by In an interview two years ago I asked Asmir Begovic to build his fantasy goalkeeper. He chose the mentality of Gianluigi Buffon, the handling of Kasper Schmeichel, the distribution of Ederson, the communication of Manuel Neuer and the presence of Gianluigi Donnarumma.
But who did the then Bournemouth goalkeeper, now at Queen’s Park Rangers and with a brilliant career at clubs like Chelsea, select for the most fundamental task of all: stopping shots?
It was Alphonse Areola, who at that time was on loan at Fulham from Paris Saint-Germain. “It will be interesting to see where the future takes him,” Begovic said.
Well, the future took Areola across London to West Ham United and as I pass on Begovic’s identical goalkeeper (with the shot-stopping attribute assigned to him) he seems understandably surprised. After all, it’s a compliment.
“Really? In the world? I mean, this is the first time I’ve heard it!” Areola says. “I’m glad to hear it and I want to thank you for it.”
There is a pause and a smile before Areola adds, laughing: “Hmm, I think in a couple of games I’ve proven that I wasn’t lying! It’s about the daily grind: if you’re not fit, if you’re not mentally prepared, if you’re not prepared to move your feet, then you’re not really going to be able to stop the balls. It’s about the work you do every day.”
Areola has undoubtedly worked hard to be West Ham’s number one, although he rules out that title as he often shares duties with Lukasz Fabianski while David Moyes rotates his goalkeepers. Moyes is not the only manager to do this as Arsenal, who host West Ham on Thursday night, flirted with the idea before opting for David Raya instead of Aaron Ramsdale.
“The two previous seasons I was a European goalkeeper and he [Fabianski] He was the Premier League goalkeeper. It was like that,” explains Areola. “Just before the first game [of the season] The coach decided to put me on, but obviously we have to compete and give our best. If one day I am not fit, honestly, Lukasz will be there to push me.”
A wrist injury recently ruled out Areola and gave Fabianski his chance, but the France international has returned, keeping a clean sheet in the impressive win over Manchester United and is expected to retain his place as West Ham prepare to face Arsenal in the Premier League.
“We are used to it because we have been doing it all our lives; we just share a goal,” she says. “We are professionals, we have our experiences with the clubs we have been in, the titles we have won, but we leave that aside. The most important thing is the team. It’s not like tennis when you’re alone on the court. In football the results depend on each of the members of the team.”
The mention of tennis is partly because we are at the Excel Center in London, where Areola is visiting his friend and fellow Frenchman, Gael Monfils, who is playing in the ‘Ultimate Tennis Showdown’ tournament. The pair had a ‘hit’ with Monfils finally unleashing a pair of powerful serves. “I would prefer to face a sanction,” says Areola, who has been taking lessons, ironically.
When speaking to the 30-year-old, it is interesting to hear him talk not only about the importance of the “team”, but also about winning trophies. Certainly, lifting the Europa Conference League (beating Fiorentina in June) means a lot to him and is a change of mentality that he has helped bring to West Ham, even if there was the recent disappointment of their crushing quarter-final defeat in the Europa Conference League. Carabao Cup against Liverpool. .
Areola played in the 5–1 defeat, although Moyes was criticized by frustrated West Ham fans for fielding a weakened team in what was surely a genuine opportunity to take another step towards winning another trophy. He will argue that United’s victory, which took West Ham to sixth place before the Christmas matches (and therefore a place back in the Europa League) justified his move.
“I had won trophies before but I was missing a European trophy. I didn’t have any,” explains Areola. “When I signed here the first thing I heard from the club, from the board, was that ‘we want to be a competitive team in Europe.’ As soon as they told me that I said ‘I’m in.’ I sign. “I’m here for that.”
Areola was also aware that West Ham had gone 43 years without winning a trophy, since the FA Cup in 1980.
“It meant a lot to the club. I knew it,” he says. “When you are in the locker room you know it. When you sign for a club you also have to be aware of the history of the club, of the great players and when you are part of that the only thing you want is to put the club on the highest stage. I think we are doing that.
“It was incredible. Before the final, before the semifinals, before the quarterfinals, all the fans I met on the street said ‘we are with you, we know you can do it’. And we did it for them.
“When you are a competitor the only thing you want is to win titles. I have been very lucky because in my career I have won many titles, many trophies. Every time you play you have to give everything to achieve that feeling, to be celebrating with your team, with your fans, with everyone in the club. “You just want to work hard every day.”
In fact, Areola has won many titles: three French leagues and two French cups with PSG, the Spanish league on loan at Real Madrid and the World Cup with France in 2018. It is a historic career.
“When you’re a competitor, yes,” he says. “All you want is to win, win, win. Every time you go out on the field you want that. I was missing a European trophy, but if I can get another trophy at the end of this season I will be more than happy. Every competition is an opportunity for us. When you have tried it you simply want more.”
In fact, Areola has been involved in two World Cup finals: he was on the bench in 2018 and also when France lost to Argentina last year. “I started watching football with the France 98 team: Zidane, Barthez, Thierry Henry, everyone. I started from there,” says Areola.
“That French national team shirt was my first shirt and 20 years later I am here, on the same stage. I did not play [in the final] but it’s about the team, the collective, the spirit and I am part of that World Cup victory. I’m very proud of it. I spoke to my goalkeeping coach when he was 12 years old, he was part of the national team, and I almost cried. “It was pretty emotional to think that I started watching them lift that trophy and I did the same thing.”
‘The West has given me stability’
It was also important for Areola to find a home, which he has at West Ham. Despite his pedigree, and partly because it is the goalkeeper role, he has had loan spells at Lens, Bastia, Villarreal, Real Madrid and Fulham before another loan at West Ham in 2021 led to the five-year deal with the option to another 12 months.
It meant everything to Areola, who wants to put down roots with his wife Marrion, especially after the couple moved nine times since they got together 12 years ago.
“West Ham has given me that stability,” Areola says. “I had been looking for that for a long time and especially with girls, my [three] daughters. We wanted to be really settled somewhere, so when West Ham and London came along it was like “perfect place, perfect team, let’s go.” I was 100 percent in favor. “They also gave me confidence by wanting to sign me with a long-term contract.”
