He’s only 19, but Maxime Estève already conjugates at all times. In the past, first, with the memory of a first convincing appearance in Ligue 1 against OM, last August, but above all a successful first at the Parc des Princesthe following month, facing the Parisian armada, and in particular a Kylian Mbappé who remained silent that evening.
In the present, then, since if the young man confides that he is not yet “a frame” of his training, he nevertheless imposed himself as a holder in the eyes of his coachOlivier Dall’Oglio, in the space of a few weeks, before being slowed down by an injury, then being propelled again into the starting lineup, during the last three days.
But with its speed and its serenity, its size, its profile and its cleanliness, Maxime Estève is above all the future. That of a Paillade to which he is now linked for the next four seasons. That of a Montpellier Hérault whose central defense has not not too much to worry about, with a Nicolas Cozza who also returned to his best level and a Mamadou Sakho looking like a guide for the young guard of the MHSC. And then the future, also and perhaps, of French football.
2021, his year!
Nothing, however, could suggest such a destiny for this pure Héraultais, which the Olympique de Saint-André started. During the last summer preparation, the left-hander had not been presented as the future revelation of the MHSC and had not not scheduled to start at La Mosson alongside Matheus Thuler, August 8, 2022. Before that, the 1m93 defender even told us that he had never really been in the small papers, having only benefited from “little playing time, until U19“, and having gone through the different stages, at the training center, with always the apprehension of not being kept.
Used for a long time on a wing then on a side, it was also necessary to wait for Maxime Estève to arrive in reserve to see him refocus and evolve in hinge, alongside Redouane Hal-Hal. A decision of his coach, Romain Pitau. A wish of his entourage, alsowhile Frédéric Garny was the first to really trust him, among the under-19s, he admitted in 100% Paillade, last October.
Head cold and on your shoulders
It was at that moment and in that position that the light ended up shining on the man some compare to Laurent Blanc, but who is above all fan of Ramos and Kimpembe. A young man who, deep down, never stopped believing in his dream of signing pro and who recently became international U20whereas until then he had “never looked at the lists“, because aware, he said, that he had “not the level“.
A helping hand from fate, therefore, but above all a lot of patience and rigor, in this boy with a head as cold as full. Maxime Estève was able to grab the ball on the leap, without panicking. It must be said that the entourage is of quality, structured, and not the type to bury it with bouquets of flowers or to let it fall asleep on its laurels.
A measured environment, in tune with a hardworking boy, who left to prepare physically in Spain, thanks to his agent, before joining the big leagues nine months ago. Today, Maxime Estève only gets what he deserves. And the MHSC, before it gets sucked into another dimension, intends to take advantage of it as well.