It's a match within the match.
This Wednesday, during one of the shocks of the 16th day of Ligue 1 between Rennes and Lille, Gaëtan Laborde challenges Jonathan David.
A duel between the two best gunners in the French championship, just that.
To discover
Ligue 1 fixtures and results
League 1 standings
With 12 goals in all competitions, including ten in the league, the Canadian currently sits at the top of the L1 scorers standings, with one more achievement than Laborde.
He made a great start to the season.
In Europe, only the phenomenon Erling Haaland (Borussia Dortmund) has scored more than him (14 goals) among players born in the 21st century!
Top scorer in Ligue 1 in 2021
Once again decisive against Salzburg in the Champions League last Tuesday (1-0), David has scored half of his team's goals this season.
"No matter how
I look, I don't have a negative element to tell you about him,"
smiles his trainer, Jocelyn Gourvennec
.
He is still very young, he is only 21 years old but he already plays like an old man.
"
Important element during the conquest of the title of champion of France last season, the Canadian international (24 caps, 18 goals) is the top scorer in Ligue 1 in 2021 with 23 goals, ahead of Parisian Kylian Mbappé by a length.
Beyond the statistical aspect, David knows how to do everything on a field.
"
He has the technique and the football in him,
" said Canadian coach John Herdman.
A goalscorer, yes, but not only.
It is not uncommon to see him pick up, participate in the game. “
The coach asks me that,
explains the main person concerned
.
My role is to be where the opponent leaves space
”.
The icing on the cake, David, not stingy in terms of defensive withdrawal, is one of those who run the most, with nearly 12 kilometers covered per game.
Laborde, the decisive worker
On the other side of the field, Gaëtan will do his best to carry the Rennes attack.
Arrived on the last day of the transfer window for 15 million euros, the former Montpellier is for the moment the providential man of the Reds and Blacks.
In full swing, the French notably helped to bend PSG on October 3, with a goal and an assist.
With nine achievements in Ligue 1 and five in the Europa League - including a hat-trick last Thursday - Laborde shines in Brittany.
At 27, the native Landais has never been so good.
And takes Rennes in its wake to second place in the championship.
"
He is one of those who pull the others up,
underlines his trainer in Brittany, Bruno Genesio
.
He is amazing
”.
Very generous in the effort, the striker is a facilitator for his team.
Able to play in deflection as well as in depth, he attracts, just by his presence and his calls, the attention of opposing defenders and frees spaces for his partners.
Foolproof lucidity
Laborde has above all the instinct of the scorer and the sense of the spectacle, as in Metz, with this magnificent Madjer. On a cloud, the Rennes nonetheless remains lucid when we talk to him about the France team. “
It's nice to be associated with it, but there is still a long way to go.
“Its objective is therefore to be long-term and to do the accounts afterwards. "
I'm not chasing the title of top scorer in Ligue 1. There are still some sacred players who can claim it
." Before letting go with a smile: "
But it's always good to be up there
".
To stay there, we will have to stay the course since in addition to Jonathan David, his opponent for a day, the French championship is (very) well endowed with high-level attackers, from Kylian Mbappé to Wissam Ben Yedder, and many still others.
