Lionel Jules Carole (born 12 April 1991) is a French professional footballer who plays as a left back for RC Strasbourg Alsace. He is a French youth international, having earned caps at under-17, under-20, and under-21 level.
Club career Early career Carole was born in Montreuil, Seine-Saint-Denis. His career began with hometown club UJA Alfortville. In 2000, while playing in the club's youth academy, he suffered a debilitating injury to his right eye, after a ball struck him in the face. The injury almost ended the player's career, however, his doctor gave him aerodynamic protective goggles to wear while playing, similar to former Dutch international Edgar Davids.
Nantes Carole joined Nantes in 2006 and was, surprisingly, promoted to the senior team by manager Baptiste Gentili for the 2010–11 season, despite not having a professional contract. He made his professional debut on 17 August 2010, in a league match against Évian, appearing as a substitute in a 1–0 defeat. In the team's following match against Laval, Carole started and played the entire match in a 0–0 draw.
Benfica On 14 January 2011, it was reported by the French and Portuguese media that Carole would be joining Portuguese club Benfica as a possible replacement for Fábio Coentrão, with the transfer set to occur in June 2011. The following day, Nantes chairman Waldemar Kita and manager Baptiste Gentili stated that they were informed by Carole that he would be signing a professional contract with the club. However, according to Gentili, the player informed him the next day that he would forgo signing a contract with Nantes and had already signed a pre-contract with Benfica. On 25 January, Nantes confirmed that Carole had left the club to sign a five-and-a-half-year deal with Benfica. Nantes was compensated a "training fee" of €750,000 and will acquire 10% of any future fee Benfica receive for the player.
Carole was assigned the number 24 shirt and made his club debut on 13 March 2011, in a league match against Portimonense. He started the match, but was substituted out after halftime in the match, which ended 1–1. In the team's ensuing league match away to Paços de Ferreira, Carole started again and scored an own goal for the hosts. Benfica, however, won the match 5–1. The defender featured in four more league matches in the season, all starts, as Benfica finished the campaign runner-up to champions Porto.
