Esteban Lepaul: the French striker defying all the odds

To put it quite simply: Esteban Lepaul was not supposed to be this good. I was trying to think of another way to begin this article but honestly, I think that is the best way to summarise him and his unfolding story. I mean this statement in many ways.

 The first way I mean this is simply because of his incredible rise. Just 2 years ago Lepaul was languishing in the Championnat National, the French 3rd division, with Epinal and previously playing even further down the divisions. Essentially Lepaul was a non-league player, an amateur. Originally, he came through the ranks of Nancy and eventually OL, where he spent 5 years but never got a look in. He was released in 2020. But somehow 5 years later, he looks to be the next great hope for France. And I’m fully aware that may sound a little crazy, considering the plethora of talent in the forward line at the minute; but hear me out.

 Esteban Lepaul is such a unique profile. There was a tongue in cheek moment online last night after his stellar performance against Strasbourg where fans were comparing him to Drogba (a man all too familiar with Breton football), and Stade Rennais’ official X account tweeting the GIF of Ronaldo Nazario. Obviously, these are exaggerations, but in my mind his best comparison may be Oliver Giroud.

 A man who built his game around efficiency, conversion and positioning. And whilst Lepaul lacks the size that made Giroud so deadly in the air, he almost mirrors and early Giroud still at Montpellier, who beat offside traps, who outmuscled defenders, who smacked balls beyond the keeper with little regard. For example, if we analyse the 3rd of his 3 this weekend, Lepaul makes a smart run between the defenders (positioning), doesn’t take a touch (efficiency) and scores a powerful strike into the top right corner (conversion). I also don’t think that it’s a coincidence that Lepaul scores a lot from player errors.

Take his goal against Toulouse and against Le Harve: almost identical situations in which a loose pass in picked up by him and he makes sure to convert on both occasions. Lepaul’s game has been built upon taking advantage of defensive errors and making sure he’s not wasteful. Another way in which I meant this statement is through his elevation on a season-to-season basis. Last year at Angers, Lepaul was a reasonably effective scorer, bagging 9 league goals in his first full campaign for Les Noirs et Blancs. But this season Lepaul has already almost equalled this in early November, and all the stats prove this. Lepaul has scored these 8 goals from just 26 shots, with 13 on target whereas last year he scored 9 from 41 shots, with 17 on target. Interestingly, Lepaul’s xG on target has decreased, but per 90 it has risen massively, proving the fact that he is wasting far less chances, but also showing that his scoring has improved in part due to a better standard of service.

 A third and final reason I make this statement is due to the increased pressure upon Stade Rennais in recent years – and upon strikers in particular. Selling PSG academy talent Arnaud Kalimuendo to Nottingham Forest in the summer only added to the crazy trend of high striker turnover for the Breton club. In the past 4 years you can list off Martin Terrier, Gaitan Laborde, Arnaud Kalimuendo, M’Baye Niang, Jordan Pefok, Serhou Guirassy and now also Breel Embolo who was signed in the summer. This is a very unstable position, but not because players are likely to flop here.

In fact, the only ones you could really argue that flopped were Pefok (who was young and never really got a look in), Niang and weirdly Guirassy (who obviously has gone on to become one of the best strikers in the world). All the rest have been success stories, and so Lepaul had big boots to fill.

And adding to the fact that the far more established Embolo was also signed to the striker position, you could be forgiven for thinking that Lepaul would be largely irrelevant. And that’s not even mentioning the fact that Rennes have had an underwhelming start to their campaign. All these facts and factors, but none of them matter at this minute.

 Lepaul is Rennes’ hope in a team littered with raw talent, and his impact may well be felt much further than the northwest of France.