Crowned in 1998 with the France team, Fabien Barthez will remain one of the most atypical characters in the history of the Blues.
Although he has withdrawn from the media world since the end of his career, Fabien Barthez is nonetheless remembered. The former goalkeeper The french team left an indelible mark for his performance, his charisma and his unique personality. Jean-Marcel Ferret, former selection doctor between 1993 and 2004, remembered an anecdote which says a lot about the atypical character of the man nicknamed the divine bald.
The story took place in Tignes, the Blues’ usual site for preparation for major international competitions. At the end of 1997, Fabien Barthez could not be found when he had to go for a doping test. “ In Tignes, on the day of the Christmas doping control in 1997, he was drawn, but we did not know where he was. We searched for him for hours… he was diving under the frozen lake! “.
“What a character!” »
More generally, Jean-Marcel Ferret has fantastic memories of the former Blues goalkeeper. “ Did I really treat Fabien Barthez once? Not sure… What a character! On the day of the match, he was extraordinarily relaxed. ‘I’m not well… I have jitters… the skin on my buttocks is moving!’it’s him, before the penalties in the quarter-final against Italy in 1998. » A mental approach which bore fruit since the rest, known to all, is history.
