His signing at Stade Brestois caused a small earthquake. A clap of thunder (from Brest). Sunday, the premiere of Youcef Belaïli was much more discreet than his arrival in Finistère. The Algerian, who blew up the social networks of Stade Brestois when he announced his six-month loan, had enormous difficulty finding his partners on Sunday during the defeat of his team against Stade Rennais (2-0 ). A symbol ? His free kick completely missed in the first seconds of the match. A failure that announced others.
Established on the left flank of the Brest attack, the Algerian did not show much in a first half when his team drowned, saved by the excellent match of his goalkeeper Marco Bizot. Returning from a failed African Cup of Nations and having terminated his contract with Qatar SC, Belaïli seemed to lack bearings. “It was difficult for him but it was difficult for the whole team. In the first half, we could have taken a beating, we watched them play. It was his first match, he did four training sessions with us. It’s difficult to judge him on this match. We will try to put him at a good level and we will talk about it again, ”defended his coach Michel Der Zakarian after the meeting.
Difficult to forget Romain Faivre
Released in the 60th minute, the attacking midfielder received some cheers from Algerian fans present at Roazhon Park. Some even waited for him to leave the stadium to cheer him on. It must be said that the player is hyper followed by his fans, he who has more than three million subscribers on Instagram. His arrival at Stade Brestois capsized the club’s social networks which saw their number of fans explode. An unexpected enthusiasm which almost eclipsed the departure of Romain Faivre from Olympique Lyonnais. Youcef Belaïli will have the difficult task of trying to forget the French midfielder, author of seven goals and five assists in Ligue 1 with Brest this season.
Those who criticize Belaïli’s performance, do you think he’s an Avengers? The bug he plays in a team that very rarely plays defensive and that we don’t have possession, don’t believe Belaïli, it’s Iron Man
— AKLI 🇵🇸 (@AkliStaifi19) February 6, 2022
Youcef Belaïli seemed destined for a great career on his debut in Algeria. Suspended for two years for taking cocaine between 2015 and 2017, the creative milieu had tried to bounce back in Angers for a first experience outside Africa, but he had only played one match. He especially stood out in the colors of his national team to whom he had offered the CAN in 2019 with two goals and the Arab Cup in December with two goals and two penalties caused.