Injured at the very beginning of the season, Mathieu Valbuena has worked hard to achieve a great reward: his first L1 start at the Stade Vélodrome against Nice.

For his first L1 start in the OM colours, Mathieu Valbuena didn’t do it by halves. From the first minutes of the match, he stood out with his pace, his dribbling and liveliness. Provoking the opposition, the lively but little-known attacking midfielder gave the Nice defenders no option but to foul him. Another string to his bow is his prowess in dead ball scenarios… On OM’s second goal, scored by Renato Civelli, it was Valbuena who took the corner, and he was not credited with the assist only because the ball deflected involuntarily off Kanté’s thigh.

For Mathieu Valbuena, who was playing in the national les than a year ago, the difference between Libourne and Marseille, and between L1 and the National, hasn’t changed his approach to the game. “I felt really good, mentally and physically. It was a great night both collectively and personally. My team-mates put me at ease and talked me all the way through my first start, which was really important. Then, on the pitch, I wasn’t trying to figure everything out, and just played my game.”
In the stands of the Stade Vélodrome, José Anigo watched the youngster’s match closely. “I’m pleased because I was the one who found him and brought him back from Libourne Saint-Seurin in the National. That’s where our real talent pool is, and we can do very well from finding players there, because they play regularly and that allows players who are late bloomers to prove their worth.”

At a time when Albert Emon is facing absences and suspensions, the introduction of new blood into the OM squad could be an important asset. “Physically I can do better,” said the former Girondins de Bordeaux Youth Academy trainee, “with more matches, my capacity to keep going at a high level will improve. On the pitch, I feel really good with my team-mates. Before we know it we’ll be finding each other with ease. .
After the match, OM’s sporting director seemed very proud of Mathieu Valbuena. “He has more surprises in store for us,” he predicted to OMtv…