Jean-Ricner Bellegarde (French pronunciation: [ʒɑ̃ʁiknɛʁ bɛlɡaʁd]; born 27 June 1998) is a French professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Premier League club Wolverhampton Wanderers.[1][2] A versatile player, Bellegarde can be deployed as a central midfielder, attacking midfielder or winger.
Early life
Bellegarde was born on 27 June 1998, in Saint-Michel-sur-Orge, France. He began his football career at the age of 6 with local club FC Saint-Michel-sur-Orge.[3]
Club career
Lens
On July 29, 2016, he played his first professional match with Racing Club de Lens on the field of Chamois Niortais FC.[citation needed] He caught attention in the match against Stade de Reims (1-1, 12th round of Ligue 2) by delivering an assist to Viktor Klonaridis. Often present with the reserve team, he also participated in the under-19s’ campaign in the Coupe Gambardella. During the 2017-2018 Ligue 2 season, he benefited from the arrival of Éric Sikora, who knew him well from his time in the reserve team, to establish himself in the starting eleven. He was even promoted to captain on a few occasions.[4] On September 18, 2017, he scored his first goal against US Quevilly-Rouen Métropole. In the 2018-2019 Ligue 2 season, he scored a goal in the opening match against US Orléans but gradually lost his place in the starting lineup. He regained it towards the end of the season, scoring consecutively in the last two rounds of the championship—a goal against AC Ajaccio and then a double against US Orléans—to secure Racing's place in the promotion playoffs for Ligue 1.
Strasbourg
In 2019, Bellegarde joined Strasbourg, where he made 129 appearances.
Wolverhampton Wanderers
On 1 September 2023, Bellegarde joined Wolverhampton Wanderers on a five-year deal for £12.8m.[5]
On 23 September 2023, in only his second appearance for his new club away to Luton Town in the Premier League, Bellegarde was shown a straight red card in the 39th minute for his reaction to a challenge by Tom Lockyer.[6] The match finished as a 1–1 draw.
On 4 November 2023, in his third Wolves appearance, away to Sheffield United, where he was introduced as a second-half substitute, Bellegarde scored his debut Wolves goal in the 89th minute.[7] Wolves lost the match 2–1, conceding a penalty deep into time added on at the end of the second-half.
International career
Bellegarde was born in France and is of Haitian descent.[8] He is a youth international for France.
In May 2019, he was named to Haiti's 40-man provisional squad for the 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup.[9]
Career statistics
- As of match played 29 December 2024
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | League Cup | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Lens B | 2015–16 | Championnat National | 23 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 23 | 0 | ||||
| 2016–17 | Championnat National | 11 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 11 | 0 | |||||
| 2018–19 | Championnat National | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 4 | 0 | |||||
| Total | 38 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 38 | 0 | ||||||
| Lens | 2016–17 | Ligue 2 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 11 | 0 | ||
| 2017–18 | Ligue 2 | 25 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 31 | 1 | |||
| 2018–19 | Ligue 2 | 21 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | 4[a] | 1 | 30 | 6 | ||
| Total | 55 | 5 | 9 | 1 | 6 | 0 | — | 4 | 1 | 74 | 7 | |||
| Strasbourg | 2019–20 | Ligue 1 | 24 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3[b] | 0 | — | 30 | 1 | |
| 2020–21 | Ligue 1 | 36 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 37 | 1 | ||||
| 2021–22 | Ligue 1 | 36 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 38 | 2 | ||||
| 2022–23 | Ligue 1 | 30 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 31 | 2 | ||||
| 2023–24 | Ligue 1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 3 | 2 | ||||
| Total | 129 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 139 | 8 | |||
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | 2023–24 | Premier League | 22 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 26 | 2 | ||
| 2024–25 | Premier League | 22 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 24 | 2 | |||
| Total | 44 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 50 | 4 | ||||
| Career total | 266 | 16 | 20 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 301 | 19 | ||
- ^ Appearances in Ligue 1 relegation/promotion play-offs
- ^ Appearances in UEFA Europa League
References
- ^ a b Jean‐Ricner Bellegarde at Soccerway. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
- ^ "Joueur - Jean-Ricner BELLEGARDE". Retrieved 23 July 2019.
- ^ "Jean-Ricner Bellegarde: Net Worth, Career, Personal Life, Age-height and More - Fifa world cup katar". 18 September 2023. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
- ^ "Bellegarde: "Being named captain of RC Lens by Sikora helped me develop"". lensois.com. 8 September 2019.
- ^ Stone, Simon (1 September 2023). "Wolves transfer news: Jean-Ricner Bellegarde signs from Strasbourg for £12.8m". BBC Sport.
- ^ Stone, Simon (23 September 2023). "Luton Town 1–1 Wolves: Hatters earn first Premier League point as O'Neil disputes penalty". BBC Sport. Retrieved 9 October 2023.
- ^ Thomas, Marissa (4 November 2023). "Sheffield United 2–1 Wolves: Oliver Norwood's penalty earns Premier League win at last". BBC Sport. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
- ^ "Haiti vs Argentine le 29 Mai". www.lenouvelliste.com.
- ^ "40-Player National Team Roster" (PDF). 20 May 2019.
External links
- Profile at the Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. website
- Jean‐Ricner Bellegarde – French league stats at Ligue 1 – also available in French (archived)
- Jean‐Ricner Bellegarde at L'Équipe Football (in French)
- Jean‐Ricner Bellegarde at Soccerway
- Jean‐Ricner Bellegarde at the French Football Federation (in French)
- Jean‐Ricner Bellegarde at the French Football Federation (archived 2019-07-23) (in French)
- Jean‐Ricner Bellegarde – UEFA competition record (archive)
