Alex Thépot
Alexis Thépot ( born July 30, 1906 in Brest / Finistere region; † 21 February 1989) was a French football player.
The club career
Thépot, whom all the world called Alex only in the decade to 1935 was the most successful goalkeeper in France, who claimed by a very objective way of playing and his above-average reflexes on the goal line; Excursions in the opposition half and the time at goalkeepers still widespread Clarify with the foot were not Thépots thing.
Since his childhood, the Breton played at L' Armoricaine de Brest, where he quickly aufrückte in the first team and has been appointed for the first time at 20 in the French national football team. At the end of the season 1926/27 he moved to Paris, first played in FEC Levallois, then for the next seven years at Red Star. In the success-spoiled Brussels residents who had just won for the fourth time the French Cup, he was a difficult heritage: he was to replace the ex- goalkeeper Pierre Chayrigues. It succeeded Thépot the audience to convince them of its qualities, which excluded him despite his objectivity quickly to the heart. Following the introduction of professionalism and a national top division (1932 ) he played with Red Star two years in Division 1 and an intervening year in the second division.
Then he let his active career at U.S. Dunkerque finish before it pulled him back to Brittany, where he still played in the late 1930s, a time for the U.S. Servannaise - Malouine. Alex has a national title Thépot can not win; However you count it across the Rhine to the greats: France Football Thépot sees as the seventh best French goalkeeper of all time (October 2006).
Stations
- L' Armoricaine de Brest ( to 1927 )
- FEC Levallois (1927 /28)
- Red Star Paris (1928-1935)
- USL Dunkerque (1935 /36)
- U.S. Saint -Servan -Saint -Malo
The National Players
From May 1927 to March 1935 Alex played a total of 31 times in the Thépot Équipe Tricolore (including one game for Brest, six Levallois and 24 for Red Star ) and remained long record keeper of France, to Georges Carnus overtook him in the early 1970s. In 13 games, he was also captain of the national team. As in the club, managed Thépot also here to make the fade " long shadow " of his predecessor ( Maurice Cottenet ). His first and his last game as captain (which at the same time his last international game ever ), he played the way each against Germany: 1-0 (1931 ) and the 1:3 ( 1935).
At the Olympic football tournament in 1928 as well as in the Football World Cup in 1930 and 1934, he played all games for les Bleus. In Uruguay in 1930, he brought the house highly favored Argentines almost to despair, because he just kept all the balls - until he had to leave but then happen in the 81st minute free-kick. The praise also many South Americans, who counted firmly with a tablet- prone final between Uruguay and Argentina, honest and earned.
In the match against Chile on 19 July 1930, he held in his 30 minutes of play against Guillermo Saavedra first imposed in a World Cup penalty.
Life after time as players
Thépot worked even in his playing days in the state's border management, but remained the French football after his retirement as a player still connected: for a while he coached the U.S. Malouines ( until 1939 ), and after the Second World War he was in the committee of the Football Federation FFF appointed and selected the players for the Équipe Tricolore. After a hefty defeat against Switzerland, he joined in 1960 from this post back.