After 513 matches played in the elite (and 615 professional matches in total), the dean of Dijon has closed his rich career, punctuated in particular by the title of champion of France with Lille in 2011, at the end of a last season cut short by the coronavirus crisis.
“It was planned to announce it during my last match at the end of May but current events have decided otherwise. My football career has just ended and it is with emotion that I announce it officially, “he said on April 30 in a post on social media.
Immediately, tributes and compliments poured into the address of the player who passed through Lyon (2002-2003, 2004), Toulouse (2003-2004), Nice (2004-2008), Lille (2008-2016) and finally Dijon (2016) -2020). A notable figure in the French championship, the small rough environment is the 13th most capped player.
“No fed up”
“I was surprised by all these messages of sympathy and respect that touched me a lot and demonstrate that I leave my little mark in football. It is only happiness,” he reacted on OLTV. , the television channel of Olympique Lyonnais, where he was trained before starting out as a professional.
Crowned champion of France in 2003 and 2005, for the benefit of a handful of disputed matches, he was never able to break into OL at a time when the Rhone club dominated French football “with top players”, as he recognizes it himself. A temperate regret, attenuated by the beautiful coast that it retains in the Lyon region from which it originates.
It’s a chance to have been able to decide when (end of career) […] I made the most of it
“In terms of legs and head, everything was fine. I think it was the right time to stop. It was planned. It is fortunate to have been able to decide when,” he said again. . Especially since a rupture of the Achilles tendon on March 31, 2018 in Dijon had almost ruined his exit, at 38 years old.
But once again, his steel mind made the difference to return to the highest level, which he has never left.
With Dijon, he ended his career with a 16th place which ensures the maintenance in Ligue 1 of the Burgundian club, saved from relegation in June 2019 in play-offs against Lens.
“There is no fed up. I took full advantage of it. I achieved a lot of my goals. You just have to know how to stop and I only remember positive things”, he rejoices, revealing the secret of his longevity.
“You have to know how to find the right rhythm. I knew when to be serious and when to let go. I love life, parties with friends, partying. You have to know how to cut after the matches but only the level on the field is judged “, continues the community, which has never been international.
Mentalities evolution
And behind that, there is also “a woman and children, a very important family foundation in my career”.
In eighteen years, he has seen two generations of players parading and changing mentalities. In the end, some of his opponents or partners could have been his sons.
“Today, young people need even more support, encouragement. Before, you had to prove all the time to be considered truly a Ligue 1 player when now, after ten elite matches, we are a top player to be transferred, “he notes.
A future all mapped out on the benches
“There is a discrepancy, even if it always went well with young people everywhere I went. There is no longer a culture of storing equipment after training for example. Their entourage sees them maybe a little too good too quickly, not to mention the danger of social networks, “said Balmont.
He will now begin his training to become a coach, with the possibility of joining the DFCO management. On the lawn side, he could put on his crampons one last time for his jubilee, on the Lille side with his friend Rio Mavuba.
–
