End of season 2017-2018. Relatively little used, Aniss El Hriti feels that his time in Tours, relegated to National, is coming to an end. “I had proposals in Ligue 2, but rather to be an understudy, remembers the left side. I didn’t want to go back to National, I wanted to discover something else, to try an experience. And I didn’t have an agent, which is still the case today. “
One evening, the phone rings. On the other end of the phone, a man who presents himself as the assistant coach of F91 Dudelange, a Luxembourg first division club. He said he was keenly interested in the profile of the player, then 28 years old. “When I played in Gueugnon, my friend Tony Vairelles told me about this club, where he had played, blows the defender of Chambly. He told me: if one day you go to Luxembourg, you have to go to Dudelange. But, at the time, it does not connect me more than that. “
The leaders insist and invite him to come and visit the facilities. The Franco-Moroccan lets himself be convinced. “There was a carrot, it was the European Cup. The challenge was exciting, ”he says. Defending champion, Dudelange is indeed qualified for the preliminary round of the Champions League. If the club does not pass the course, it is transferred to the Europa League, where it reaches the group stage. The day of the draw will remain etched in El Hriti’s mind.
” I saw AC Milan, Real Betis, Olympiakos… There, I told myself that I had made the best choice of my entire career. I was in the big leagues. In football, I am no one, but I felt like I had succeeded. It’s an incredible story. For the child of Sevran (Seine-Saint-Denis), there is no question of sulking his pleasure. “I savored 10,000% every minute of this European dream. I spoke with Leonardo, Maldini, players I had seen on TV. I recovered all the legendary jerseys, those of Higuain, Yaya Touré and Joaquin… ”
Several more lines on the prize list
Even staying on the bench during the trip to San Siro, his wife having given birth to their first child a few days earlier, does not spoil the party. “At the end of the game, I took a ball, I went to shoot in the goal and I celebrated my goals. I was having fun like a kid. »At the end of this enchanting parenthesis, the national competitions resume their rights. With resounding success: the defender is crowned champion of Luxembourg, wins the Cup, the Super Cup and is elected best left-back in the championship.
“A magnificent year”, which also allows him to discover a country and a culture that he did not know. “Luxembourgers are very educated, very polite,” he smiles. There, everything is clean, square. It’s a change from the Paris region! It is a beautiful place to raise children, in the best conditions. Life is more expensive, but wages are higher. “
But El Hriti is still hungry for new challenges. In the off-season, they ask its leaders to lend him to Chambly, who has just entered Ligue 2 and has followed him for several seasons. “I really appreciate the coach, loose the Camblysian. Like me, he’s someone who made himself alone, by force of will. This club was close to my heart, and I also wanted to get closer to my family, in the Paris region, especially since my wife was expecting a second child. Here, all the conditions are met for me to feel 100% in my head. “
However, the full-back still belongs to the Luxembourg club, and could therefore return there at the end of May if his Camblysian adventure came to an end. “I am in the dark. But for the moment, I only have one thing in my head: keeping up with Chambly. At the end of the season, I want to go see the coach to thank him and tell him that the mission is fulfilled. So, we’ll discuss the rest… ”
Article original de: www.leparisien.fr
