Guillaume Restes on a potential future call-up to the France squad: “If it’s meant to be, it will happen”

Speaking to the press before the France u21 Euro qualifier game against Austria, Toulouse FC goalkeeper Guillaume Restes (18) had the chance to touch his new responsibilities and ambitions as a starting keeper for both club and country.

“A leader? Yes perhaps as I am the goalkeeper, but there are other leaders in the team, confirmed players playing in big clubs and with a lot of professional experience. Yes, I can be a leader, but there are others.” as transcribed by L’ÉQUIPE.

Admittedly, the young goalkeeper’s important role at his boyhood club Téfécé has come as a bit of a surprise to all, having only gotten his first minutes with the pro team back in the pre-season, when new manager Carles Martínez Novell decided to play him instead of summer signing Álex Domínguez, who had supposedly come to be the starting keeper. Since then, the 18-year-old hasn’t left the starting lineup, continuing to perform week-in, week-out as one of the most promising players at his position, and overall one of the best goalkeepers in Ligue 1.

The surprise was shared with the player himself, admitting: “Certainly everything came very quickly, starting with the pre-season, I wasn’t supposed to be the starting keeper for Téfécé, maybe in the future. Everything came quickly, the first Ligue 1 game, the Europa League, the France u21 team…”. Restes made his France u21 debut back in September, after only four league games, and hasn’t looked back since.

He’ll be looking to play a decisive role in the fixture against Austria u21 next Friday, before returning to his duties with Toulouse.

GFFN | Alfred Lalande