Former Lyon prodigy Farès Bahlouli opened up to Sofoot magazine about his career trajectory and revealed previously undisclosed contacts with ex-Algeria manager Christian Gourcuff.
The midfielder, who sparkled in his early days at Olympique Lyonnais, candidly discussed how natural talent became both a blessing and a curse in his development.
“When you have talent, you rest a little, you are ahead, and we don’t get into the habit of working more, of preparing for high level, early on. It was very helpful to me. I had ease with the ball. If I had had fewer qualities, I know that I would have compensated more with more work. Today, when we see those who succeed… Yes, it takes a bit of quality and talent, but it’s really those who have this hard-working mentality.”
Despite representing France from youth levels through U-21 and claiming victory in the 2015 Toulon Tournament with the U-20 squad, Bahlouli’s career path took unexpected turns.
