For him, retirement came at age 31. The fault is his body which told him to stop prematurely. “I had two operations on the same meniscus a year ago and I still had pain, I was no longer 100%. I did a last MRI in March because I had suffered another blow to my knee and in the end, I no longer have any cartilage, it is full of osteoarthritis…” explains Benjamin Jeannot, who preferred , wisely, do not continue the adventure on French terrain. Reason prevailing over passion.
“Taking the advice of the doctor, of a surgeon… They told me that if I continued with infiltrations and putting force on my knee, I would have a prosthesis at 35 years old. It comes as a shock, but at 31, if it means not being able to do anything afterwards… It’s not just football, I still want to be able to move, go out with my wife or if I have children later. »
The goal of a career
After 150 matches in Ligue 2 and almost as many in Ligue 1 (139), without forgetting capes in the French youth teams, the striker born in Laxou, near Nancy, can nourish a feeling of pride when watching his course.
“I have no regrets, I can look at myself in the mirror,” slips the man who was reported to Pôle Emploi on July 1, after the end of his contract with Caen. “I had never experienced that,” notes the former DFCO attacker who will undergo training with the UNFP. And see if at first, he will miss the football world.
Without constraint, Benjamin Jeannot continues to follow his friends who are still active. And the old clubs he frequented. So obviously, the man with 6 goals in 53 appearances under the Côte-d’Orienne tunic will have a close eye on the meeting between Nancy and the DFCO, Monday evening.
Between his training club and Dijon, where he certainly scored the best goal of his career. One evening in October 2017, the Lorraine, facing PSG of Mbappé, Neymar, Di Maria and co, lit instinctively and victoriously from 30 meters.
“It’s always nice that people think of you for something because, in the end, in football, you quickly forget people. Being able to mark the history of a club in our own way is always pleasant. I always receive messages where they tell me well done for my goal against PSG,” says Benjamin Jeannot, who enjoyed his adventure in the city of the Dukes.
Even if, in August 2019, a few days before the transfer window closed, the exit door was opened for him. “I had it a little across my throat,” he remembers.
Four years after his departure, Benjamin Jeannot remains attentive to the daily life of Dijon, which has fallen into National. “I sent a message to the president because I believed in them and I hoped that they would continue. It was a shame to finish against the leader (Le Havre) who needed points. I was sad for Dijon and relieved for Nancy because they could have fallen lower,” testifies Benjamin Jeannot, who does not wish to take sides before the 6th day of National: “You want a spectacle and I don’t want enemies, so I’ll say 2-2, that way everyone will be happy. »
They told me that if I continued with infiltrations and forcing my knee, I would have a prosthesis at 35 years old.
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