With no goals conceded and decisive saves at crucial moments, Mike Maignan has made a good start to Euro-2024 in his first major tournament as France’s number one goalkeeper.
“It’s easier when you have a goalkeeper who guides you, who talks to you from start to finish” explains William Saliba.
With Maignan, “we defended well and we were also good with aerial balls. We know what we have to do and it’s good to have a leader like him behind us, especially for a player like me who is just starting out in a competition like this”, continued Saliba, who plays alongside Dayot Upamecano.
Like Saliba, the AC Milan player is discovering the role of first-choice goalkeeper in a major tournament after the 13-year reign of Hugo Lloris, who still holds the record for the most caps (145).
“It’s an immense source of pride to replace Hugo, who is a legend and who said the right things to me when he left”, said Maignan (18 matches) on Téléfoot. “I have to maintain the level of goalkeepers in the French team.“
He is already one of the leaders, supported by Antoine Griezmann, captain against the Netherlands (0-0), while Kylian Mbappé remained on the bench to protect his nose. For Griezmann, Mike is one of those “leaders who know how to shout when things aren’t going well”.
His Euro campaign has got off to a perfect start, even if he is not yet 100% fit. He arrived at the training camp with a slight finger injury and has suffered a series of physical problems over the last two seasons. He even missed the 2022 World Cup.
“I’m not at the top of my game, but I’m in good shape”, says Maignan. “I arrived prepared and I didn’t have too many problems. I was well looked after, I had a good preparation and I had to stay positive. Match after match, you have to raise the bar. I know my potential and I know that I have to concentrate.“