Hard work always pays off.
If it were necessary to embody this sentence, Jean-Clair Todibo would stick perfectly to the character.
After a career start truncated by short and inconclusive stints across Europe (Barcelona, Benfica and Schalke), the 23-year-old central defender has finally found stability on the Côte d'Azur.
This Friday evening against Ajaccio, he will still be eagerly awaited in Ligue 1. Faithful to the position.
As since the start of the season.
To discover
Calendar and results Ligue 1
League 1 standings
Arrived in Nice in January 2021, Todibo immediately established himself as an indisputable holder and as a basic man of the eleven Nice despite the instability on the bench of the Aiglons.
But when he arrived two years ago, no one, except him, could be sure of the success and progress he is showing today.
A beneficial “questioning”
It must be said that with Jean-Clair Todibo, we can always be surprised.
His transfer to FC Barcelona at 19 and after only 10 Ligue 1 games was surprising at the time.
Without playing time in Catalonia (5 games played), he will have discovered the joy of loans to Schalke and Benfica.
Mixed experiences which will at least have had the merit of maturing the native Guyanese.
With hindsight, he himself recognized the role: "
Falling into the deep end of Barça so young, then wiping out mistakes at Schalke or Benfica, these are things that quickly cool you down and force you to question yourself
"
If rumors of bad behavior off the pitch sometimes came out in the press when he was playing abroad, they have completely disappeared since his arrival in Nice.
More mature, a man especially opened his eyes to change his mentality.
A trigger caused by Julien Fournier, former sports director of OGC Nice: “
And then there is the meeting with Julien Fournier which allows a 20-year-old to understand that he was playing his future.
Things took another turn when I realized what I could do and what I was doing.
The gap was huge.
he confided to
the team
at the beginning of January.
OGC Nice changed his career
Indeed, his arrival in Nice is a turning point.
For the first time in his career, he has a string of tenures, alongside William Saliba.
Back in Ligue 1, he can finally express himself on the pitch.
In the second half of the season, he played 15 Ligue 1 games and showed that his potential had not disappeared.
Still as strong physically, he seduces the Nice club which decides to buy him definitively in the summer of 2021.
Last season is that of confirmation.
Alongside the experienced Brazilian defender Dante, he played 40 games and impressed with his serenity, both in duels and in the restart.
And his performances do not go unnoticed, especially during major matches against PSG, where he manages to control Kylian Mbappé.
But it was this year that ''JC'', as his new coach Didier Digard calls him, really "
stepped up
".
At the door of the France team?
It's simple, this season Jean-Clair Todibo is one of the best defenders in the championship, as he demonstrated again against Marseille last Sunday.
With 75% of duels won in Ligue 1, he is even one of the very best in the 5 major championships alongside players like Thiago Silva, Virgil Van Djik or Ronald Araujo.
Just that.
The young Toulousain who arrived at Barça with the label of the “
new Varane
” has grown up well.
But where will it stop?
Raphaël Varane, precisely, has just announced his international retirement and leaves a free place in the France team.
Jean-Clair Todibo is well aware of this: "
Of course I'm ready and if they call me I'll be present
" he confided in a press conference.
Didier Digard agrees with his player and goes further: “
My personal opinion today is that he's ready and that when he goes there he won't come out.
When JC enters a group he no longer leaves it.
»
On Prime Video, Dante, who observes his progress closely, admits to being “
proud of him
” and affirms that he has “
made great progress in all areas and above all (he is) more serene.
And to play in the national team you have to be calm.
The technical, physical and tactical qualities everyone sees.
“But the principal concerned knows it, to integrate the Blues, it is necessary to be”
efficient every weekend by being as regular as possible.
“The young Todibo has become mature and gives himself the means to dream: “
My goal today is to go to the French team and represent my country.
This is the ultimate goal.
And if he continues on this rhythm, the blue dream could very quickly become reality.
From the next meeting in March?