The arrival of Nzonzi is "a sign of the evolution of the club", according to Létang

• World champion Steven Nzonzi has signed up for loan until the end of the season with Stade Rennais, with the option of an additional year if Rennes finishes on the podium.
• The arrival of a world champion in the ranks of Rennes is "a sign of the evolution of the club" according to its president Olivier Létang.
• "Not at its best", the player hopes to be operational "within a week".

He was with Pogba, Grizou and Lucas Hernandez the only 2018 world champion to never have played in our good old Ligue 1. An anomaly for a player who had yet known the lower floor with Amiens before joining the Blackburn Rovers in 2009 After England, Spain, Italy and Turkey, Steven Nzonzi therefore continues his tour of Europe by returning to the country. Loaned by Roma, the midfielder has committed until the end of the season with Stade Rennais, with an option of an additional year which will be automatically lifted if the Breton club finishes on the podium.

[#MercatoSRFC]

📽 From La Piverdière to @RoazhonPark, relive the arrival of Steven #Nzonzi at #Rennes and discover the first words of our midfielder. 😁
--- # AllezRennes # ToutDonner 💪🔴⚫ pic.twitter.com/RVeP0hd8kp

With this reinforcement of weight, Rennes signed one of the big shots of the winter transfer window in Ligue 1. Olivier Létang wants to see there “a sign of the evolution of the club”. “We have been trying to grow the club for two years with the aim of participating in a European competition as often as possible, something we have already done twice in two years (…) Steven's arrival probably means that the club's image is evolving positively, "said the Rennes president on Monday morning during the player's press presentation.

A place in the French team to find

It seems far away indeed the time when the club was the laughing stock of French football. After its European epic and its victory in the Coupe de France last season, Stade Rennais, 3rd in Ligue 1, presents itself this season as a serious candidate for a place in the Champions League. And the arrival of Steven Nzonzi only confirms this new status. "I immediately liked the challenge," said the midfielder. It is a club which gives the image of evolving very positively ”.

Steven Nzonzi presented to the public @staderennais! #SRFCFCN on CANAL + SPORT! pic.twitter.com/fVggnx9W7r

After a complicated stay at Galatasaray on which he did not want to pour out, the defensive midfielder knows he is expected at the turn. "The status of world champion changes the game, we expect a lot more from you," he said. At the approach of the Euro, Steven Nzonzi will also have to convince Didier Deschamps, who has not called him in the France team since November 2018. "It did not condition my choice," he assured. , aware that it is his performances "which will condition the future".

"Not at my best," admits the player

But before dreaming of blue again, Steven Nzonzi will first have to regain his physical condition. "I'm not at my best," admitted the player, who has not been on the pitch since December 11 and the rouste taken by Galatasaray in Paris.

Presented to the press this morning, Steven Nzonzi himself says that he is not "at his best". But it should be quickly operational according to the coach Julien Stéphan pic.StFC pic.twitter.com/TAVF8qUbsC

"But I didn't have any injuries and I trained for a month," he said, hoping to be operational "within a week".

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