Désiré Doué, 19, an attacking midfielder with Paris Saint-Germain, impresses his former team-mates with his maturity and professionalism. In Le Parisien, Ewen Tondeux, an Amiens defender who trained at Rennes like Doué, gives an insightful account of the young Parisian’s career and personality.
Tondeux “At half-time and even at the end of games, he was always talking”.
“He already knew how to do everything. He played very little at the Playsation outside school hours. After class or in the perm room, he preferred to pick up his phone and watch his games, analyzing everything he’d done well and not so well to improve.
At half-time and even at the end of games, he was always talking. I remember a Gambardella semi-final we lost to Caen. That day, everyone was disgusted, him first and foremost, but he came to talk to us, telling us that the life of a footballer was long and that it wasn’t the end of the world. He encouraged us all before shaking hands with our opponents.
Tondeux “Since I’ve known him, we’ve known he was going to turn pro”.
As long as I’ve known him, we’ve known he was going to go pro. He didn’t need to talk about it, we all knew. Now he’s in the French national team, and he’s playing in the Champions League final. It’s crazy!”
Ewen Tondeux’s portrait in Le Parisien sheds light on the extraordinary personality of Désiré Doué, now a rising star at Paris Saint-Germain. As early as the Rennes training center, Doué stood out for his rare discipline: far from the usual distractions, he preferred to analyze his own matches in order to progress.
Doué never hesitated to motivate his partners, even in defeat, as he did during a painful elimination in the Gambardella.
For Tondeux, it was obvious that Doué would become a professional, such was his talent and maturity. Now a French international and Champions League finalist with PSG, Doué embodies the success of a player whose charisma and seriousness have always won him unanimous praise, both on the pitch and in the dressing room.
