Rarely does a forbidden venture to a nightclub, on the eve of a crucial game, lead a football player to his most prolific season. And yet, this is exactly what has happened to Antoine Griezmann this year.

The Real Sociedad striker this month made his national team debut against the Netherlands, crowning a season of excellence in La Liga.

With 15 goals, he is only two behind his countryman Karim Benzema and fast approaching maturity in his free role at Real Sociedad, a side he joined aged just 13 years old.

With his diminutive frame (1m76, 69 kg) and low profile, Griezmann comes across as shy and tentative in real life. On the football pitch he is the exact opposite – aggressive and relentless.

“I feel lighter now, faster and livelier”, crediting the diet he started in 2012, which is now bearing its fruits.

It all starts in October 2012. Griezmann is away on international duty with the France U21 squad for the play-off second leg against Norway, a game to decide which side would take part in the Under-19 European Championships the following year.

After a 1-0 first-leg victory in the industrial port of Le Havre, Griezmann and four of his team-mates ( M’Vila, Mavinga, Ben Yedder and Mbaye Niang) decide to throw caution to the wind and make the three-hour drive to Paris to celebrate their narrow victory.

Three days later, Norway U21s get a famous 5-3 win and qualify for the European Championships. The scapegoats are (rightly) not far away, all five night-clubbers attract the ire of the public and are suspended from all France selections for one full year.

Griezmann is shattered. He goes back to Spain, the country where he learned his football after being rejected by a string of French clubs (Auxerre, Montpellier, Metz and his cherished side Lyon).

The scout who brought him there from France, Eric Olhats, recalls the emotionally-charged meeting between Antoine and his parents after the sanction was pronounced:

“There were tears in his eyes, but we made him understand he had to accept he made a massive mistake and we would not be appealing the sanction.”

The young forward, who made his Liga debut for Real Sociedad in 2009 at the tender age of 18, decided to take it on the chin and bounce back. “I understood I had to lead a professional lifestyle from there on. That I could not behave like any youth of my age.”

Cutting off the hamburgers and sleepless nights spent playing virtual football games, he works on his sharpness and gradually increases his stamina. Real Sociedad coach Azzasate is unequivocal in praising the physical improvement of his protégé during that period.

Equally able with both feet, quick-witted and with surprising heading abilities for his height, Griezmann has become a success in the one area where he was always lacking: strength. His shortness was a handicap in France, where successive trials saw him fail to even get a chance with second league sides. In Spain, where the slant is put on technical abilities rather than raw physical presence, he was an instant success.

Playing on the left wing of Real Sociedad’s attacking line, Griezmann is left with complete creative freedom to roam across the front three where he displays equal ease. His ability with free-kicks (modelled on his idol David Beckham and the number 7 he wears on the back of his jersey) combined with incredible heading even leads his coach to rue not having two Griezmanns (Griezmenn? – ed.) in set-piece situations.

But if the French forward is still unable to both take a corner and be on the receiving end to convert it, he is already a complete attacking player who increasingly looks like he could cement his spot in the French squad after his convincing debut.

“I am fine everywhere. From the right wing, to cut inside and shoot like Robben, or from the left wing… I just like to play football.”

A refreshing speech from a young man who hugely benefits from having learned to stay grounded and simply enjoy his profession. Hanging on the walls of his home are the jerseys of Ronaldo, Iniesta, and Falcao. All opponents he has faced as a professional player. But his most cherished possession remains Zinedine Zidane’s shorts, dating back to the time when he was a ball boy at Real Sociedad and chased the French legend down the Anoeta stadium for a prophetic souvenir.

Griezmann’s success will be highlighted this summer as he has the chance to star for France in the World Cup. Perhaps then he will be asked for his shorts and become someone’s hero rather than the adoring fan.