Sent on loan to AJ Auxerre from Olympique de Marseille in the winter transfer window, promising central defender Isaak Toure (19) has been finding his feet in Ligue 1 Uber Eats since his arrival in Burgundy.
Isaak Touré is getting better and better. The 19-year-old central defender was signed by Olympique de Marseille last summer from AC Le Havre before being loaned out to AJ Auxerre during the recent winter transfer window. It is a choice that has already paid off, as he has put in a string of good performances under Christophe Pélissier. Never a starter with OM (he came on as a substitute five times in Ligue 1 Uber Eats), the giant 2.06m stopper has seen his playing time soar in Burgundy.
The man from Gonesse made his first appearance for AJA on 11 January against Toulouse FC, and since then has racked up the second-most minutes for a player under the age of 20 in the five major European leagues (708 minutes, 9 games). And while his first start at RC Lens - which saw him sent off - was a tough one, Touré is now one of the driving forces behind AJ Auxerre's recovery (two wins and three draws in the last five games).
Minutes played among U20 players in the European top five (since 11 January):
1. Ismaël Doukouré (RC Strasbourg Alsace): 810 minutes
2. Isaak Touré (AJ Auxerre): 708 minutes
3. Arne Engels (FC Augsburg): 692 minutes
4. Rayan Cherki (Olympique Lyonnais): 660 minutes
5. Wilfried Gnonto (Leeds United): 622 minutes
6. Gavi (Barcelona): 614 minutes
7. Arnau Martinez (Girona): 585 minutes
8. Jude Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund): 546 minutes
9. Romeo Lavia (Southampton): 543 minutes
10. Désiré Doué (Rennes): 533 minutes
Very strong in the challenge
Often well positioned and capable of contributing offensively through his breakthroughs with the ball at his feet, Touré is especially strong in duels. The proof is in the pudding: he has won 68% of duels (32/47), the second-highest percentage in Ligue 1 Uber Eats among the 189 players to have made that many challenges since his first appearance with AJA. All these qualities have enabled the French U19 international to raise the level of the Auxerre rearguard (just three goals conceded in the last five games).
Used on the left side of AJA's three-man defence - a system in which he was used to playing last season with AC Le Havre - the player who is rated at €11 million on France's leading fantasy football app MPG (no rating below 5.5 in his last 5 games) is therefore getting into the thick of it in Ligue 1 Uber Eats and confirming the potential he showed in Ligue 2 BKT. This should not displease the directors of Olympique de Marseille for next season...
% of challenges won among Ligue 1 Uber Eats players (47-challenge minimum, since 11 January):
1. Jean-Clair Todibo (OGC Nice): 74.1% (54 duels, 40 duels won)
2. Isaak Touré (AJ Auxerre): 68.1% (47 duels, 32 duels won)
3. Kevin Danso (RC Lens): 67.4% (89 duels, 60 duels won)
4. Fabien Centonze (FC Nantes): 66.7% (99 duels, 66 duels won)
5. Maxime Le Marchand (RC Strasbourg Alsace): 66% (50 duels, 33 duels won)
6. Pierre Lees-Melou (Brest): 65.7% (70 duels, 46 duels won)
7. Yunis Abdelhamid (Stade de Reims): 65.7% (99 duels, 65 duels won)
8. Laurent Abergel (FC Lorient): 64.4% (59 duels, 38 duels won)
9. Dejan Lovren (Olympique Lyonnais): 64.3% (70 duels, 45 duels won)
10. Lucien Agoumé (ESTAC Troyes): 63.6% (77 duels, 49 duels won)