Road to Ligue 1: Donovan Léon (Auxerre)
One To Watch
We take a look at the man behind a stunning goalkeeping performance against Paris Saint-Germain last weekend.
Having starred this season back in Ligue 1 with Auxerre, Léon was thrown into the spotlight against Paris Saint-Germain last weekend and provided one of the goalkeeping performances of the season. The 32-year-old made 11 saves in the scoreless draw against Luis Enrique's side, and ended up earning the prestigious honour of a perfect 10 rating. How has Léon gone from struggling to break through at Stade Brestois to earning a place in history with the likes of Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappé?
Born in French Guiana, Léon quickly in his youth became the captain of the French overseas territory's U14 national team. But there was much more to come when he moved to the mainland and joined Auxerre's youth academy at the age of 17. "He's a physical boy with a lot of potential," remarked his U17 coach on his arrival in 2009. It would take then two years for him to discover the world of professional football.
Léon started to earn game time in Ligue 2 as Auxerre's second keeper in the 2012-2013 season. But the season after he would be consigned to the bench. After a brief spell of being considered the number one keeper in the 2014-2015 season following a change of manager, Léon would return to the bench after sixteen starts in seventeen games. It became his latest stint as a bench keeper, but he would start the 2015 Coupe de France final against Paris Saint-Germain.
Despite less action with AJA, he made his debut for French Guiana as a senior international. He has now gone on to make 37 appearances with the country based on the northern coast of South America.
VIDEO: Best-of Donovan Léon against PSG
A short stint at Brest, and a return to Auxerre
The Frenchman then finished his contract with Auxerre and joined Brest. He would go on to spend five years with the Breton side, only making 23 appearances, before returning to Auxerre in Ligue 2. He was vital in play-off penalty shootouts against Sochaux and Saint-Étienne, effectively taking his side to Ligue 1 at the end of both matches.
Yet it would be a frustrating season back in Ligue 1, when Auxerre opted for Benoît Costil between the sticks. Léon was back as a number one on the club's return to Ligue 2 a season later. With the club bouncing back at the first attempt, Léon definitively established himself as the number one keeper. This season he has played all of Auxerre's matches back in the big time.
After being awarded a 10/10 performance by L'Équipe against PSG, the AJA goalkeeper wanted to keep his feet firmly on the ground. "I'm very happy. A game like that where we don't concede a goal is obviously a great source of satisfaction. Of course, when you're called upon to make so many saves, You can't help but be satisfied with that kind of performance, but you can't let it go to waste."
"The last thing we need to do is dwell on it," pointed out Léon. "As I said, and as I experienced at the start of the season, when things aren't going well, it's immediately obvious and the goalkeeper is criticized. But I'm well surrounded, I've kept my self-confidence and my hard work has paid off. Now, we must never get carried away. We just have to enjoy tonight and move on."
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