2023-04-30 12:31:23
In the locker room of the Stade de France, Logan Costa is kindly chambered by his Toulouse teammates: “It’s crazy, he scored twice like Zizou at the Stade de France”, laugh Farès Chaïbi and Zakaria Aboukhlal. “Logan? It’s Lilian Thuram. He never scored even in training and there he scored two goals,” laughs Moussa Diarra. The story of Toulouse, winner of the Coupe de France a year after being promoted to L1 was already beautiful. And to add to “the irrational” the word most used by its president Damien Comolli on Saturday evening, it chose an unexpected hero with Logan Costa, a solid central defender (1.90 m) aged 22, author of a double header in five minutes (5th, 10th).
Coming from a large Cape Verdean family, he was born a few hundred meters from the Stade de France, in Saint-Denis. “I scored in front of my whole family, my parents, my brothers and sisters, in the city where I took my first steps, it’s incredible, he smiled shyly in the mixed zone in front of a dozen microphones. Before the game, I was both relaxed and excited to play at home. I feel a lot of pride and emotion. I had already scored but never a double, even among young people… And that happens in a Coupe de France final. I don’t really have the words… We are entering the big leagues, especially with the Europa League next season. »
If he was born in Saint-Denis, Logan Costa has never played in a club in the city. He made his debut in Val-d’Oise, at ASC Val d’Argenteuil and then at RFC Argenteuil. This is where Reims came to get him in 2016 when he was 15 years old. But he never played with the pros in Reims. Loaned to Le Mans in National during the 2020-2021 season, he was then transferred to Toulouse. What is also incredible is that his playing time in the league with Téfécé has been starving since his arrival: 99 minutes in L2 (3 appearances) last year and 135 minutes (3 appearances including a start) this season.
“In his position, there is a lot of competition”
But in the Coupe de France, he is the only player with substitute goalkeeper Kjetil Haug to have started every game. “In his position, there is a lot of competition with Anthony Rouault and Rasmus Nicolaisen, explains coach Philippe Montanier. It’s not a sector where I do a lot of rotations. But Logan is very close to them. I have great confidence in him. As he was very good in the Coupe de France, it was normal for him to continue. I had just established him against Lyon (1-2 on April 14) to prepare for this final. »
In the euphoria of victory and his double, the Cape Verdean international (3 selections) after having known the French selections among young people (from U16 to U20) also spoke about his personal situation. “The coach spoke to me a lot. He told me not to give up and to keep working, that my turn would come. He came in the final, it’s just magnificent. My teammates also spoke to me a lot. This is what kept me from giving up. I worked twice as hard and it paid off. The following ? We’ll see… These are the coach’s choices. I respect them as I have always done for two years. »
Logan Costa was also able to count on the strong support of Brecht Dejaegere. “It is also my job as captain to manage the disappointment of all the players during the season, explains the Belgian midfielder. He was a little disappointed at times but I kept pushing him and he was rewarded. He was ready, he was strong and scored two goals. I’m so happy for him… What he experienced will serve him well for the future. I call him the monster because he is very strong. In training, I’m not going to look for him too much (laughs…). »
#call #monster #Logan #Costa #substitute #hero #Toulouse #Coupe #France