Alban Lafont was reportedly close to a move to Newcastle United last year, and 12 months later, the French goalkeeper has made history with Nantes following a 3-1 win against PSG.
The 23-year-old shot-stopper became only the 14th player to ever receive a perfect 10/10 rating from L’Equipe, with the French sports daily notorious for their harsh player scores over the years.
Lafont joins the likes of Kylian Mbappe, Serge Gnabry and Lionel Messi in being awarded perfect 10s by L’Equipe, with the French youngster also becoming just the third keeper to receive the rating from the publication.
As reported by But Football Club, Lafont’s agent was in talks over a potential move to Newcastle in 2021. However, as we know, the keeper never made the move to the northeast that year.
And now, with Nantes, Lafont has etched his name into French football history, with the former France U-21 international having the performance of his life against PSG, who suffered only their second loss of the season.
Lafont stole the show for Nantes in damming PSG defeat
Faced with a front-line of Lionel Messi, Mbappe and Neymar, Lafont was a demon between the sticks, making eight saves and denying the world’s most expensive player from the penalty spot, with the Nantes star also stopping the France international in a one-v-one situation.
Indeed, the night belonged to Nantes and Lafont, who will no doubt be the heroes of European football this weekend after pinning PSG with only their second league defeat of the season and denying the likes of Messi and Neymar from running riot on the west coast.
Moreover, with Lafont making history with L’Equipe, Newcastle could be kicking themselves over not making the signing of the 23-year-old, who is starting to prove his potential after years in the spotlight in French football.
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