Guardian
Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper Keylor Navas received the UNFP trophy for best goalkeeper in Ligue 1 on Friday for the 2020-21 season.
But it is not the choice of the sports department of Figaro, more impressed by Mike Maignan.
The Lille has the advantage for him of having played the 38 matches of the season, when Navas played 29, the fault of various physical glitches.
The Costa Rican international made 2.5 saves / game on average, against 2.3 / game for Maignan.
The consistency of the French has paid off in our eyes, he who protected the cages of the best defense of the five major European championships (22 goals conceded).
Defenders
Romain Perraud will remain as one of the satisfactions of Stade Brestois this season, as the left-back. But we preferred Caio Henrique to him: the 23-year-old Brazilian, injured at the start of the season, quickly won at AS Monaco. His offensive contribution (4 assists) boosted the left lane of the Principality, where his technical accuracy often allowed the ASM to remain in control and to unfold. In central defense, we honored Sven Botman's excellent first season at LOSC. The Dutchman (21) was even more solid than his teammate José Fonte (37): 4.9 duels / match of which 68% won for Botman, against 3.8 duels / match of which 69% won for Fonte. We decided to accompany him with the captain of Paris Saint-Germain, Marquinhos.
Caio Henrique's first two assists with Monaco, against Angers then Montpellier in January 2021
He played "only" 25 Ligue 1 matches, but he was finally conspicuous by his absence: 5 of PSG's 8 defeats in the league took place without him.
His leadership and character, not to mention his progress in relaunching, kept the Parisians in the title race until the end.
To complete the defense, we opt for Jonathan Clauss on the right side.
The Lensois discovered Ligue 1 at the age of 28, and it is not innocent that his club, just promoted, got involved in the race for Europe.
Franck Haise's 3-5-2 system gave him the freedom he needed to multiply dangerous crosses.
The native of Strasbourg ended the season with 3 goals and 6 assists, statistics out of the ordinary for his position.
Midfielders
Three names quickly emerged in the midfield. First there is Benjamin André, the LOSC hub. If the sector was not also supplied in France, Didier Deschamps would have called it even though it was already raging at Stade Rennais (2014-2019). Regulator with the ball, vocal leader, top level recuperator: André plays his best football at 30. He intercepts 2.2 balls, succeeds 3.2 tackles and plays 8 duels on average per game (50% won). To support him, make way for the revelation of Ligue 1 according to the UNFP: Aurélien Tchouaméni (21 years old). The French international hopefuls have grown in strength and confidence throughout the season. Its importance in Monegasque pressing explains the place of ASM on the podium. Finally, we add a more offensive profile to form this trio: Lucas Paqueta,who had only played 4 small L1 matches at the end of last season. The Brazilian (23 years old) quickly showed himself to be indispensable to OL, both by his downfall in pressing and his ability to break the lines with the ball at the foot. With 9 goals and 5 assists, he brought a very big stone to the Lyon building, comfortably installed in the top 4.
Forwards
We had to decide: the duo of AS Monaco, Wissam Ben Yedder and Kevin Volland, are left on the sidelines for this typical team. It's hard not to include Burak Yilmaz, as the Turk (16 goals and 5 assists) has brought points to LOSC. He is the man of the title. The one who overthrew Lyon in a decisive match on April 25 (2-3). The one who knocked out Lens with a double on May 7, including a magnificent strike from the left in the top corner (0-3). It is impossible not to align Kylian Mbappé in this dream eleven either. Top scorer of the season in Ligue 1 (26 goals), the Parisian has survived in a team that is rarely well oiled. To conclude, we offer the last place to Memphis Depay. His last season in Lyon was by far the best with 20 goals and 12 assists.He resisted all transfer rumors to deliver almost every weekend a performance worthy of a very great player. If there's one man to remember in the Rhône this season, he's Dutch.
Mbappé's superb goal against Nîmes on February 3 (3-0)
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