It was at La Fouillouse, in the outskirts of Saint-Etienne and not far from l’Etrat, where the ASSE training center is located, that Ryad Boudebouz had been confined since March 17. “I am quiet in the countryside with my son and my wife, there are only a few families around. I can talk to myself in my garden and I have a field in front of my house where I go shopping, “said the recent 30-year-old.
Retro Disney with son Kalhyl
Before living as a recluse like the majority of French people, the Colmarien had taken advantage of the suspension of Ligue 1 to return to his city, to see his parents and brothers, the family but not necessarily all the friends. Because in Alsace, certain measures to combat the spread of the coronavirus had already entered into force. This allowed him to wonder about the health situation.
“At first, like many people, I was not aware of the danger. I didn’t think it was going to affect us directly. But when I got back to Colmar, I started to realize how big it was going to be, he explains. In addition, I, who have asthma, did not want to take any risks. I didn’t go out as usual. “
Since then, the gravity of the moment no longer escapes anyone. AS Saint-Etienne footballers, who are partially unemployed, have each returned to their home races. And keep the link via a WhatsApp group. The alarm clock doesn’t necessarily ring every day, but Ryad Boudebouz has to do with a daily physical session of a good hour and a half. The monitoring carried out by the Greens is “very professional” and Claude Puel’s assistants regularly call to come to the news.
This break in his life as a top athlete, the former SRC also takes advantage of to spend more time with family. With his son Kalhyl, still too young (3 years old) to understand the challenges of the situation – “He still asks me why we don’t go out as before” -, the father started a retro Disney from the sofa. He watches movies and infuses series in the evening. He also “validated” the last production of Franck Gastambide. He also took over Koh-Lanta.
To keep in touch with “colleagues”, it happens on the video game console. “We play a network at FIFA 20 or Call of (Duty)”, he summarizes. And who is the boss in charge? “On FIFA, Loïs Diony is not bad”, but he will not say more!
A “gesture” for the Pasteur hospital in Colmar
What about the ball? As a true enthusiast who “hits a futsal” as soon as he enters the Haut-Rhin, Ryad Boudebouz is in want. “In my garden, I make short trips, I slalom in front of a small goal“ intermittently ”. It’s hard to be deprived of what you like but today the most important thing is not to be attacked by this shit. Football goes after. “
But afterwards, will there still be football this season? Ryad Boudebouz hopes so. Especially since he has a good deadline, a final of the Coupe de France to play against PSG, five years after that of the Coupe de la Ligue lost with Bastia against the same opponent (0-4). “We really want to end the season, to play the final we went to, to bring our families to the Stade de France, to face guys like Neymar. And the possibility of winning a title is great. “
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So far, in a season that has been anything but a long calm river, the most beautiful gesture of Ryad Boudebouz, the one who capsized the Cauldron, it was this goal at the end of the additional time against Rennes in half, who sent ASSE to the final of the Coupe de France after a famine of 28 years. However, it was probably outside the field that the Alsatian was most classy. Like others, he chose to help the caregivers and made a substantial donation to the Pasteur Hospital in Colmar.
“When we see that relatives of friends die, we understand that this virus affects everyone. My brother Mehdi’s wife’s sister works in the hospital, I asked her what they needed and I decided to make a move, soberly indicates the one who is in daily contact with his family. We must all be united. And making a gesture also means adopting the right behavior and staying at home to help hospitals. “
To win against Covid-19, you will necessarily have to play it collectively…