da gbg bet： The 27-year-old has exploded onto the scene this season and is scoring at a higher rate than some of the best strikers on the planet
da supremo： If you take a look at the most prolific goalscorers in Europe's 'Big Five' leagues this season, some familiar names immediately jump out, with the likes of Erling Haaland, Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe all in the top four. However, it is not one of this free-scoring trio that boasts the honour of being the continent's leading marksman so far this campaign. That title instead belongs to a far lesser-known name: Serhou Guirassy of Stuttgart.
The Guinea international's exploits in the Bundesliga this season have been nothing short of astounding. Guirassy is currently averaging an astonishing two goals per game, netting 10 times in just five matches to kick-off the 2023-24 campaign.
His electric start has catapulted Stuttgart – who had to negotiate a relegation play-off with Hamburg last season – into the Champions League places, with a 5-1 defeat to RB Leipzig the only time Die Schwaben have failed to win in their opening five fixtures.
Guirassy's story is one of resilience and dedication, with the France-born hotshot having to battle his fair share of setbacks over the course of his career
Getty ImagesEarly-career struggles
Born in Arles in 1996, Guirassy is not a product of one of France's premier youth academies. He instead came through the ranks at Stade Lavallois, a club whose only major honours are two Coupe de la Ligue triumphs in the 1980s.
Guirassy made his first-team debut in a Ligue 2 clash against Le Havre in 2013, coming on as a late substitute in a 2-2 draw. It would take until the 2014-15 campaign for him to properly break into the side, and after netting six times in 29 appearances, he was snapped up by Lille in summer 2015.
After floating around the reserves and the substitutes' bench, he was shipped out on loan to Auxerre the following January and began to show glimpses of just how good he could become, averaging a goal every other game in the second half of the Ligue 2 season.
That was enough to convince FC Koln to snap him up on a five-year deal in 2016, but he was forced to undergo surgery immediately after his arrival – and he never really got going again. Injuries severely restricted his involvement and by the time he left for Amiens in summer 2019 after a loan spell, he had registered just 45 appearances across three seasons.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesFinally getting somewhere
Getting out of Germany proved to be the perfect tonic, though. During the 2019-20 season, Guirassy scored nine goals in just 23 appearances, despite Amiens spending almost the entirety of the campaign in the relegation zone before the pandemic halted proceedings.
It was little surprise when Rennes were convinced to sign him in 2020, with Guirassy netting 13 times – including once against Chelsea in the Champions League group stages – through 32 appearances in his maiden campaign.
Things slowed down a little the following season, with the striker notching 12 goals, but the fact he remained fit for the entire campaign was more significant. By the time the 2021-22 campaign reached its conclusion, he had featured just under 50 times for Rennes, which helped shed his 'injury-prone' tag.
Getty ImagesA perfect home in Germany
After ensuring their Bundesliga status on the final day of the 2021-22 season, Stuttgart were on the lookout for a new striker following the departure of Sasa Kalajdzic to Wolves. Guirassy fit the bill, and a loan deal was swiftly agreed with Rennes, who themselves had just signed Amine Gouiri from Nice.
After struggling to make the grade at Koln, Guirassy would have felt under pressure to perform upon his return to Germany – but a 92nd-minute equaliser against Bayern Munich on his full debut addressed a lot of these doubts.
Despite Stuttgart struggling once again, their loan signing stood out, eventually finishing the regular-season campaign with 11 goals from 22 matches. Bundesliga safety was then assured via a two-legged victory over perennial bottlers Hamburg, which allowed the club to focus on ensuring that they wouldn't come so close to losing their top-flight status again.
Getty ImagesHistoric start to the season
And while nothing is certain in the highly-unpredictable world of the Bundesliga, Guirassy's breathtaking start to the season means Stuttgart have already gone a long way to quelling any relegation fears.
The tone was set in his side's opener against Bochum, a team they duelled with in the battle for survival last campaign. Guirassy produced two clinical finishes to bookend Stuttgart's 5-0 victory, and grabbed a consolation in the heavy defeat to Leipzig the following week.
The goals kept on flowing in a 5-0 win over Freiburg, too. Guirassy's first in that game was an ingenious strike into the near corner from the edge of the box, while his second was a well-taken side-footed volley.
His best performance of the campaign so far came against Mainz on matchday four. Guirassy opened the scoring with a cultured dink before completing his hat-trick with a sublime scoop and finish, followed by a clever looping header.
"It’s very good but I can only repeat, we do it as a team and when I score it’s credit to the whole team. I scored today but maybe next week it’ll be someone else. Obviously I’m very happy about my hat-trick but I’m even happier with the win," he said after collecting the match ball.
Two further goals in a comfortable 3-1 win over Darmstadt on Saturday – he assisted the other one too – made it 10 from just five starts. No player in Bundesliga history has scored as many in such a short space of time. The only player to match his feat is Robert Lewandowski, who reached double figures in five games for Bayern Munich back in 2020.