If he is not one of the best French players in history -despite his 1991 European Ballon d'Or -, Jean -Pierre Papin will remain like the most emblematic number 9 of his time. After Mixed Mixed in OM, he who had been recruited by Bernard Tapie at the expense of AS Monaco, the northerner turned into a scoring machine, being top scorer of the D1 five seasons in a row (from 1988 to 1992), for four titles of champion of France (1989, 1990, 1991 and 1992). He thus exceeded the 40 goals' bar three seasons in a row by counting his achievements with the Phocaeans and the French team (47 goals in 1991-1992).
“JPP” was the nightmare of the goalkeepers of the French championship and that was the case of the 98 world champion Lionel Charbonnier. Third goalkeeper behind Fabien Barthez and Bernard Lama during the Historical coronation of Aimé Jacquet, “Charbo” did not rub shoulders with Papin in selection, since the attacker arrested in January 1995. With AJ Auxerre, he challenged the star scorer of OM once, in February 1992, and it was Chris Waddle and Abédi Pelé who had given the residents of the Stade Vélodrome.
Papin, he made them nightmares
When talking about the opposing attackers he feared during his career, Charbonnier launched on RMC: “Stéphane Chapuisat, I hated him, Papin and Vieri too. These players, every time they played against me, they scored goals. I didn't like their heads, Chapuisat came to laugh in front of you, you wanted to kick. There are some who made me do nightmares, even JPP back to the goal, you had to be careful “. Before remembering a goal collected against Ronaldo in a friendly match between AJA and Inter in December 1997.
Lionel Charbonnier then faced Jean-Pierre Papin during three games against Bordeaux (for a goal from “JPP”). He challenged Chapuisat four times for so many defeats, in the UEFA Cup semi-finals 1992-1993 and during the quarter-final of the Champions League lost against Borussia Dortmund in 1997 (3-1, 0-1). But the Swiss scorer scored only one shot to the goal. As for Christian VIERI, Charbonnier crossed it during a France-Italie (2-2) in 1997, in a friendly at the Parc des Princes, the attacker who did not marked when he got into play.
