Lepaul, Ligue 1's top scorer, surprise candidate for Zidane's first France squad

Zinédine Zidane will announce his very first squad as France head coach on September 17, and Esteban Lepaul’s name keeps coming up insistently in discussions. The Stade Rennais striker, Ligue 1’s top scorer last season, was not selected for the World Cup under Didier Deschamps, but his strong start to the season is seriously reviving his candidacy.

Analyst Walid Acherchour painted a glowing portrait of the former Angers player: “He’s putting in his application for France. If Lepaul becomes this guy connected to the rest of the team, who can pick out passes, who can make the most of the few transitions Rennes can have in difficult matches and be this efficient player in the box like a 1990s Ligue 1 striker, or even better, we’ll have a superb striker.”

Acherchour also drew a comparison to Olivier Giroud’s trajectory: “We can talk about a Giroud-type trajectory, these kinds of guys who have hunger, the determination to keep progressing, this intelligence to try to take the next steps. Esteban Lepaul continues, week after week, to expand his skillset and climb the ladder with much more pressure.” Before concluding: “If he keeps going like this, he’ll be called up.”

Lepaul himself displays calm composure amid the media frenzy. “I already said it was an incredible honour to be part of this debate. But I have no idea if it will change things. I want to perform and not stress about the choices that will be made, it’s that simple,” he told Ouest France.

The main criticism levelled at Lepaul last year — being too exclusively a goalscorer without sufficiently influencing the collective game — appears to be fading. Acherchour notes a notable evolution in his ability to “energise play”, a quality deemed essential to aspire to the highest level of international football.