One to Watch: Pape Sy - Metz's man mountain
There was a rare start for the lesser spotted Pape Sy over the weekend. The Senegalese goalkeeper took his chance, keeping a clean sheet as FC Metz held Stade Rennais to a draw.
An unusual trajectory
It is not unusual for players to move between Génération Foot and Metz. The prestigious Senegalese academy have a long-running tie to the Ligue 1 McDonald's club. It is a formalised partnership that has allowed many big-name stars, including Sadio Mané and more recently, Monaco's Lamine Camara, to arrive in Europe before using their time with Les Grenats as a springboard to bigger things. There are plenty of Génération Foot graduates currently at the club, but none who have had quite the career trajectory of Sy.
It wasn't until the age of 26 that Sy made the move from Génération Foot to Europe, initially joining Belgian second-tier side RFC Seraing. He would spend just one year with Seraing, another team with whom Metz share an officialised partnership. 15 appearances later and he joined Metz, who at the time had just been demoted to Ligue 2 BKT.
85% des voix 🔛
🧱 𝗣𝗮𝗽𝗲 𝗦𝘆 est votre Grenat du match by Flitbix 🆚 @staderennais ! pic.twitter.com/C2I3yqG0wr— FC Metz ☨ (@FCMetz) March 24, 2026
However, he would be second-choice throughout the campaign, and despite Metz's promotion back to Ligue 1 McDonald's at the first time of asking, he would play just three games in the league. Arnaud Bodart kept Sy out of the team, but the latter would not claim the No.1 jersey following the former's departure on a free transfer over the summer.
Instead, Jonathan Fischer would arrive as the new first-choice. He would get his chance, however, against Lille OSC back in October. But not only would his side ship six goals on the day, Sy himself was also withdrawn after suffering a concussion. The Senegalese shotstopper then suffered a thigh injury and wouldn't be seen for several months, until a return to the teamsheet against Toulouse on 15th March.
Eight saves and a clean sheet
He would not feature against Le TéFéCé, but he would make a surprise start against Rennes over the weekend. He didn't pass up his chance to make an impression this time. Standing at 6ft9 inches, Sy resembles a man mountain and one that Franck Haise's side failed to bypass over the 90 minutes.
The Senegalese goalkeeper made an impressive eight saves on the day, nullifying the Rennais threat. Naturally, he was awarded Grenat du Match (Metz's player of the match) for his result-defining display, which brought to an end a five-game losing run in Ligue 1 McDonald's. On a personal level, it is also a performance that could disrupt the established hierarchy and could afford him more minutes in the final sprint, as Metz look to stave off relegation back to Ligue 1 BKT.
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