The “little thumb” of the Coupe de France will try to achieve a new feat, Tuesday February 29 at 9 p.m., during his semi-final against OGC Nice. The players from the royal city have already won nine games, including a well-constructed success against Toulouse (1-0). The leader of group A in National 2 has a large squad and players with diverse backgrounds.
Maël Durand de Gevigney, vice-captain and pure product of the club
The only player trained at the club in the Versailles squad, Maël Durand de Gevigney is a symbol. Arrived at 12 years old, the central defender has also assumed the role of vice-captain since the start of last season. Asked by France Bleu Paris, the 22-year-old evokes his pride in “represent the city, the department and even the whole region.“
⚽️This is the ©️ of @FCVersailles78 semi-finalist of the @French Cup @ogcniceTuesday evening: Maël Durand from Gevigney.
His portrait, by @JulienFroment @francebleusport #FBsport https://t.co/NWLPE2IaeF
— France Bleu Paris (@francebleuparis) February 28, 2022
On the sidelines of his studies as a physiotherapist, the player has already caught the eye of Ligue 2 and National clubs. “We want to keep him, we’re going to meet him next month since he’s at the end of his contract.“, confides the president Jean-Luc Arribart. “He is important for the image of the club, because he is a good representation of our project.“, completes the recruitment manager Michaël Michée.
Makan Traoré, a professional past
With his full CV, the native of Ivry-sur-Seine is the very example of the ambitious recruitment of the Ile-de-France club. After passing through the Châteauroux training center, the defender discovered Ligue 2 in Laval between 2012 and 2014 before coming to strengthen the PSG reserve team (2014-2017), where he was able to rub shoulders with professionals on several occasions during training. .
Recruited by FC Bastia-Borgo in 2018, he contributed to the rise of the club in National and helped the club to stay there for the next two seasons. Jean-André Ottaviani, coach of the Corsican club from 2018 to 2021, contacted by franceinfo: sport, remembers “of a versatile defender, who has a good left foot, a valuable heading game and a real quality of percussion“. For the Corsican coach, he is a player “very professional” who “knows how to motivate his teammates when necessary“.
Inza Diarrassouba, the midfield leader
Although he has never attended a training center, defensive midfielder Inza Diarrassouba has made himself indispensable to FC Versailles. At 31, this experienced player has been shining since the start of the Coupe de France. Man of the match against Toulouse in the round of 16, he scored his team’s only goal against Bergerac in the quarter.
[#Replay] – Diego “Sun King” Michel ball at the foot. One-two with Inza “Robespierre” Diarrassouba. Shift for Kevin “Louis XIV” Pham Ba. Center for Kapit “Louis XVI” Djoco who finishes. Historical goal.
CC @henni_mo #TFCFCV78 #French Cup pic.twitter.com/UosCoDJlHz
– FC Versailles 78 (@FCVersailles78) January 31, 2022
The defensive midfielder went through the National Championship between 2017 and 2020, playing for Lyon Ducherre, then for Bastia-Borgio where he played alongside Makan Traoré. Jean-André Ottaviani evokes “a player with an excellent state of mind, who has good technique despite his size (1m93)”, but also “a player who plays simple and who is very dangerous from a set piece“. According to Michael Micah, “this is the typical profile of the player who slips through the cracks of professional clubs“.
Dan Delaunay, a goalkeeper in history
Second Versailles goalkeeper in the league behind Aly Yirango, Dan Delaunay will become the first amateur goalkeeper on Tuesday to play two Coupe de France semi-finals, after having kept the cages during the GFA Rumilly-Vallières epic in 2021, which was ended against AS Monaco (5-1).
A great admirer of Manuel Neuer, the 26-year-old goalkeeper played six Ligue 2 matches with Quevilly in 2017. His coach Youssef Chibhi speaks of a footballer who “run away from the lights“.”It’s a treat to have a player like that, very discreet, but who knows how to federate around him. He is always the first on the lawn and the last to leave by putting away the equipment“, adds the coach in office since 2014.
Wilfried Joigny, on a permanent contract in IT
Arrived in 2019, central defender Wilfried Joigny is one of the rare players to combine football and work in the afternoon. He signed a part-time CDI in IT with a management company when he arrived in Versailles. “It’s not easy to take the two head on, but I’m lucky to have accommodating managers who talk more about the game than me“, laughs the 31-year-old player.
In three years he saw “training moves from evening to morning, staff expand and equipment improves“. Joigny is “a real joy to train” according to Youssef Chibhi. He is “the prototype of the player that all coaches love: an intelligent and discreet boy, but with character and who has the right words at the right time.“