Kylian Mbappé continues to accumulate records. Sunday at the UNFP trophies, the Paris Saint-Germain player was voted best player of the Ligue 1 season. The captain of the French team and the capital club now overtakes Zlatan Ibrahimovic, three times crowned with this award. by the players’ union since 1994, where the winners are decided by the vote of their peers.
Upon receiving his prize, during the ceremony at the Pavillon Gabriel a stone’s throw from the Champs-Elysées in Paris, the striker spoke of his “pride”: “Leaving my name in the history of the championship of my country, it is extraordinary, it’s what I always wanted, I didn’t think I was going to succeed so quickly”.
Words for Sergio Rico
His trophy was given to him by his coach, Didier Deschamps, and his first words were for his teammate Sergio Rico, substitute goalkeeper, victim of a serious riding accident on Sunday morning. “There are much more important things than football, the whole club is with him, I wanted to have a sense of priorities by talking about that first,” said Mbappé. The French champions also leave with another prize, that of best hope, awarded to the Portuguese left side Nuno Mendes.
The Lensois dolphins also won two prestigious prizes, in particular that of the best trainer. In three years, Franck Haise has built a team in constant progress to second place in L1, behind the untouchable PSG, yet with the 10th budget in the country. The successor to Bruno Genesio on the list qualified the Sang et Or for their first Champions League since 2002-2003.
“It’s the recognition of a club, of a collective, that will always be the most important thing,” said Franck Haise on stage, welcoming his “exceptional group for three seasons”. The great Lensoise season also owes a lot to the new best goalkeeper in Ligue 1, Brice Samba, elected a year after Gianluigi Donnarumma.
Delphine Cascarino voted best player
If Karim Benzema has kept his prize for best Frenchman abroad, among women, the trophy for best player in D1 Arkema should not console Lyonnaise Delphine Cascarino, injured in her knee and forfeited for the World Cup. She received her prize from the hands of Jean-Michel Aulas, for her farewell to the presidency. Lyon also has the best goalkeeper, the Chilean Christiane Endler, in its ranks, its rivals from PSG contenting themselves with the best hope, Laurina Fazer.
A posthumous honorary prize was also awarded to Just Fontaine, legendary top scorer of the 1958 World Cup with 13 goals, who died this year, and his name will now be attached to the prize for the best goal of the season, in L1 as in L2. The public vote this year chose Montpellier’s Elye Wahi for his acrobatic return against Lyon, and in L2 Stéphanois Mathieu Cafaro for a goal against Annecy.
The winners of the UNFP Trophies 2023
Best L1 player: Kylian Mbappe (PSG)
Best L1 goalkeeper: Brice Samba (Lens)
Best L1 coach: Frank Haise (Lens)
L1 Best Hope: Nuno Mendes (PSG)
Best L2 player: Georges Mikautadze (Metz)
Best female D1 player: Delphine Cascarino (Lyon)
Best L1 referee: Francois Letexier
Best assistant referee in L1: Hisham Zakrani
Best French Player Abroad: Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)
Best L2 referee: Pierre Legat
Best L2 assistant referee: Julien Pacelli
UNFP Honor Trophy: Just Fountain
UNFP Citizen Player Trophy: Marshall Munetsi (Reims) for his foundation for education in Zimbabwe
Just Fontaine Trophy in L1: Elye Wahi (Montpellier) against Lyon on October 22
Just Fontaine Trophy in L2: Mathieu Cafaro (Saint-Etienne) against Annecy on February 4