scored his first goal with them on 31 October to help Wolves win 2–0 away against Norwich City.[18]

After making 37 official appearances and helping them achieve promotion, Boly signed a permanent contract with Wolves.[19] He made his Premier League debut on 11 August 2018, in a 2–2 home draw against Everton.[20] He scored his first goal in the competition two weeks later in a 1–1 home draw to Manchester City,[21] but the goal proved controversial as television replays showed the ball was deflected into the goal by his forearm after glancing off his head.[22]

Boly scored his first ever goal in UEFA European competition in Wolves's 2019–20 UEFA Europa League Group stage game against Beşiktaş in Istanbul on 3 October 2019, a game that Wolves won 1–0.[23]

Boly fractured his left fibula in training on 26 October 2019, necessitating surgery to insert a plate and screws on 30 October 2019.[24] Boly returned from this injury in Wolves's 0–0 draw away to Manchester United on 1 February 2020,[25] although he had been an unused substitute in Wolves's previous Premier League fixture at home to Liverpool on 23 January 2020.[26]

Boly scored his first goal of the 2020–21 season, and his first Premier League goal since the 2018–19 season, on 16 January 2021 against West Bromwich Albion in the Black Country derby.[27]

On 5 April 2021, after returning from playing with his national team in the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualifications, Wolves announced that Boly had caught COVID-19, and was self-isolating in line with government guidance.[28] Wolves's head coach, Nuno Espírito Santo, announced after Wolves's Premier League game with West Bromwich Albion on 3 May 2021 that Boly was suffering the effects of long covid, ruling him out from appearing for Wolves in the game that evening.[29] Boly would not feature for Wolves again until 19 May 2021, when he played the full 90 minutes of the away Premier League game at Everton.[30]

Nottingham Forest

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On 1 September 2022, Boly signed with Premier League side Nottingham Forest on a two-year deal for an undisclosed fee.[31] On 5 June 2024, the club said the player had signed a one-year extension.[32]

International career

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Born to Ivorian parents, Boly represented France at under-16, under-17 and under-19 levels.[33]

Boly switched to represent the Ivory Coast national team in 2020. He debuted for the Ivory Coast in a 2–1 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualification win over Madagascar on 12 November 2020.[34]

Career statistics

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Club

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As of match played 24 September 2025[35]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] League cup[b] Europe Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Auxerre 2010–11 Ligue 1 8 1 0 0 0 0 — — 8 1
2011–12 33 1 2 0 2 0 — — 37 1
2012–13 Ligue 2 25 1 0 0 2 0 — — 27 1
2013–14 30 0 4 1 4 0 — — 38 1
2014–15 1 0 0 0 2 0 — — 3 0
Total 97 3 6 1 10 0 — — 113 4
Braga 2014–15 Primeira Liga 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 — 1 0
2015–16 22 2 4 0 1 0 12[c] 0 — 39 2
2016–17 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1[d] 0 4 0
Total 25 2 4 0 2 0 12 0 1 0 44 2
Porto 2016–17 Primeira Liga 4 0 0 0 2 0 1[e] 0 — 7 0
Wolverhampton Wanderers (loan) 2017–18[36] Championship 36 3 0 0 1 0 — — 37 3
Wolverhampton Wanderers 2018–19[37] Premier League 36 4 5 0 0 0 — — 41 4
2019–20[38] 22 0 0 0 0 0 13[c] 1 — 35 1
2020–21[39] 21 1 1 0 1 0 — — 23 1
2021–22[40] 10 0 0 0 1 0 — — 11 0
Wolves total 125 8 6 0 3 0 13 1 — 147 9
Nottingham Forest 2022–23[41] Premier League 11 0 0 0 4 1 — — 15 1
2023–24[42] 20 2 0 0 1 0 — — 21 2
2024–25[43] 6 0 2 0 1 0 — — 9 0
2025–26[44] 0 0 0 0 1 0 1[c] 0 — 2 0
Total 37 2 2 0 7 1 1 0 — 47 3
Career total 288 15 18 1 24 1 27 1 1 0 358 18
  1. ^ Includes Coupe de France, Taça de Portugal, FA Cup
  2. ^ Includes Coupe de la Ligue, Taça da Liga, EFL Cup
  3. ^ a b c Appearances in UEFA Europa League
  4. ^ Appearance in Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira
  5. ^ Appearance in UEFA Champions League

International

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As of match played 10 October 2025[45]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Ivory Coast 2020 2 0
2021 8 1
2022 3 0
2023 2 0
2024 7 0
2025 1 0
Total 23 1
Scores and results list Ivory Coast's goal tally first. Score column indicates score after each Boly goal.[45]
List of international goals scored by Willy Boly
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 30 March 2021 Stade National, Abidjan, Ivory Coast File:Flag of Ethiopia.svg Ethiopia 1–0 3–1 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualification

Honours

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Braga

Wolverhampton Wanderers

Ivory Coast

Individual

References

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  35. ^ Willy Boly at Soccerway. Retrieved 11 May 2024.Lua error in Module:WikidataCheck at line 29: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).
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  • Profile at the Nottingham Forest F.C. website
  • Willy Boly at the French Football Federation (in French)
  • Willy Boly at the French Football Federation (archived) (in French)
  • Willy Boly – French league stats at LFP – also available in French (archived)Lua error in Module:EditAtWikidata at line 29: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).Lua error in Module:WikidataCheck at line 29: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).
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  • Willy Boly at ForaDeJogo (archived)Lua error in Module:EditAtWikidata at line 29: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).Lua error in Module:WikidataCheck at line 29: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).
  • Willy Boly at SoccerbaseLua error in Module:EditAtWikidata at line 29: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).Lua error in Module:WikidataCheck at line 29: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).
  • Willy Boly – UEFA competition record (archive)Lua error in Module:EditAtWikidata at line 29: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).Lua error in Module:WikidataCheck at line 29: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).
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