A great sports fan, particularly the NBA, F1 and obviously football, singer Benjamin Biolay is a fervent defender of Kylian Mbappé. “Mbappé at 17, he was my idol”assures the singer-songwriter as well as actor, in the columns of West Franceon the occasion of the release of his eleventh album (The blue disc). The artist's youth idol is Joël Bats, the starting goalkeeper of the French team, European champions in 1984.
“I found this guy wonderful and I wanted to play goalkeeper”reveals Biolay. A native of Villefranche-sur-Saône, in the Rhône, he has always been a lover of Olympique Lyonnais and Bats, although he was the goalkeeper coach of the seven-time French champions Gones in the 2000s, did not play in the capital of Gaul. He revealed himself at AJ Auxerre and his performances under the orders of Guy Roux opened the doors to the French selection in 1983.
The French team at Euro 1984.
Benjamin Biolay remembers with emotion the number 1 goalkeeper of Michel Platini's team, a legendary team which went on to reach the semi-finals of the 1986 World Cup in Mexico (for a third place won against Belgium in the small final, 4-2 after). Having moved from Lyon to PSG in 1985, Bats had just won the Rouge et Bleu's very first French championship title.
Bats, modern goalkeeper
“At the 1982 World Cup, I identified France's problem: Jean-Luc Ettori. I told myself that this guy was way too small, way too slow. When you saw Harald Schumacher next to him, he was a mountain and he had more developed reflexes. When Joel arrived… pffff. He is the first very great goalkeeper, the first to play very well on the foot. He trained goalkeepers in Lyon for a long time and I had the opportunity to attend a few sessions and with his left foot he put the ball where he wanted. It was crazy, he could have played in the field.”launches the 52-year-old singer to the regional daily.
Benjamin Biolay, who recently played a club president in the Canal+ series Feveradores Joël Bats so much that he was ” brand “ by the album released by the goalkeeper in 1986. It was a collection of personal poems, with a song aimed at children called The snail.
