Luciano Gondou

Luciano Emilio Gondou Zanelli is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as an attacker for the Russian club CSKA Moscow.

Club career

Born in Rufino, Santa Fe, Gondou was in the youth academy at [Club Atlético Club Atlético Sarmiento (Junín)|Sarmiento (Junín)|Sarmiento] before joining River Plate in 2019. He started his career as a left-sided midfielder before developing into a left-footed forward player. With River Plate, he reached the final of the 2020 U-20 Copa Libertadores, which they lost to Ecuadorean side Independiente del Valle. In March 2021, he returned to Sarmiento and signed a professional contract with the club. The following month he made his senior debut.
In July 2023, Gondou signed for Argentinos Juniors agreeing to a four-year contract with Argentinos Juniors reportedly paying a fee of $3,500,000 for 80% of his playing rights. He made his debut in the Copa Libertadores against Fluminense in August 2023. He scored his first goals for Argentinos Juniors on 21 August 2023, against his former club River Plate, scoring a brace as his side completed a comeback 3–2 league win.
On 27 August 2024, Gondou signed a four-year contract with Russian Premier League champions Zenit St. Petersburg. Four days later on his debut against Pari NN he scored twice in a 3–0 Zenit away victory.
On 11 January 2026, Gondou moved to CSKA Moscow on a four-and-a-half-year contract.

In November 2023, Gondou was called up to the Argentina national under-23 football team by coach Javier Mascherano. In January 2024, he scored in his first two appearances for Argentina U23, against Paraguay U23 and Peru U23. He also scored the only goal of the game as Argentina beat Brazil U23 to secure qualification for the 2024 Olympic Games.
In June 2024, he was named in the provisional Argentina squad for the 2024 Paris Olympics.