French soccer legend Just Fontaine has died. The French news agency AFP reported this with reference to the family of the former star player. The World Cup record scorer was 89 years old.
At the 1958 World Cup in Sweden, Fontaine scored 13 goals for Les Bleus – more than any other player at a World Cup.
France football mourns
“A monument to French football has left us,” wrote Fontaine’s ex-club Paris Saint-Germain on Twitter: “It’s a sad day for all Paris supporters.” As a coach, Fontaine had led PSG to the first division in 1974.
“The death of Just Fontaine makes me sad and saddens all those who love football and our national team,” said France coach Didier Deschamps: “Justo is and remains a legend of the French team. As a player and then as a coach, I’ve had several times the opportunity to meet him. Justo was a man of great kindness, very respectful of the generations that followed him.”
From Morocco to the top of the world
Fontaine was born on August 18, 1933 in Marrakech/Morocco. His love for football sparked at a young age. He impressed with US Marocaine Casablanca in the early 1950s with numerous goals. He moved to OGC Nice and later to Stade Reims. In 1953 he was in the French national team for the first time. By 1960, Fontaine had scored 30 goals in just 21 international matches for the French.
The player known as “Justo” had to end his career after serious injuries in his late twenties. This was followed by positions as a coach with the French and later the Moroccan national football team. Paris Saint-Germain coached Fontaine from 1973 to 1976.
