Aurélien Tchouaméni has been one of the star names of the last few weeks. The Frenchman
has been a key man for Monaco and has recently made a name for himself on the
international scene by winning the UEFA Nations League, starting in midfield alongside Paul Pogba. In that particular match he amazed those who hadn’t seen much of him and there
are now rumours circling that teams the size of Real Madrid are paying close attention to his
progress.
I had the pleasure of coaching him at Bordeaux and gave him his professional debut in
2018, at the age of just 18, against FK Ventspils of Latvia in a Europa League second round
qualifying match. He scored his first goal in the next round against Ukrainian side FC
Mariupol.
A few days later the controversy I have explained before unfolded and I left the club. After I
left, the manager who replaced me did not have as much faith in Tchouaméni, and he didn’t
play much that year.
The qualities that make Tchouaméni special
During the time I managed him I could see many of his strengths, which everyone is
speaking about at the moment. He has an incredible ability to win the ball back through the way he puts pressure on the opposition, he has a physical presence, he is strong, he does not give the ball away and if he gets near the opposition’s goal he can score, although he likes playing in front of the defence.
It’s also worth highlighting his enthusiasm for improving, for listening to people and for
asking questions, which is very important from a coach’s perspective. I always saw his hunger and intensity. We had a few chats together with video analysis and agreed on a few things for him to work on, which we were both really pleased with.
Now, I think he is more mature, more settled, he has a better understanding of his role in the team, whether he is playing for Monaco where he takes on certain responsibilities or he is
playing for the national team with more high-profile players.