Best in France
. . . GETS BENZEMA ATTENTION
ZIMBABWE international striker Tino Kadewere is already making a place for himself in the history of Lyon and French football with his exploits in the Ligue 1 so far.
The 25-year-old scored a brace as his side ran riot to win 5-0 in the derby against St-Etienne.
With four goals in just two derbies, having scored another brace in the reverse fixture, Kadewere is only one goal be-hind club legends like Juninho and Alexandre Lacazette in the scorers’ standings in that particular match.
According to reports in France, the 25-yearold’s performance in Sunday night’s win saw his stats improving.
The brace also saw Kadewere returning to scoring ways having endured a three-match barren run in front of goal.
He was yet to score in 2021.
The Warriors star gave Lyon the lead in the 16th minute shooting from close range.
He got his second in the 67th minute with other goals coming from Marcelo and an own goal to seal a comfortable win.
L’Équipe, a daily newspaper devoted to sport, as quoted by Get French Football News rated Kadewere as the out-standing player.
“25-year-old Lyon striker Tino Kadewere is now the highest-performing player in Ligue 1 this season, per L’Équipe, with an average rating of 6.07 out of 10,” tweeted the site. Sunday’s victory saw Les Gones reducing the gap at the top of the standings to two points, behind PSG and Lille who joint top on 45 points.
And reacting to the win, Kadewere dedicated the victory to their fans.
“We are very happy. I’m happy to have scored this double. This victory is for our supporters. This will propel us through to the end of the season. You build up trust.
“I had a good feeling that it was going to be a good game. Scoring in the first game gave me confidence and I was so sure that I might get goals and also get victory for the club and make history,” said Kadewere.
The Zimbabwean also had the support of another Lyon legend and Real Madrid star Karim Benzema before the match.
Benzema had encouraged the Warriors star to “make his dreams come true”.
“Lyonnais tonight you can make a whole city proud and happy, we are all behind you! And Tino keep making your dreams come true! #ASSEOL#TeamOL#Derby,” tweeted Benzema.
It seems he just did that, to the delight of Lyon supporters and Zimbabweans who reacted on social media.
He said he could have scored more goals if had seen the message before the game.
“Unfortunately, I don’t have Twitter (account) but I’m sure if I had seen this before the game I was probably going to score more goals because getting a tweet from such a big player and someone I look up to really gives me motivation.
“So I am really happy that one of the strikers that made me sign for Lyon is following my progress and happy with whatever I am doing. That gives confidence also and I want to thank him for the belief and support,” said Kadewere.