We went to meet Gadiri Camara, his adviser whom he has been following for four years. The latter explains to us how his agency discovered Mathys Tel at the age of 13 when he was playing as a central defender at Paris FC and how the great hope of French football gradually transformed into an attacking midfielder. talent who made his professional debut at Stade Rennais 4 years later. Indeed, Rennes spotted him and signed him at 13 years old. “He arrives at 13 with this position of central defender in Rennes when he was asked by a lot of clubs, he did a lot of tests, but we decided to commit to Rennes. » He had to wait two years before returning to Brittany. For two seasons, he spent the week in pre-training at Clairefontaine and played in the Paris region at Aubervilliers then in Montrouge at weekends.
A central defender converted into… an attacking midfielder
Two years later, at 15, he finally landed in Brittany. But quickly, his entourage and Stade Rennais changed the position of the player by advancing him on the field. “He was a central defender when he signed for Rennes, but the project very quickly changed when he landed in Brittany. We saw his ability to be decisive, to score goals and to make a difference. This is what made him very quickly advance on the ground. Today, he has a versatility that is quite amazing, because he has this ability to adapt to all patterns in attacking positions and in midfield. » Versatility, a strength for the player, but which can be a double-edged sword. “It’s a great wealth, but it’s also a headache. Today, it is still difficult to locate where he could make the best career, but it remains, I think, in the offensive field. Ultimately, I think he will position himself in 10 just behind the attacker. »
It must be said that the native of Sarcelles, whose model is none other than Thierry Henry and who is the youngest player to have played in the 5 biggest European championships since the start of the season, has outstanding qualities. Repetition of efforts, ability to eliminate, intensity, technique, vivacity, all the qualities of a modern player. “This will undoubtedly be his favorite position where he can clearly express his full potential. Afterwards on the side in front it remains a credible alternative, because he has everything it takes to make differences with the ball on one side and also be decisive in the zone of truth.explains Gadiri, also CEO of Become someone, the company that manages the interests of Mathys Tel. Abilities that caught the eye of Bruno Genesio and Florian Maurice who did not hesitate to integrate the international tricolor U18 (6 matches: 5 goals and 4 assists in the French team) with the pros for the internship pre-season summer where he took his first steps.
Filiation with Eduardo Camavinga
It is therefore not surprising to see him start in Ligue 1 at the age of 16 years, 3 months and 18 days on August 15th. “Each time he was upgraded, whether in a club or in a selection, we could see that he had this ability to be decisive, to respond present, to do the job precisely to justify why he was upgraded and not another. He has that side mentally, he’s a competitor, he loves football. » And who says precocity in Rennes necessarily says Eduardo Camavinga, the Real Madrid midfielder, who made his debut in L1 at 16 years, 4 months, 27 days, a good month after Mathys Tel. So inevitably, the filiation between the two men is natural even if they do not evolve in the same register and do not have the same qualities as Gadiri Camara explains to us. “The fact that it is somewhat compared to a Camavinga is a bit normal in the sense that there are similarities in terms of precocity. After all, they are not the same players at all, the characteristics are very different. Assets and strengths that are different, if only physically, are not at all the same profiles. » Different profiles, but a real source of inspiration for the youngster from Rennes. “After Camavinga it remains an inspiration for Mathys, we could see it at Stade Rennais when you impose yourself there at that age, behind you have a big project. So of course Camavinga is a source of inspiration. Because the idea is to win in Rennes to be able to go on a major project as much as Mathys has the ambition to achieve a great career and he works a lot for that. »
But if Camavinga’s debut in Rennes was dazzling, the sequel was more complicated. And often with such precocious talents, the hardest thing is not to arrive in Ligue 1, but to stay there. An observation that Camara shares, especially as he easily recognizes that his protege still has a lot to learn from the top level. “For adaptation to the professional world. It goes step by step. He knows he has a lot to learn. Being talented does not mean being professional. To be pro is also to assimilate all the invisible work, etc. And if you want to do it on a large scale, you have to take the time to fully understand everything. From this side, we try to manage quite intelligently that it is us in our council like the Rennais stadium today in the way in which it accompanies it and awakens it to the professional world, we are all going crescendo. Exactly, because we want him to assimilate things well and above all we want him to keep this same energy, this same desire to move forward, so as not to burn him out. If you put too much data on him, it can ultimately put too much pressure on him. As we have seen, he did not have a thunderous professional debut. But it’s normal because he is assimilating things, he is realizing that only a year ago he was with the U17s. »
Under contract with Rennes until June 2024
Indeed, going from national U17s to the European Cup in a few months is not easy. It’s not at all the same level or the same intensity. “For us, he will soon mature, and we will soon see the best of the kid, because he understands things quickly. We think he can go very high. After all depends on so many parameters. We don’t know the future. He will have to remain attentive, who does not get hurt. There are still a lot of ifs. But he is a boy with a very, very big talent. Me in 11, 12 years of football, I saw players parade, I really rubbed shoulders with top players. But in terms of potential, I have rarely seen more solid. Humbly, we hold a future nugget. Now he has to work and stay focused to get to the end. » It remains to be seen whether he will end up at Real Madrid like his former team-mate Eduardo Camavinga. Under contract with Rennes until June 2024, Mathys Tel, who benefits from a solid family base, like Stade Rennais still have time to achieve a common project, that of finding a place in the club’s very competitive eleven. Breton. But in this world where we live at 100 an hour, everything can go very quickly… So inevitably this meeting against PSG which is already announced on Friday at the Parc des Princes will necessarily be a special match, he who was born only 25 kilometers from the legendary Parisian enclosure…