Expected to start the match against Marseille this Saturday (5 p.m.) on the occasion of the 12th day of Ligue 1, Malang Sarr comes a long way. Eight years after a very promising debut in Nice, the central defender admits to having “wasted time” during his time at Chelsea. Which does not prevent him from looking to the future with great enthusiasm.
Chelsea, a bitter end
Fifth in the hierarchy of RC Lens central defenders, Malang Sarr should take advantage of the suspensions of Jonathan Gradit and Abdukodir Khusanov to start his second match of the season in Ligue 1. Arriving in Artois last summer, the former international hopeful (6 caps) hopes to resume the thread of a very promising but somewhat at an impasse for several seasons.
With the culmination of a difficult last year at Chelsea, during which his coach, Mauricio Pochettinoeven claimed not to know him. “I took it badly, it had no reason to be. He knew me, he even tried to recruit me to Tottenham, assures Malang Sarr, in the columns of the Team. I didn't even ask for an explanation. » Result of the races, a blank season and a real feeling of waste since 2020 and his departure from Nice, his training club.
Lens for recovery?
« If this sidelining had been linked to my performance, or to the fact that I was not a good person, I would have had to do work on myself. But I experienced all this in spite of myself, he judges. Victim of football business, it’s a big word, but yes I paid the price. » Rarely in the plans of successive Blues coaches, Malang Sarr has thus multiplied the loans, to Porto (19 matches) and Monaco (17 matches), for a meager total of 57 matches in four seasons.
Back in France, Malang Sarr believes he will find a healthier environment in Lens, where he has signed up for two years: “The values of Lens – family, work, humility – are mine. It was what I needed to bounce back and I had an exceptional welcome”. Highly appreciated internally, the left-hander is now eager to return this confidence on the field. “ Malang is at the toppromet Will Still. He had a really good 25-30 minutes in Paris. There's no questioning his ability to play. »
Photo credits: Sandra Ruhaut/Icon Sport
