A year ago, Cedric Kipre must have assumed he had no chance of an international future: he'd been released by Leicester after three years during which he failed to make a single senior appearance in any competition.
Twelve months on, though, times have changed: Kipre joined Motherwell after impressing on trial last summer and, after a successful season, he was called up by the Ivory Coast on Wednesday.
Kipre was actually born in Paris and spent his youth career with PSG, but he's eligible to represent the Elephants through his parents - both of whom were born in the Ivory Coast.
The call-up didn't come completely out of the blue, though: a chance encounter with Kolo Toure at the airport recently tipped his hand. Here's the man himself to explain...
“Last year I wasn’t playing professional football. Now I have been called up by Ivory Coast. I'm very proud."Cédric Kipré speaks about receiving international recognition March 21, 2018
Unfortunately for Kipre, his team won't be going to the World Cup, having failed to emerge from African qualifying. They're also still without a manager, after former Belgian coach Marc Wilmots was dismissed for his part in that poor showing.
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