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This article is taken from the new GFFN 100 2021. The GFFN 100 ranks the top 100 players in French football over the past 12 months, see the full list and read all 100 profiles right here on GFFN. Normality is relative. For Lionel Messi, arguably the greatest player of all time and used to scoring 91 goals in a calendar year, as he did in 2012, expectations are inflated as obscene output has become the norm. But, at 34-years-old, and after leaving the relative comfort of the Nou Camp, Messi’s glorious normality is under threat from a harsh reality. Despite the feverish excitement that followed his move from La Liga…

Julien Maynard of Téléfoot reports this evening that Bayern Munich winger Kingsley Coman has had a change of heart and is now leaning towards extending his contract at the club. The French international, whose contract expires at the end of the 2022-23 season, had been in discussions with the Bavarians, who have been looking to renew his deal over the long-term. Although the former Juventus man was open to leaving a few weeks ago, he is now said to have changed his mind. Nevertheless, other clubs are still following him, such as Manchester City, even if there have been no discussions, while PSG are also looking at Coman. In the player’s…

This article is taken from the new GFFN 100 2021. The GFFN 100 ranks the top 100 players in French football over the past 12 months, see the full list and read all 100 profiles right here on GFFN. The summer of 2020 was a period of great upheaval in Stade Rennais’ midfield. With the departures of Eduardo Camavinga, Steven Nzonzi, and Clement Grenier, Les Rouges et Noir lost three important pieces in the spine of the team. Then without the three Frenchmen, there was significant pressure on Technical Director Florian Maurice to replace a midfield trio that had appeared in a combined 92 league matches the season prior. Leaning on…

As reported by L’Équipe, new Monaco coach Philippe Clement was unveiled at the club today at a press conference, although Clement’s French is still developing, he explained that he wants to “create a family” at Monaco. How do you analyse your new team?“I haven’t had a lot of time to analyse Monaco’s matches because the last few days have been very hectic, but we’ve started to talk and I already have a first impression. Although he’s currently injured, I have here a former player from Brugge here (Krépin Diatta). It’s normal to need some adaptation time and to get to know the players. You watch the games, but you don’t…

This article is taken from the new GFFN 100 2021. The GFFN 100 ranks the top 100 players in French football over the past 12 months, see the full list and read all 100 profiles right here on GFFN. As they breathed a huge sigh of relief following the team’s 4-1 win over Lorient, giving them their first home win in 11 months as well as a fighting chance of staying up, one player in particular continued to split Metz fans’ opinion – as he has done since his arrival in north-eastern France. Farid Boulaya was comfortably the man of the match, scoring a sublime free kick and playing a part…

Ligue 1 21/22, Round 20 – 9/1/22 Click Here: BREST – 0 Marco Bizot, 5 Ronaël Pierre-Gabriel, 5 Brendan Chardonnet, 6 – He made a crucial recovery block on Dolberg’s effort just before halftime and was a positive presence after Nice went down to ten as a threat from set plays and in driving his team forward but to no avail. Christophe Hérelle, 5 Jean-Kévin Duverne, 5 Lucien Agoumé, 5 Paul Lasne, 5 Franck Honorat, 2 – No real impact on the game, despite his side being on the offensive for much of the afternoon with Nice down to ten men. Brest’s key man this season was close to anonymous…

As reported by RMC, Lille president Olivier Létang confirmed the club’s interest in former Newcastle, PSG and Bordeaux forward Hatem Ben Arfa. “There are still discussions ongoing with CSKA Moscow but we still don’t have an agreement as we speak. Indeed, in the event of a departure for Yusuf, we want to replace him. Ben Arfa is an available player, he has quality, he’s one of the players potentially of interest to us. The first step, which is an agreement with the Moscow club for the departure of Yusuf, hasn’t been completed, so I can’t tell you anymore. Until things are finalized, anything can happen.” Click Here: It was reported…

Speaking to Europe 1, Lyon club president Jean-Michel Aulas has stated that he is still “thinking about” the prospect of potentially bringing in Laurent Blanc as manager. The former Bordeaux and Paris Saint-Germain coach, now at Al-Rayyan of Qatar, had met with Aulas during the 2018 World Cup, as explained by the president. At the time, then-director Juninho had preferred Rudi Garcia over him. “I’m thinking about it. I saw him extensively in Russia and I really felt like he had that capacity. He’s a guy with incomparable experience. […] You never know.” Click Here:  

Julien Maynard of Téléfoot reports tonight that discussions are currently taking place between Paris Saint-Germain and Kylian Mbappé’s entourage over a potential short-term contract extension. Click Here: Nevertheless, the World Cup winner, who pushed to leave for Real Madrid last summer, is now looking to concentrate on the second half of the season on the pitch before making a decision on his future. In addition, PSG are currently looking at the transfer market in terms of midfielders in order to see whether a loan or a swap deal could be carried out in order to streamline to their squad, notably Idrissa Gueye or Leandro Paredes.

In speaking with France Football, after being named French coach of the year by the publication, Nice manager Christophe Galtier answered questions submitted by his coaching peers, including former Arsenal coach Arsène Wenger. Other than losing, what’s your least favourite aspect of your job and, other than winning, what’s your most favourite part? (question submitted by Arsène Wenger)“I don’t like the 25 minutes alone in my office when the players leave to warm up. I met Arsène at Arsenal and was surprised to see him go to the sponsor’s boxes during the warm-up. He told me that it allowed him to meet people and avoid being alone for 25 to…