Published on : 07/06/2022 – 19:24Modified : 07/06/2022 – 19:22
Monaco (AFP) – At 22, the French international Aurélien Tchouameni, who is going to join Real Madrid, has risen through the ranks at + great speed + and is already presenting himself as an important pillar of the France team.
Its trajectory is as linear as it is dazzling. A precocious talent poached from Bordeaux for 20 million euros by Monaco in January 2020, the central midfielder therefore left the Principality for one of the most prestigious clubs on the planet, according to several European media on Tuesday.
Incidentally, Monaco realizes a capital gain with a transfer estimated at 80 M EUR plus 20 M EUR in bonuses, according to RMC, supplementing information from Marca and The Athletic.
Of this transfer, 10% is to be donated to the Girondins de Bordeaux.
If Tchouameni has chosen Madrid, it is because he feels ready and strong enough to satisfy his deepest ambitions: to become a starter with a very big player in Europe to become one in Blue, in order to aim for the biggest trophies.
Didier Deschamps also particularly appreciates the profile and strong personality of the man he started on September 1st. “He was not impacted by the emotional aspect”, then analyzed the coach, seduced by “his youth, his confidence, his potential, and what he shows on the ground”.
Always attentive, respectful of the values of a group, Tchouameni naturally knows how to be appreciated, as well as respected. If he got closer to Paul Pogba, with whom he “weaved ties” during his first selections, he did not hesitate to call Patrick Vieira, whom he had known as Nice coach, for him. ask for advice before his first gathering.
-“Always understand”-
In the opinion of Niko Kovac as of Philippe Clément, his last coaches in Monaco, “he is like a sponge”. He absorbs advice, integrates it quickly and knows how to use it. “Aurélien is very intelligent, explained Kovac in October. He knows how to do it. He knows that everyone is focused on him. But he is very strong in his head, very mature.”
Because the player has “high ambitions”. “I have always been demanding with myself, he underlined just before his double at Lille in the league. And when I speak with my coach or my father, we take stock of things to improve.”
Marking is thus “a margin of progress for me”, he recognizes, for example. “He is always looking for more, underlines Kovac. And always wants to understand him. He has understood that without great effort one cannot develop.”
Tchouameni has a target. “The World Cup is an important personal goal, he said. It will be a fair reward for my work. But it goes through good performances and goals achieved at club level.”
In Madrid, the latter will be high. He will first have to impose himself. “When you’re at the top, you have to know how to stay humble. He is,” says Kovac, convinced of his success. Just like Paul Mitchell, the Monegasque sporting director who questions: “How many players are at his level today?”
-Committed once morest racism-
Especially since the best midfielder in L1 in 2021-22 is not inclined to doubt. He has a strong personality. At the Stade Louis-II, this NBA enthusiast, for example, imposed a rap play-list to play during pre-match warm-ups.
He also knows how to show the muscles. Both on and off the field. Insulted in Prague, last August, following scoring once morest the local team, in the preliminary round of C1, he denounced in full match the racist insults of which he was the victim.
Then he then communicated on his social networks. “It’s our turn to be heard, racism has no place in football or elsewhere,” he wrote in particular, before calling on UEFA: “Having a posture once morest racism is easy. Acting once morest it is different.”
This cause, he continues to carry it. He also recently met in Paris, through a common sponsor, the American football player, Colin Kaepernick, who in 2016, in the midst of the presidential election in the United States, knelt down during the anthem national, to protest once morest racism and police violence once morest minorities.
With Tchouameni, Madrid therefore sees the arrival not only of a great talent but also a man committed to his time.
© 2022 AFP
