A scorer for the first time in the colours of Olympique de Marseille on Saturday against AS Saint-Etienne (3-1), Mattéo Guendouzi is already starter in coach Jorge Sampaoli's midfield and seems to be perfectly suited to the passion of Marseille...
Mattéo Guendouzi does what he says he will do. Questioned in a press conference about his lack of skill in front of goal before the clash with AS Saint-Etienne, the midfielder didn't deny the facts.
"I'll have to work a bit in training in front of goal," he said. "I've never really scored many goals, but I'll work on that. We'll see this weekend..."
The result? The number 6 got his team moving in just the right direction on Saturday night. A sometimes unstable mix of ardor and anger, of more-or-less channelled energy character, Mattéo Guendouzi is an explosive player who seems to be blossoming with Marseille - a setting that suits him, as he discovered in Nice and in an Orange Vélodrome with it's electric atmosphere.
Character
More a firefighter than a peacekeeper, the former Arsenal and Lorient player was described by his last club coach, Hungarian Pal Dardai at Hertha Berlin, as "always crazy, always angry". So, is it big character or bad character, Guendouzi?
"I have a character. For me, it is good character," he replied Thursday with a smile. "It serves me in a team. Without it, I would not have made it to great clubs like OM or Arsenal. I am still a young player and a young man (22 years), and I must improve things, for sure. But I remain the same. Others may or may not like it, but I'm not changing my character."
In March, when he was captain of the French U21 team playing in the first phase of the Euro, he explained how this fighting personality had forged his career path.
"I've had that since I was very young. I've always had this mentality of always wanting to win. Even as a child, when I lost or drew a game, I was angry. Even when I arrived at Arsenal, where there were some great players, I remained myself and that made me a leader in the team," he said.
Ripoll: 'Enthusiasm, generosity, freshness'
But while then-Arsenal coach Unai Emery adored him, the long-haired midfielder was then dismissed in London by Mikel Arteta and his temperament can be variously appreciated.
"You either love him or hate him," says a source within the France U21 team, while another said, "He can be a bit tiring."
But for France U21 coach Sylvain Ripoll, Guendouzi was unavoidable.
"Beyond his technical qualities, his ability to manage the ball well, the tempo, to trigger the pressing, Mattéo is above all enthusiasm, generosity, freshness," said Ripoll. "He is a guarantee that we will experience the events and not merely undergo them."
Samapoli: 'He will become better'
When asked on Thursday, OM boss Jorge Sampaoli, who has used Guendouzi in every game since the beginning of the season, had a similar answer.
"Mattéo is a player we chose for his very competitive way of approaching football and life. We share this vision," explained the Argentine. "He has a real commitment to competition, and he always thinks about the game. He likes to play, to play to play, and I like that a lot, you don't see that so often. He will become better, he is not yet at his best. But as he is, he already helps us a lot."
The player himself is enjoying his first weeks in an environment that suits him.
"The Orange Vélodrome is incomparable," beamed Guerndouzi. "Even England has nothing on OM, it's totally different. It's the most beautiful atmosphere I've ever experienced, it transcends us."
And against Les Verts, he showed that he was in perfect harmony with the OM supporters. Omnipresent in middle of the park, the midfielder racked up, in addition to his goal, 42 passes in the opposition's half, eight ball reveres and 18 challenges - more than any other player. A performance that he will be out to back up after the break as OM travel to local rivals AS Monaco in Round 5.
>> PLAYER PROFILE: Mattéo Guendouzi