Vous or Tu? It speaks volumes about Habib Diarra that his elation at being elevated from the youth ranks at Strasbourg to the first team was mixed with anxiety over the two distinct words for “you.”
Was it appropriate to address new, older teammates by using “tu” be considered too familiar? In the end, the promising talent opted for caution and chose the more polite “vous”. This prompted widespread amusement from the veterans who told him not to be so silly; he was part of the group now.
“After I had the first call with the coach, I sat down and said to my parents: ‘Sunderland’s where I want to be; that’s where I want to play.’ England's top flight was always a ambition of mine and the coach presented me with a well-defined and appealing project.”
Roughly half a decade later, Diarra is sitting in an office at the club's training ground explaining why he turned down offers from, among others, Milan, Atlético Madrid, Eintracht Frankfurt, Aston Villa and Leeds. His innate courtesy endures but it is evident that the 22-year-old Senegal international and doubt are practically unacquainted. Diarra conducts himself with the confidence befitting a player who captained Strasbourg at the age of 20 and, only last month, returned from Morocco clutching an Africa Cup of Nations winners’ medal.
A Clear Project
With the groin injury that sidelined him for much of the opening months of the league campaign healed, Diarra is on a mission to demonstrate precisely why he agreed to become Sunderland’s record £30m signing last summer. Analysts in France and Senegal queried Diarra’s surprising decision but he knew all about Régis Le Bris’s reputation as a talented youth coach.
“It came as no shock by the coach’s ability because I already knew what he’s capable of,” says Diarra. “Facing his teams I understood he was very good, very strong in terms of strategy. He’s someone I know is helping my game progress. And although our primary aim is reaching 40 points, European qualification is certainly a realistic target this season.”
A Unified Environment
Outside, the chilly February wind and driving rain makes Wearside look as grim as it is often stereotyped. Inside, things are much more welcoming. The environment is free of the type of tension notable at certain clubs where office workers are deliberately segregated from Premier League squads. Diarra portrays the environment as “really natural” and commends Le Bris’s role in its formation.
“The coach always says to us that we’re like a family here and we all support each other,” he says. “Each of us takes pride of each other.”
Freedom Within a Framework
If the structure, rigor and sheer hard yards underpinning Sunderland’s out-of-possession shape are a proof of the head coach’s meticulous eye for detail, Le Bris also likes his players to use their initiative. He offers his midfielders complete licence to be creative and interchange positions.
“Our manager establishes his tactics out within a structure but we have freedom to play within it,” says Diarra, who prefers to be deployed as a box-to-box No 8. “Out on the pitch that feels good. That autonomy is so important. Granit, our skipper, helps us a lot. He’s a really big player and a fantastic example.”
Path and Settlement
Diarra is speaking through a French interpreter but his English has advanced to the point where he can grasp most questions. He is now focusing on acquiring the vocabulary to also answer them, which would be his third language. He is fluent in Wolof, the language he spoke growing up in Guédiawaye near the Senegalese capital.
His early maturity helped him combat the frustration of needing groin surgery followed by four months out of action last autumn. “Being injured so soon after arriving here was frustrating, for sure,” he says. “But it was up to me to manage myself.”
Diarra is now looking forward to playing in this summer’s World Cup. Given Senegal have been drawn in the same group as France, a emotional matchup awaits the former Les Bleus under-21 midfielder. “I enjoyed representing for France but my inner feeling prevailed,” says Diarra. “There’s no regrets. I was born in Senegal; it fills me with pride to play for them.”
Comparable feelings apply to Sunderland. “I've settled very well,” he says. “I feel really comfortable here.”
