Absent for a month, Facundo Medina nurtured his return with a superb performance in Rennes. A return through the front door for this defender who we can imagine getting a more important role in the coming months with the Albiceleste world champion.
Since last December, Argentine footballers have not had a high popularity rating in France. Many tend to describe them as overly provocative, annoying, unsympathetic and other dubious terms after several episodes of the World Cup, culminating in a tense match against the Netherlands and the untimely chambering of goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez after the final against the Blues. But how not to like the Lensois Facundo Medina? The defender was not in Qatar, but like his compatriots and occasional teammates from the Albiceleste, he knows how to lodge. We remember that he showed up in the Lensois locker room with a large Argentinian flag after the title of world champion, but who will be annoyed to see the child of Villa Fiorito kindly room his French comrades and thus show off his pride ? In fact, we would be rather disappointed not to have seen him celebrate this title of world champion directly in Buenos Aires, in the midst of Lionel Messi and Emiliano Martinez… Because he would undoubtedly have deserved it after a high-level year 2022, confirmed again on Saturday in Rennes.
Facundo Medina is a world champion like all Argentines around the world, but we can’t help thinking that the line could have been written on his player record. Lionel Scaloni, who had made him one of his reserves, took Argentina to their first World Cup victory since the Diego Maradona generation in 1986 and his choices therefore appear difficult to criticize. He won so he was right. But we have reason, from our Lensois point of view, not to understand what “Fac'” had less than some of the defenders summoned… Since the start of the season, the Argentinian who arrived in 2020 has reached a level of regularity which he sometimes lacked during his first 18 months in Blood and Gold. For now, Facundo Medina has yet to earn a regular role within the Albiceleste, before even considering playing time. he is advancing at high speed in Lens, can’t he hope that his status will change in Argentina in the coming months?
Everything to please Lens
With Lens, he may lack that international club experience that many top national team managers value so much, but he has been a mainstay in Ligue 1’s top defense since the start of the season. Regularly, he has risen to the occasion in big matches against European teams, whether against PSG, Marseille, or even Saturday in Rennes. Saturday, he even delivered perhaps his best match in a season rich in big performances. Always less subject to these swings of concentration which failed him on several occasions in his debut in Artois, yet on the return from an injury, he displayed all his talent: on all counts defensively, engaged, he also showed his ability to bring danger by carrying the ball and by his sharp passing game which allows Lens to break the lines in a flash.
More than 11,000 kilometers as the crow flies separate Buenos Aires from Lens, but the American South seems at home, the former mining town, cut out for this club, for the game developed by Franck Haise and to please its public through its commitment. He has also recently resigned to take up residence there until 2026. As we know, that does not mean that he will stay until then and from this summer he will surely have to face many attacks in view of the season. what a remarkable thing he does. In the meantime, this typically Argentinian grinta, RC Lens is very happy to be able to count on it for an end to the season which promises to be breathless. There is no doubt that the communicative aggressiveness of his defender will be a major asset. After seeing his Argentina hang a third on his jersey, it’s time for Facundo Medina to go get the European stars!
