Fabrice Pancrate had an absolute dream as a footballer: to play for PSG, he who grew up in Villepinte (Seine-Saint-Denis) before being trained in Louhans-Cuiseaux. By revealing himself at Le Mans in 2003-2004, the powerful attacker, generous and skilled enough with the ball to be versatile, convinced Vahid Halilhodzic to recruit him. The transfer amounted to three million euros. In five years at PSG, more as an offensive understudy under Guy Lacombe and Paul Le Guen, Pancrate scored 14 goals in 132 games, including one in the Champions League, during the rout against CSKA Moscow (1-3), with the famous hat-trick from Sergey Semak.
Pancrate, who turns 46 this Saturday, also realized another dream: playing in England. At the end of his contract at PSG, the striker first refused Burnley, a modest Premier League team, to join Newcastle, already leader of the Championship, in November. The 1.85m player scored a magnificent goal in his second match, clearing two Watford players before sending a missile from the left into a delirious St James’ Park. The dream debut!
The former Le Mans and Parisian is having fun in English D2, but Chris Hughton no longer uses him during the final sprint. Kevin Nolan and Andy Carroll finish with 17 goals each, Fabricio Coloccini is the captain and Alan Smith struggles in midfield (without scoring a single goal). After 8 starts and 11 appearances, Pancrate expects to be extended to discover the Premier League. Except that British leaders are not lifting the option of an additional season. Terrible.
Pancrate dismissed, Ben Arfa recruited
“I’m really disappointed I won’t be a Newcastle player next year. It was the best club I played for and not being part of it next year is difficult to accept. I didn’t want to leave the club because I loved it.”regretted the native of the 14th arrondissement of Paris, paying tribute to the supporters of the NUFC, “the best before whom (he doesn’t have) never played ».
Newcastle finds another nugget in France with the arrival of Hatem Ben Arfa on loan from OM for two million pounds. For his part, Pancrate, disgusted by his end of adventure in the North of England, was without a club for seven months before joining AEL Larissa, in Greece. He will relaunch and finish his career in good style by playing at FC Nantes, shining especially in Ligue 2, from 2011 to 2014 (10 goals in 68 matches).
