Expect Gerard Houllier to be preparing a bid right now...
Le Tallec takes the plaudits
Saturday, 5 May 2007
by Berend Scholten
Until now, Damien Le Tallec has almost always been described 'the younger brother of' of French Under-21 international Anthony, the Liverpool FC player currently on loan at FC Sochaux-Montbéliard. But after his heroics last night in the UEFA European Under-17 Championship against Germany, in which Damien scored twice to seal a 2-1 win to revive their semi-final hopes, he has truly made a name for himself.
Most important goal
Le Tallec had already signalled his ability by scoring twice in the Elite Round against Norway, but the Stade Rennais FC forward made an even more vital contribution in Eupen on Friday as France, having already lost their Group A opener to Spain, trailed 1-0 and faced an early exit from the tournament. But on 58 minutes, Le Tallec levelled the scored and with eleven minutes left sealed the victory. "I never scored such an important goal before in my career," he told uefa.com. "But I could not celebrate for too long, because at the end it still was very hard, as the Germans kept on causing danger until the end, and we really had to fight to keep the victory in our grasp."
'Feels great'
Now he can enjoy the experience. "It feels great for me to score the winner, but of course, it feels best for the team, as this win puts us back in the race again," Le Tallec said. "We played better football then in our first match, and we also were physical in one-on-one duels against the Germans. Now I feel a lot more confidence than before the match, as then we did not know what would happen, we could have been knocked out already, but now we are still going for the semi-finals."
Ukraine encounter
They could still need another win against Ukraine in Verviers on Monday, but hopes are high. Le Tallec said: "We are in back in the race again, that was not the case after the Spain match. We will have one drink for this victory, but we also will have to rest, as we have to prepare for the important final match. "
Rest days
But with two days off instead of one between games, there is more time to get ready. "With only one rest day in between the matches, it was not easy to keep up the high tempo that developed in the match, and we noticed that some players got exhausted by the end of the match. But when you win, you are less tired than when you lose. So now it is a pleasure that now there are two days between the matches," Le Tallec said, before signing another autograph for the young fans surrounding him and stepping on the team bus, a star in his own right.
Le Tallec takes the plaudits
Saturday, 5 May 2007
by Berend Scholten
Until now, Damien Le Tallec has almost always been described 'the younger brother of' of French Under-21 international Anthony, the Liverpool FC player currently on loan at FC Sochaux-Montbéliard. But after his heroics last night in the UEFA European Under-17 Championship against Germany, in which Damien scored twice to seal a 2-1 win to revive their semi-final hopes, he has truly made a name for himself.
Most important goal
Le Tallec had already signalled his ability by scoring twice in the Elite Round against Norway, but the Stade Rennais FC forward made an even more vital contribution in Eupen on Friday as France, having already lost their Group A opener to Spain, trailed 1-0 and faced an early exit from the tournament. But on 58 minutes, Le Tallec levelled the scored and with eleven minutes left sealed the victory. "I never scored such an important goal before in my career," he told uefa.com. "But I could not celebrate for too long, because at the end it still was very hard, as the Germans kept on causing danger until the end, and we really had to fight to keep the victory in our grasp."
'Feels great'
Now he can enjoy the experience. "It feels great for me to score the winner, but of course, it feels best for the team, as this win puts us back in the race again," Le Tallec said. "We played better football then in our first match, and we also were physical in one-on-one duels against the Germans. Now I feel a lot more confidence than before the match, as then we did not know what would happen, we could have been knocked out already, but now we are still going for the semi-finals."
Ukraine encounter
They could still need another win against Ukraine in Verviers on Monday, but hopes are high. Le Tallec said: "We are in back in the race again, that was not the case after the Spain match. We will have one drink for this victory, but we also will have to rest, as we have to prepare for the important final match. "
Rest days
But with two days off instead of one between games, there is more time to get ready. "With only one rest day in between the matches, it was not easy to keep up the high tempo that developed in the match, and we noticed that some players got exhausted by the end of the match. But when you win, you are less tired than when you lose. So now it is a pleasure that now there are two days between the matches," Le Tallec said, before signing another autograph for the young fans surrounding him and stepping on the team bus, a star in his own right.
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