The Valencian leaders certainly did not expect before this start of the transfer window, to have to start looking for a goalkeeper again this winter. And yet it is. The departure, which may have surprised in the North, of Gautier Larsonneur with the Greens has reshuffled the cards. And a former nugget from Saint-Etienne could well find a certain Jérémie Janot in VA.
VA-ASSE: a goalkeeper affair
Definitely, there is a certain bromance in the sector of the goalkeepers between the VAFC and the ASSE. And she is definitely not ready to stop. In June 2019, the emblematic doorman of the Greens Jérémie Janot joined the northern staff as a goalkeeper coach. Recently, over the past few months, Spider Janot has even unknowingly trained and supported a future greens keeper in the person of Gautier Larsonneur. The latter joined the Greens at the very beginning of the transfer window to overcome the significant shortcomings in this sector in Forez.
It must be said that the problem of goalkeepers at ASSE is not new. In reality, it dates back to the sidelining of Stéphane Ruffier during the winter of 2019 by Claude Puel. The Stéphanois doorman never wore the green jersey again, followed in his place by Jessy Moulin, Stéphane Bajic, Étienne Green, Paul Bernardoni, Matthieu Dreyer and also Noah Raveyre and Boubacar Fall. 7 different goalkeepers in the Saint-Etienne cages before the arrival of the 8th, Gautier Larsonneur. And none had really brought satisfaction.
The goalkeeper position, ASSE’s new achilles heel
Since then, Jessy Moulin has gone to Troyes. Stéphane Bajic committed 6 months to Pau last season before committing to Bristol last summer. Paul Bernardoni has returned to his club in Angers. Étienne Green and Matthieu Dreyer are still in the Saint-Etienne group, but are no longer in the coach’s little papers. They clearly have an exit voucher. The young Noah Raveyre is leaving for AC Milan, and Boubacar Fall was able to play his first professional match against Caen, and currently seems to be Larso’s understudy.
But let’s come back to the situation of the Northern club, which was therefore stripped of its titular goalkeeper, a major architect of the club’s successful start to the season. Before his departure, the VAFC was the 4th best defense in L2 with only 14 goals conceded in 17 games. The club which plays at the Hainaut stadium then decided to look for a new goalkeeper, without rushing. On January 9, coach Nicolas Rabuel explained at a press conference: “ It’s in progress. The recruitment cell and the managers are working on the file. There are cases that are ongoing. We prefer to take the time and make the right choice than to go in haste. »
Janot’s VAFC looking for Larso’s replacement
The staff had decided to give the interim to Hilel Konaté (28 years old). After a decent performance in the Coupe de France, the latter had a lot more trouble against Dijon on Friday, even being guilty on the second goal. Many criticisms flared up, forcing the coach to defend himself in the post-match conference: “ Football is cruel sometimes but you have to face it, face it. You have to get up. It’s also very cruel for Hillel, it’s out of the question to put all that on him. He’s the most unfortunate of us in the locker room. He is devastated, he is a goalkeeper and a man who does not deserve this at all. »
This episode only reinforced the will of the leaders to strengthen themselves in the goals. If during the negotiations for the transfer of Larsonneur to Sainté, the name of Green could have been mentioned by certain media, it could be that another goalkeeper made in Sainté goes to find Jérémie Janot in the North.
According to Romain Colange, journalist for Le Progrès, the name of Stefan Bajic is mentioned. The 21-year-old goalkeeper left the Greens a year ago to gain playing time.
⚽️ If the name of Etienne Green has circulated on the side of Valenciennes, it is ultimately a former member of the#ASSE who could get involved: Stefan Bajic. #market
— Romain Colange (@RomainColange) January 15, 2023
After a 6-month adventure as Joker Médical at Pau FC and a freelance hailed by observers, the young goalkeeper, member of the France Espoirs team had a choice for the rest of his career. And at the time already, a certain VAFC coveted him to replace Lucas Chevalier, who had returned to Lille. There was even optimism for his arrival, since some media even mentioned a tacit agreement between the two parties.
A turnaround is a departure for England
In the end, the Franco-Serbian goalkeeper had decided to emigrate to discover a new country and championship, by committing to Bristol City (former club of Loïs Diony) in the premiership. He had explained his choice in an interview with the newspaper The team : “I was also in contact with Valenciennes. I hesitated for a long time because it was a very interesting project to confirm in L2 after four months in Pau. Going to England is a risk but I favored Bristol because I told myself that it was there that I was going to progress the most in the long term. They’re going to help me get through the stages, I’m sure of it […]. There are always risks in a new project. If I had signed to VA, there would have been another element of risk. For me, there is no good or bad project. There is one and it’s me through what I do that will make it good or bad. »
But not everything went as planned at the start of the season in England. Stefan Bajic has had very little playing time with the A team (only one English Cup match). He had to settle for playing with the club’s U21 team. But recently, the hierarchy of the English club’s goalkeepers has been turned upside down and the titular goalkeeper until then has been benched, before a potential transfer this winter. What will change the situation for the former Saint-Etienne?
File to follow.
